Lesson 1: "Greening" the Internet
With its wide reach and rapid dissemination, the digital space is increasingly profoundly impacting the awareness, behavior, and lifestyles of young people. Recognizing this, the youth of Nghe An have recently strived to play a pioneering role in "greening" the online space through practical and effective models and approaches.
Authors: Khanh Ly - Thanh Quynh
With its wide reach and rapid dissemination, the digital space is increasingly profoundly impacting the awareness, behavior, and lifestyles of young people. Recognizing this, the youth of Nghe An have recently strived to play a pioneering role in "greening" the online space through practical and effective models and approaches.
Living and working in Vinh City, Mr. Nguyen Viet Dung (born in 1983) – a native of Dung town, Thanh Chuong district – always keeps his heart focused on his hometown. On social media, he regularly follows the activities of the youth in his hometown through Facebook pages such as "Thanh Dong Commune Youth Union" and "Dung Town Youth Union". Inspired by the useful information disseminated on these two channels, Mr. Dung did not hesitate to donate over 100 million VND to support youth projects and assist those in difficult circumstances in the area.
According to Mr. Nguyen Cao Loi, Secretary of the Youth Union of Dung Town, the "Thanh Dong Commune Youth Union Facebook Page" was established in 2016. Nearly 10 years into its operation, the page has attracted over 4,900 members and 3,550 followers, becoming a close and official information channel for young people and local residents. After Thanh Dong Commune merged with Thanh Linh Commune and Thanh Chuong Town to form Dung Town, Mr. Loi continued to establish and manage the Dung Town Youth Union Fanpage from December 2024. This continues to be a positive online space, contributing to spreading the spirit of living beautifully and usefully within the youth community.
More than just a platform for updating Youth Union and Association activities, this social media site also serves as a bridge to spread humane stories and acts of kindness. Through maintaining digital communication channels, Youth Union members and young people have contributed numerous articles conveying the Party's guidelines and policies, as well as the State's laws and regulations, to the people, especially young people. This has helped create consensus and unity in thought and action. Many articles not only attract high levels of interaction but also awaken social responsibility and a spirit of dedication among the younger generation. As a result, the local Youth Union has raised over 1.5 billion VND to implement social welfare activities, build new rural areas, and improve community life. Simultaneously, it has contributed to upgrading over 40 km of rural roads and donating thousands of gifts to disadvantaged people in the area.
Not only in Dung town, but many other Youth Union branches such as Tien Ky commune (Tan Ky district), Thach Giam town (Tuong Duong district), Hoa Hieu ward (Thai Hoa town)... are also effectively utilizing digital platforms. Through sharing inspiring stories and highlighting good examples in learning, work, entrepreneurship, and volunteering, the community pages managed by the Youth Union have contributed to building a positive, healthy, and humane online environment. For example, the Nghe An Provincial Youth Union Fanpage, with over 104,000 followers, has been a communication channel connecting thousands of Youth Union members and young people across the province to jointly implement many beneficial projects and activities. In addition, the Tinhdoannghean.vn website publishes nearly 5,000 news articles annually; the Nghe An Youth TikTok account publishes nearly 1,000 activity clips and videos, and over 30,000 articles and images of positive activities of young people inside and outside the province. The Fanpage "Living Green - Lighthouse" - a cyber warfare channel established in 2022 - has also edited and published over 45,000 news articles related to law, ideological guidance, and public opinion for youth union members and young people.
These are also positive information channels responding to the "One good news story every day, one beautiful story every week" campaign launched by the Central Committee of the Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union, aiming to spread positive values, good examples, and good deeds, creating a ripple effect in the community, especially among young people in the online space.
During a working session with the Standing Committee of the Nghe An Provincial Party Committee and the Standing Committee of the Nghe An Provincial Youth Union, Comrade Ngo Van Cuong - Secretary of the Central Committee of the Youth Union, Chairman of the Central Committee's Inspection Commission of the Youth Union, held ahead of the event. The 18th Congress of the Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union of Nghe An province assessed that: The youth of Nghe An have done very well in propaganda work, being one of the exemplary units of the youth in the North Central region with many creative and timely methods of disseminating important information to union members, youth and all strata of the people.
It can be affirmed that the youth of Nghe An have been striving to build a healthy and humane online environment, placing kindness at the center of digital communication. This has helped the communication work of the Youth Union become increasingly in-depth, creating a positive impact on society.
Responding to the Prime Minister's launch of the "Digital Literacy Movement," the youth team of Hanh Dich commune, Que Phong district, has been very active recently. Lo Van Diep, Secretary of the Hanh Dich Commune Youth Union, shared that Hanh Dich commune shares a border with Laos stretching over 13 km. The commune has 6 villages with 3,635 inhabitants. The lives of the people are still difficult, as the majority are ethnic minorities. People's access to information on digital platforms has increased recently. However, understanding the two-way nature of the internet, the local youth have coordinated with the commune police force to go to the villages to guide people on how to avoid harmful, toxic, and fraudulent information online, while also encouraging the use of technology to serve their lives, studies, and production.
With guidance from the local youth's "Digital Literacy Team," Mr. Lo Van Chien (born in 1960) shared that his family has been running a homestay business in Long Thang village for many years – bordering Muong Quan district in Laos. Previously, digital technology was quite unfamiliar to him and many other locals. But the specific guidance from the local youth, from helping install applications and access the internet to creating social media accounts, has opened up a new path for the people in developing their economy through community tourism. In particular, the "Digital Literacy Team" model has helped people "protect themselves" online, avoiding falling into the traps of malicious individuals. In the context of high-tech crime increasingly infiltrating even remote areas, the proactive involvement of youth union members in border regions like Hanh Dich commune truly acts as a "soft shield," contributing to the protection of security and order at the grassroots level.
The first "Digital Literacy Team" of the province's youth was established and launched at the Youth Month 2025 kick-off ceremony on March 1, 2025. After more than a month of implementation, 100% of communes, wards, and towns have now established "Digital Literacy Teams". With the motto "going door-to-door" to eradicate digital illiteracy, these teams have contributed to building communities adapting to digital transformation and preventing online fraud. This affirms the pioneering role of youth in promoting the national digital transformation process effectively and synchronously, contributing to the effective implementation of Resolution No. 57-NQ/TW of the Politburo on breakthroughs in the development of science, technology, innovation, and national digital transformation; and Resolution No. 03/NQ-CP of the Government on promulgating the Government's action program for implementation. Resolution No. 57-NQ/TW dated December 22, 2024, of the Politburo on breakthroughs in the development of science, technology, innovation, and national digital transformation.
With nearly 1 million young people, Nghe An possesses a large and powerful youth force – both a significant source of future human resources and a group easily influenced by diverse information flows in cyberspace. To contribute to renewing the content and methods of youth education in the digital age, the province's youth have effectively implemented many in-depth, practical, and impactful campaigns such as: "Civilized behavior in cyberspace," "Building a model of Nghe An youth in the new situation," and "Proud of our homeland"... Through these efforts, they have contributed to spreading positive values and building a healthy and safe online environment.
Currently, Nghe An province has over 460 district and commune-level speakers and propagandists, along with more than 50 provincial-level speakers, who are playing a bridging role between the Youth Union and young people and the general public in the field of propaganda. Not only are they persistently innovating the content and form of propaganda, but this force also directly supports people in improving their digital skills through practical models such as "Digital Literacy for the People," "Community Digital Technology Teams," and the communication channels of the Youth Union at all levels. Young people are not only a leading force in spreading positive information, but also a solid support system for people, especially in disadvantaged areas, to avoid misleading and harmful information, and to master technology in their daily lives.
These efforts have brought about significant changes in the awareness and behavior of young people, while also contributing to strengthening their resilience against the negative aspects of the online environment. More importantly, through specific and practical activities, the Youth Union at all levels has gradually affirmed its role as a force accompanying and guiding young people on their journey to master technology, maintain their character and integrity in the digital age.