'Young responsibility' in environmental protection

Promote initiative

Recognizing the role and importance of environmental protection, in recent years, the Youth Union at all levels in the province has constantly innovated its methods, implemented practical activities, promoted efficiency and created an impression and influence in the community.

Youth Union members participate in responding to Earth Hour. Photo: PV

Thanh Chuong District Youth Union Deputy Secretary Tran Dinh Thanh said that from 2015 to 2019, Thanh Chuong Youth Union members simultaneously launched 49 campaigns to collect and treat waste in response to the movements "Volunteer Saturday" and "Green Sunday". Thanh Ngoc commune is a typical unit with many good ways to promote environmental protection and respond to climate change.

To eliminate garbage black spots in the area, the Thanh Ngoc Commune Youth Union Executive Committee has consulted with the authorities and the Thanh Ngoc Commune Party Committee to coordinate with mass organizations to install 6 security cameras to monitor and handle the act of dumping garbage in the wrong place; regularly organize cleaning of village roads and alleys, collect and treat garbage along polluted roads every Saturday and Sunday afternoon; put up warning signs prohibiting dumping garbage at garbage "black spots"; mobilize and call on surrounding households to maintain environmental protection awareness.

Turning a landfill into a sports field at the foot of Ro bridge (Thanh Chuong).

With the participation of the Youth Union, both strengthening propaganda and mobilization and regularly collecting waste, up to now, Thanh Chuong district has completely handled 51 black spots of waste, built 110 new waste treatment pits at people's houses, dredged more than 30 km of polluted canals, cleared and cleaned village roads and alleys with a total length of more than 50 km; planted 3,000 new trees of all kinds and established 250 volunteer youth teams on the spot...

In addition to the general environmental protection field, for marine environmental protection, during the Youth Month and the Summer Volunteer Campaign, the youth union members in coastal districts and towns also simultaneously launched a campaign to clean up the environment at the beaches, to send a call to the community to join hands in protecting the environment such as Cua Lo Town, Dien Chau District, Quynh Luu District, Hoang Mai Town.

According to Secretary of Hoang Mai Town Youth Union - Mr. Ho Canh Thuan, the town currently has 10 wards and communes, of which 7 units are adjacent to the sea and Hoang Mai River. Every month, the Town Youth Union organizes a campaign to clean up the beach, place propaganda signs and trash bins at places where there are production and business households.

"Each ward and commune unit established a group of youth union members to regularly mobilize and propagate local people not to dump garbage into rivers and seas, helping Hoang Mai become greener, cleaner, more beautiful, attracting tourists to Nghe An."

Mr. Ho Canh Thuan - Secretary of Hoang Mai Town Youth Union

A corner of Con creek in Quynh Phuong ward (Hoang Mai town). Photo: PV

Hoang Mai Town Youth Union also coordinated with the Women's Union to establish the "I love the blue sea" Club in Quynh Phuong Ward, organizing activities every 3 months to help people, cadres, youth union members, and members understand more about the role and significance of the sea to life as well as the importance of protecting the marine environment and sovereignty over seas and islands. Through that, people are instructed on how to collect and classify waste; educate people on love for the sea and islands, love for the homeland.

Since the beginning of 2019, environmental sanitation activities across the province have attracted about 105,000 union members and young people to participate; collected about 430 tons of waste; cleaned 48 km of roads along the beach; cleared 92 km of rural roads; and dredged 33 km of canals.

Diversify the way of doing

Identifying environmental protection as a key and regular movement, in order to constantly innovate environmental protection propaganda and education in both content and form, over the past time, Youth Union chapters at all levels in the province have closely coordinated with relevant departments and branches to organize communication campaigns according to a series of events and major holidays of the year, attracting thousands of union members and young people to participate.

Youth union members took action to clean up the beaches.

Recently, the Provincial Youth Union organized the 2019 Summer Youth Volunteer Campaign with the theme "Youth Volunteers for the Community" in Hoang Mai town. After the ceremony, nearly 2,000 union members, youth and local people participated in the program to clean up and collect many types of household waste and plastic waste and bring them to the designated garbage collection site, contributing to making Quynh Phuong beach and locations along the Hoang Mai River cleaner.

Along with the campaign to clean up the environment, the Youth Union and Association at all levels in the province also promoted propaganda among cadres, union members, youth, and people to respond to the campaign "Say no to plastic waste" through the program of distributing free straws and bags made from cornstarch to people and businesses; to together change the habit of using plastic products, reducing the burden of environmental pollution.

“Thanks to the youth union members who distributed straws and bags for making corn flour and propagandized the harmful effects of using plastic bags and plastic waste on the environment and human health, I have realized that I should not litter and limit the use of plastic bags when going to the market. Instead, I need to encourage relatives, family and friends to use environmentally friendly products.”

Ms. Nguyen Thi Loan - Hung Dung ward, Vinh city

Nghe An Youth Union launched a campaign to distribute free straws and bags made from cornstarch to residents and businesses. Photo: Phuong Thuy

Also within the framework of the campaign "Say no to plastic waste", the Provincial Youth Union Standing Committee launched the contest "Challenge for change", spreading the beautiful actions and images of union members and young people through social networking sites to promote activities of collecting and recycling plastic waste and nylon bags at markets, supermarkets, shopping malls, residential areas, etc., attracting hundreds of union members and young people to participate.

Talking to us, comrade Pham Van Toan - Head of the Movement Committee of Nghe An Provincial Youth Union said that in the coming time, the Provincial Youth Union will continue to direct the Youth Union chapters at all levels in the province to promote propaganda, education and implement programs, contributing to solving environmental problems and hot spots, overcoming the consequences of natural disasters such as: planting trees, cleaning the environment; establishing and maintaining at least one youth volunteer team to protect the environment in 21 units; building models to protect the hometown river; launching a movement to say no to plastic waste, nylon bags, ... to raise awareness of union members, youth and people in protecting the environment.