When green living is not just a trend

Present at the seminar were typical individuals of the green lifestyle during the pandemic: Ms. Hoang Thao - Event coordinator, Founder of the Green Culinary-Consumption Community, Mr. Truong Minh Den - Founder of Vietnam Environmental Collaborators, Ms. Bui My Nhat - Leader of the Green River Initiative, Ms. Han Thanh Giang - President of The Stratic 2021, and finally, Mr. Hoang Quy Binh - Founder of Green Life.

“100% green” community

Ms. Hoang Thao - Founder of the Green Culinary-Consumption Community said at first she had some problems as she had to stay at home but still wanted to live green. Normally, she would use cloth bags and personal water bottles to buy foods and drinks. However, due to the pandemic, she was made to order food in styrofoam boxes, plastic bags, etc, and thus feeling uncomfortable.

That was the reason why she founded the Green Culinary-Consumption Community so that everyone can buy and sell necessities and reduce packaging waste. Ms. Thao aims to achieve 100% green products, from the core to the outer packaging. Therefore, the shops in her community must follow the set rules strictly.

Ms. Hoang Thao explained that it is time for everyone to think about packaging when consuming a product. A product is not “green” if its packaging is not sustainable or the manufacturer does not have a return policy.

Special markets and fairs

Despite the challenges from the pandemic, Mr. Truong Minh Den - Founder of the Vietnam Environmental Collaborators still organized educational fairs on sustainable energy. His destination was Co Tu community, Quang Nam province.

Without online communication, Mr. Den chose to take advantage of local resources. His group attracted the locals with special markets, such as exchanging compact light bulbs for LED bulbs or for food among localities. At the same time, this activity created a space for him and his partners to exchange knowledge related to energy and climate change.

However, Mr. Den said these special markets largely depended on current situations of the pandemic in the area. His team came across some difficulties, but they successfully took advantages of the local resources. He recounted the time he used a canvas which was used to dry rice from local people for children to gather in a circle, creating meaningful messages about green living.

Positive signals from the community

Throughout the seminar, the speakers shared their projects’ impact on the community. Ms. Hoang Thao said that from last May until now, the Green Culinary-Consumption Community has had more than 45,000 participants. She is happy to find companions, with whom she prolongs the journey of green living.

As for Mr. Truong Minh Den, the energy fair project immediately received positive feedback from the local. Most people have switched to use interchangeable LED bulbs instead of compact ones in the past. Some households were even willing to invest money to synchronize the lighting system in their houses.

Ms. Bui My Nhat - Leader of the Green River Initiative, organized a series of training sessions on green living that succeeded beyond expectations. She said the project has attracted a large number of applications, and at the same time, many young people were inspired and ready to start environment-driven clubs.

Ms. Han Thanh Giang - President of The Stratic 2021, has implemented a number of activities, such as, exchanging talks with founders of green businesses, instructing how to make organic soap, etc. Even when turning into virtual methods, The Stratic has expanded its scope of activities significantly, from Hanoi to the whole country. This is the clearest evidence for the project's spread.

Finally, Mr. Hoang Quy Binh - Founder of Green Life, shared his success in developing internal human resources during the pandemic. He has planned sharing sessions on skills of marketing, design and content writing in order to help students acquire soft skills and apply them to convey messages of green living.

Cultivating “green sprouts”

An outstanding feature of the seminar was the audience had opportunities to express their views on green living when participating in a survey on Zoom. The Organizing Committee asked the participants a number of questions, such as, “What is the biggest challenge towards living green during the Covid pandemic?” or “What can you do tomorrow to live green?”, etc, and a lot of feedback was given then. 

After the seminar, the students were somewhat aware of the benefits of green living and how to form that lifestyle during the pandemic. Student Pham Thanh Hang shared: “After two hours of participating in the event, I feel that green living is no longer a trend but it has gradually become a lifestyle. I will change my lifestyle from tomorrow.” Student Nguyen Huu Duc said: “What impressed me was the event’s survey, but hopefully, the audience can directly communicate with each other to find companions in the process of green living”.