Vietnam to raise the spirit of 'Plastic-Free Schools' in ASEAN Eco-schools

On the morning of September 19 in Hanoi, the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment (MAE) launched the ASEAN Eco-schools Award Vietnam 2025 and the Dialogue “Plastic-Free Schools: Action for a Green Generation”. The event attracted nearly 300 domestic and international guests onsite, and connected more than 400 virtual hubs with nearly 10,000 online participants.

The ASEAN Eco-schools Award is an important activity under the framework of the ASEAN Senior Officials on the Environment. It honors schools with outstanding achievements in education, environmental protection, and sustainable development. In 2025, the theme “Plastic-Free Schools” was chosen in response to the United Nations’ call to “Beat Plastic Pollution.”

According to statistics, Vietnam generates about 3.8 million tons of plastic waste each year, of which more than 2 million tons are improperly managed, leaking into soil, rivers, and seas, causing serious impacts on ecosystems and people’s lives. Meanwhile, the rate of plastic waste segregation and recycling is only about 20 - 27%. In schools, 50% of waste is single-use plastic, which not only affects students’ health but also fosters unsustainable consumption habits.

In his opening speech, Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Environment Le Cong Thanh emphasized that education is the foundation for sustainable development: “Schools are not only places to impart knowledge but also nurseries of character, awareness, and responsibility among the younger generation toward society and the environment”. He stressed that students play a particularly important role, as they not only carry out practical actions such as saving electricity and water, reducing plastic use, segregating waste, and planting trees, but also become effective messengers spreading environmental awareness to families and communities.

The Deputy Minister affirmed that the 2025 Award will serve as a strong impetus to build a network of green schools in Vietnam, spread environmental awareness, and encourage innovation and creativity in teaching and learning. He stressed that this is not merely a competition, but a broad social movement, contributing to the creation of a “green - clean - beautiful” school community.

Accompanying the Award, the "For Green Future" Foundation (Vingroup Group) continues as the Strategic Sponsor. Ms. Le Thai Ha - Executive Director of the Foundation, stated: “Investing in today’s young generation is creating a green future for tomorrow. Through each school’s application, we see innovative ideas and practical actions to reduce plastic waste. That is why the Foundation always stands alongside schools”. This is the second consecutive year the Fund has cooperated with the MAE to implement the award nationwide, reflecting strong connections between the private sector and education in sustainable development.

From the perspective of schools, Mr. Phan Anh - Principal of Genesis Secondary School, the unit that won First Prize in the ASEAN Eco-schools Award Secondary School category in 2024, emphasized: “We always wish to make the classroom the birthplace of green ideas. The Award is a motivation for Genesis teachers and students to continue cultivating habits of environmental protection”. As part of the launch, delegates directly visited the eco-school model at Genesis, exploring how environmental knowledge is integrated into curricula and extracurricular activities. These real-life experiences provided strong inspiration to teachers and students, affirming the effectiveness of environmental education starting from schools.

Representing the co-organizer, Mr. Nguyen Ngoc Thach, Editor-in-Chief of the Agriculture and Environment Newspaper, expressed his hope that the Award would ignite green awareness in every student - the “green ambassadors” of the future. He stressed: “Small actions such as waste segregation, collecting plastics, or planting a tree today will germinate into sustainable values for tomorrow”.

Following the launch, the Organizing Committee will implement a series of related events such as the Forum “Building ASEAN Eco-schools - Plastic-Free Schools: Action for a Green Generation” in Hue and Can Tho in September-October 2025, before holding the Award Ceremony in December 2025 in Hanoi. These activities will further spread the message of a green education environment, helping nurture a generation that is aware, responsible, and ready to act for a green and clean Vietnam and ASEAN.