Enhancing communication skills on plastic waste prevention

Many delegates from the Central - Central Highlands region attending the conference.

Mr. Doan Truong Giang, Deputy Director of the Natural Resources and Environmental Communication Center, shared important statistics: Vietnam annually generates about 1.8 million tons of plastic waste, in which Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi contributing more than 80 tons per day. However, only about 27% of this plastic waste is recycled, and approximately 0.28 to 0.73 million tons end up in the sea.

Vietnam has been actively implementing various strategies to reduce plastic waste and protect the environment. Among them, communication efforts to raise public awareness have been widely deployed. Numerous models and initiatives for plastic waste management have been successfully applied in daily life, promoting a greener and cleaner lifestyle that harmonizes with nature and safeguards the future for the next generations.

During the event, participants were provided with support and exchanged experiences on communication skills. The discussions centered around two main topics: “The role of communication, journalism, and environmental propaganda in raising community awareness about the harm of single-use plastics and the movement to combat plastic waste to protect the environment”, and “Solutions to enhance the effectiveness of communication in changing producer and consumer behaviors to reduce, limit, reuse, recycle, and gradually eliminate completely single-use plastics and non-degradable plastic bags.”

The two topics aimed to strengthen the role of journalism and the network of communicators in spreading awareness. The conference also proposed plans and successful models to increase awareness and change consumer habits regarding the use of non-degradable plastic bags and single-use plastic products.