in the “School Ambassador in Disaster Prevention and Climate Change Adaptation” Competition 2019 on Saturday.

Truong Nguyen Y Nhu and Tran Thanh Thuy receive the special prize for "Waking sleeping land after the disaster". — Photo courtesy of the organiser

The competition was co-hosted by the Viet Nam Disaster Management Authority, the United Nations Development Programme and the provincial People’s Committees of Quang Nam, Thua Thien Hue and Ninh Thuan under the framework of the Project “Improving Resilience of Vulnerable Coastal Communities to Climate-Related Impact in Vietnam”.

Participants were offered a playground to better comprehend climate-change adaptation and mitigation, and to raise awareness within their communities in creative ways.

More than 500 entries which conveyed original ideas and in-depth content were sent from the three province’s secondary school students to the organisers over three months.

Truong Nguyen Y Nhu and Tran Thanh Thuy, two seventh-graders at Nguyen Binh Khiem School in Hoi An Town in Quang Nam Province, received the special prize for a five-minute documentary named "Waking Sleeping Land after the Disaster”.

The film depicts the iconic Thu Bon River, the town’s popular tourism spot, before it was abandoned after the flood in 2000.

To revive the river’s beauty and help local people earn sustainable livelihoods, the two students made recommendations to use its potential and land resources to develop tourism activities such as tourist boat visits to Hoi An during the flood season.

Tran Quang Hoai, general director of the VNDMA entries, praised the entries for their creative expressions that touched upon contemporary issues and their calls for people to come up with solutions to improve the environment.

Speaking to participants, Caitlin Wiesen, UNDP Resident Representative in Vietnam, said she hoped the participants would further engagement in climate-change adaption and mitigation.
“Students are our future. Their innovative ideas and solutions can help us make the changes that are necessary to build a resilient and sustainable future for Vietnam. I hope you will share the information you have learned, as well as the ideas and solutions developed in this competition, when you return home,” she said.

VNS