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Associate Professor Dr. Ha Dinh Duc pictured with the Hoan Kiem turtle.

Associate Professor Dr. Ha Dinh Duc was born in 1940 in Xuan Thanh Commune, the former Tho Xuan District, now Xuan Hong Commune in Thanh Hoa Province.

He was formerly a senior lecturer at the Faculty of Biology, University of Science under Vietnam National University, Hanoi. In 2010, he was awarded the title of Meritorious Teacher by the State. He also received multiple Certificates of Merit from the Hanoi People’s Committee and was twice honoured by the city as a “Good Person, Good Deed”.

For residents of Hanoi and people across Vietnam, Duc was best known as a “turtle expert” for his long-standing work on and pioneering research into the Hoan Kiem turtle - one of the world’s rarest turtles, with only two individuals officially recorded. Since 1991, he had conducted six national-level research projects on Hoan Kiem Lake and written around 200 articles about the Hoan Kiem turtle.

In recognition of his research and contributions related to the Hoan Kiem turtle, Hanoi named Associate Professor Dr. Ha Dinh Duc an “Outstanding Citizen of the Capital” in 2012.

He was also the person who proposed establishing a “Kilometre Zero” marker at Hoan Kiem Lake and put forward several other initiatives, including restoring the memorial site dedicated to King Le and organising a festival to commemorate the coronation of King Le Thai To.

Kieu Oanh