Mondelez Kinh Do Vietnam helps Vietnamese students learn about environment

In recent years, plastic waste has become a global issue with drastic impacts on many countries, including Vietnam. With nearly two million tonnes of plastic waste discharged annually, Vietnam is facing multiple environmental risks that seriously affect people’s lives and health.

In response to the call of the government, the United Nations, and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) for plastic waste reduction, and to help materialise the UN Sustainable Development Goals, Mondelez Kinh Do Vietnam, part of Mondelēz International – one of the world’s largest snacks companies – organised the Green Day event themed Plastic Waste Recycling for 3,500 students in Binh Duong province on November 23, 2019.

The programme continues in the north, approaching some 1,500 students in Hung Yen province on December 7 with the collaboration of the local Department of Education and Training.

This is an annual activity as part of Mondelez Kinh Do’s Joy Schools programme, which was launched in 2017 and so far has involved more than 327 employees of the company who have contributed 1,308 volunteer hours to advocate nutrition education, active lifestyle, and access to fresh food for primary students. “Environment” is the key topic of this year’s Joy Schools programme.

“Mondelēz International remains committed to using its global scale to make a difference in the world. In the 2025 sustainability goals, Mondelēz will reduce its environmental impact by making all packaging recyclable,” said Hemant Rupani, managing director, Mondelez Kinh Do Vietnam.

“I hope that the activities in the Green Day help kids better understand the situation of plastic waste in Vietnam and the world. We also believe that the knowledge and skills that they gained at Green Day will be brought into their daily life and spread around in the community to raise awareness about reducing plastic waste to protect our environment,” he noted.

This year, Green Day took place at primary schools in Binh Duong province and Hung Yen province, attracting nearly 5,000 students and more than 150 volunteers who contribute over 600 hours supporting the children.

At the event, students can learn about the importance of reducing waste and how to recycle in everyday life through real experiences brought about by the STEAM method. They can watch documentaries and cartoons that depict the real status of the environment today to enhance awareness of the increasing risk of plastic waste in Vietnam.

In addition, volunteers will help kids use plastic crushers, make balloon pumps from plastic bottles, learn about the operational principles and how to make potential energy-powered racing cars, paper rockets, and tree pots from plastic bottles, and mazes from plastic straws.

This is the first time Mondelez Kinh Do helps students gain a good understanding of the negative impacts of plastic waste and the reasons to recycle. The children take the chance to learn practical recycling methods featuring various themes, which help them memorise the information longer, enhance their creativity, enrich their scientific knowledge, and encourage them to better protect the environment.

“We understand that the STEAM education approach will enable school-age children to acquire a broader range of knowledge in a fun and easy way, thus inspiring them to come up with innovative solutions for plastic waste reduction and environmental protection. This also helps nurture a love for science, with which students can excel in the future,” said Phan Xuan Quyet, deputy director of the Department of Education and Training of My Hao, Hung Yen province at the event.

Besides, at Green Day, Mondelez Kinh Do Vietnam created a fun, educational playground with numerous exciting physical activities such as the Challenging Steps, Who’s faster, Scorer, and others. This gave an opportunity for kids to strengthen their physical stature and have positive interactions together.

“I’m very excited to join this Green Day, through which I’ve learnt many new things, including how to recycle unused stuff into toys. I believe that we should join hands together to protect the environment, and should not litter to keep our city clean, safe, and free from pollution,” said Thanh Trung, a student of Class 5-7, An Phu Primary School.

“I’m very happy to participate in the Green Day of Mondelez Kinh Do. I liked the game ‘Finding the Way out of the Labyrinth’ best, because it helps us learn a lot of useful things. In addition, Green Day taught me about recycling and eco-friendly products and will help in my studies. I hope there will be more days like this for students like me to learn how to protect the environment,” said Quynh Nhu, a student of Nhan Hoa Primary School.

Mondelez Kinh Do Vietnam is committed to growing a green, healthy community through impactful activities, such as the “Joy Schools” flagship programme. With such unwavering efforts, Mondelez Kinh Do Vietnam has been honoured with the AmCham CSR Recognition Awards for best CSR practices in 2019.

As scheduled, Mondelez Kinh Do Vietnam will continue to expand the project in 2020 to further benefit thousands of primary school students in the country.