350 Vietnam is on a roll. Here's a new update from our friends in Ho Chi Minh City…

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While 350.org team was still feeling down about the recent news of the Vietnamese government’s plan to build 90 new coal plants by 2025, the local residents in District 10 of Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC) found a much better way to “offset” the impact with an amazing event last Saturday, 11 June.

The event, Green Street joins the Green Consumption Campaign, is part of the Green Consumption Campaign (May – July 2011) in HCMC. The campaign aims to promote environmentally friendly brands and products among the public, call for green lifestyle, and contribute to the sustainable economic development by reducing environmental impacts of the production and consumption practices.

With the theme "Green Families have fun and protect the environment", the event attracted hundreds of local residents, including many children, to join with campaign’s volunteers and celebrity ambassador in various exciting activities: environmental games, green shops selling souvenir items made from recycled materials, vegetarian’s corner etc. 

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Many participants were excited to learn how to make shopping bags and origami folds from recycled paper, while the younger children joined the drawing competition on environmental themes.

Hundreds of green consumption guidebook copies were distributed to the participants and many green gifts were given as prizes for the game and competition activities.

The event became one of Vietnam’s momentum  for the global 350.org campaign 2011. At the opening of the event, Ms Hong Hoang, 350.org Vietnam Coordinator gave a talk about climate change and 350.org movement, and how individuals can contribute their bits for the common 350ppm goal.

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The participants were more excited when the campaign’s celebrity ambassador Kim Xuan, a famous actress, came out and gave an inspiring speech to encourage everyone to take simple green actions in everyday life. 

Then they joined the actress to make green commitment messages for the bamboo "Tree of Commitment" – a tree closely attached to Vietnam’s history and culture, a symbol of peaceful life and sustainability. 

Residents in the surrounding areas were taken by surprise to open their doors and find their favourite actress Kim Xuan right in front of them, when she was joined by the volunteers in visiting the households to distribute the green consumption guidebook and give away green products sponsored by the campaign’s partner corporations.

“Let’s use green products. It’s better for our health, and more than that, we can ensure a better future for our children, by being wise consumers today”, the actress explained to the residents.

“Many people question me, ‘Will this kind of community-based initiative work, when the country’s current economic growth still relies so much on fossil fuels?’. Well, maybe we have to think the other way around: when we cannot go against the government’s policies, we still can do things to reduce the impacts of the development processes. 

The 350 campaign is all about the power of people, and when you look at the 75-year-old woman learning how to make paper shopping bags, or a 6-year-old boy making a promise to become a little green ambassador in the family,to tell his mommy not to use plastic bags, or to turn off the lights, you’ll know you can be positive about future”, said Hong after the event.

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The Green Consumption Campaign is an annual campaign coordinated by HCMC Department of Industry and Trade, Sai Gon Giai Phong Newspaper, and Saigon Union of Trading Cooperatives (Saigon Co.op), with the objective to inspire the local people to adopt more sustainable consumption practices, and from there encourage the manufacturing corporations to invest and expand their production of green products for the local market.//