[Research Contribution] Applying Ho Chi Minh’s Ideology on Environmental Protection in Environmental Education for Students Towards a Green University

Keywords: Environmental protection, Green university, Ho Chi Minh’s ideology, UEH students

Environmental education is necessary and must be focused on in the current context. In many speeches and articles, President Ho Chi Minh mentioned the issue of environmental protection with critical theoretical and practical arguments. Based on the combination of qualitative and quantitative methods, the research group from University of Economics Ho Chi Minh City (UEH) aims to clarify UEH students’ awareness of Ho Chi Minh’s ideology on environmental protection and actions on environmental protection toward building a green university. The study suggests solutions to improve the effectiveness of applying Ho Chi Minh’s ideology on environmental protection to environmental protection education for students, aiming to build the University of Economics Ho Chi Minh City as a green university in line with the sustainable development orientation set by the Party.

Vietnam has been striving to achieve the goal of industrialization and modernization to turn the country into a developed country. This process makes our country face many environmental challenges listed as environmental pollution, biodiversity loss, and climate change. To cope with these challenges, multiple policies and guidelines on environmental protection (EP) and climate change responses have been issued by the Communist Party of Vietnam. However, to build a sustainable and prosperous future for the country, protecting natural resources, reducing pollution, and responding to climate change must be considered a common responsibility of the entire society. In order to promote environmental awareness, UNESCO (2021) has called for environmental education to become a core component of the curriculum in all countries by 2025. Of which, UNESCO Director-General, Ms. Audrey Azoulay emphasized: “Education must prepare learners to understand the current crisis and to shape the future. To save our planet, we must change the way we live, produce, consume, and interact with nature. Integrating sustainable development education (SDE) into all curricula must become fundamental everywhere”. University of Economics Ho Chi Minh City (UEH) was established in 1976 as one of the national key universities, one of the leading training centers for economics and business administration in the Southern region and the whole country. In the process of internationalization and restructuring to become a Multidisciplinary and Sustainable University, UEH has set the goal of building a sustainable green university with many practical activities. This has changed UEH students’ awareness in environmental protection. However, to promote a stronger change, it is necessary to study and to apply Ho Chi Minh’s ideology on environmental protection to educate students regarding environmental protection. This will contribute to raising awareness of preserving the living environment for the young generation, including UEH students. In addition, it will contribute to creating premises to help Vietnam overcome environmental challenges in the current period to move towards the goal of sustainable development. In addition to analyzing Ho Chi Minh’s perspectives on environmental protection, considering it as the foundation for students’ positive actions toward the environment, the fact that this study also recommends several solutions to educate UEH students on environmental protection awareness can also be applied to students in other universities toward building green universities and contributing to the goal of rapid and sustainable national development.

The study was conducted using the qualitative and quantitative mixed method. The qualitative method includes history, logic, comparison, and synthesis were used to analyze and evaluate Ho Chi Minh’s views on environmental protection and the influence of those views on students’ awareness and attitude toward environmental protection, drawing scientific conclusions with reference value for the research problem.

Ho Chi Minh’s perspective on ecological environment protection

Ho Chi Minh always emphasized the role of environmental protection, considering environmental protection and rational exploitation of resources as the basis and important premise to meet the needs of human existence and development and society. Therefore, for him, environmental protection,along with protecting the country, is also one of the crucial goals. As the environment is protected, people’s lives will also be sustainably protected. He put his viewpoints on environmental protection into articles, stories, and movements to convey to officials and the people.

To protect the environment, Ho Chi Minh paid special attention to planting trees and afforestation. He considered tree planting and afforestation to be necessary and significant. In our country, many regions always have to deal with natural disasters and floods; therefore, as soon as peace was restored, he launched many movements on tree planting and forest protection, including “Tet tree planting”. He advised that tree planting must become a movement and should be carried out regularly. The purpose is to make the landscape more beautiful, contributing to making the climate more temperate, helping limit erosion, and limiting damage when there are natural disasters and floods. He remarked: “Spring is the season for tree planting, making the country more ‘Springy'”. To set an example for the people, Uncle Ho and his companions in the Party tried their best to plant trees and afforest. He affirmed that tree planting and afforestation are “low cost yet very beneficial”. Our country’s landscape will become more beautiful, the climate will be more moderate with more trees and timber. Until his passing away, Uncle Ho’s last wish still advised us to regularly plant trees, afforestation, and protect nature. He wrote in his Will: “There should be a plan to plant trees on the hill. Whoever comes to visit, plant a tree as a souvenir. Each tree planted must be good. Over time, that many trees will form a forest will be good for the landscape and beneficial for agriculture.”

Ho Chi Minh believed that the close relationship and interaction between nature and humans is the foundation and premise for realizing “a rich people, a strong country”. He believed that rational exploitation of resources combined with resource protection and environmental protection “will contribute significantly to improving the lives of our people…”. Because “forests are as precious as gold”, with immense value, we need to exploit forests for socio-economic development, combined with reforestation and forest conservation to sustainably promote their great advantages. Especially, in the context that “we are preparing to build a new countryside; the first task of a new countryside is to build decent houses. To do so, we must plant many good trees right now to get wood.” His implication emphasized the fundamental meaning of the responsibility to benefit the country and people in all aspects, from economy, culture, society to the environment. Other valuable forest resources, including fruit trees, firewood trees, and industrial trees, are extremely important. He stated that: “Fruit trees, firewood trees, and industrial trees are another great source of profit. We should also strive to plant trees to protect against wind, sand, fields, and prevent erosion. In short, Ho Chi Minh’s ideology demonstrates that, if we want to protect the living environment, we need to plant forests, preserve, and protect nature. To do so, we need to actively promote education and propaganda for people’s awareness. He asserted that: “For the benefit of ten years of planting trees, for the benefit of a hundred years of cultivating people”. Planting trees and afforestation not only contribute to protecting the living environment but also promote the development of people’s socio-economic life, bringing many values ​​in life in terms of both physical and mental health.

In addition to encouraging tree planting and afforestation, Ho Chi Minh often warned against the excessive and irresponsible use of natural resources which can cause negative impacts and tremendous harm because it will certainly destroy the living environment for humans and thousands of other species. The destruction of forests has directly and seriously affected people’s lives, production, and climate. Therefore, he made recommendations to pay special attention to forest conservation: “There must be a plan to plant forests and actively protect forests. If the forest is exhausted, there will be no more wood and no water source, the fields will lose their color, causing floods and droughts”. Ho Chi Minh considered floods and droughts as dangerous enemies, no less than foreign invaders that our people must fight and protect with all their might. He affirmed: “Floods are also a formidable enemy. People often say ‘water, fire, bandits, and thieves’. We must strive to prevent floods as well as foreign invaders.” Regarding drought, he advised: “To fight drought, farmers compete to dig wells, dredge ditches, and plow early. When drought occurs, try to irrigate the land. To cope with floods, people compete to build, repair, and maintain dikes, and keep forests green and lush”. The recent floods and droughts have shown Uncle Ho’s timeless vision of environmental protection, especially afforestation and forest protection.

Along with protecting the ecological environment, Ho Chi Minh paid attention to protecting the living environment of the people. He included “disease prevention hygiene” in the content of the patriotic emulation movement. He initiated the “Patriotic Hygiene” movement, which was enthusiastically responded to by the people, creating vibrant and widespread emulation movements. Its purpose was to create a clean, healthy, scientific living environment, not only to maintain the existence but also to promote the development of the entire society and the human world. For him, human beings’ health must always be prioritized first. He always advised people to clean their houses, not to drink too much raw water, to always “maintain hygiene, eat clean, drink clean, live clean to be healthy, the healthier the health, the better the work”. It can be identified that Uncle Ho cared for the people  a lot, demonstrating an extremely great humanity. In his thought, environmental protection is protecting the lives of the people themselves. If people aim to have a healthy life with less illness, they must make an effort to protect the environment because the water we drink, the air we breathe is the environment, and whether that environment is clean or not depends on the consciousness of each person. During the war, because of the influence of bombs and mines, our country was seriously polluted. He denounced the US for using B52 aircraft to carpet bomb our country, he also condemned the imperialist countries for testing atomic and nuclear bombs at sea, polluting the sea in particular and the living environment of humanity in general. Ho Chi Minh’s ideology on environmental protection is the “flag” that guides our people to join hands and contribute to building a social life of “rich people, strong country”, developing quickly and sustainably. For the young generation, in which students are the core force, leading the way in environmental protection, Ho Chi Minh’s thoughts on environmental protection has been holding an important position, guiding them in the process of environmental protection of the country. Therefore, integrating these practical meanings and core values ​​into the course on Ho Chi Minh Ideology and related courses to educate students concerning environmental protection awareness is required to be implemented as soon as possible.

Activities toward building green universities

Although the concept of green universities appeared in the early 90s of the 20th century, it is still rather new in Vietnam. According to the Talloires Declaration, green universities are understood as an educational model oriented toward sustainable development, harmoniously combining training, research, and community activities toward environmental protection and efficient use of natural resources. Vu Thanh Trung (2012) believes that the University of Social Sciences and Humanities needs to meet the following criteria: Having a green education and training program, in which the perspective on sustainable development must become the red thread throughout all subjects, forms of activities, and training processes. The philosophy of training, teaching, and learning must be closely linked to the goal of sustainable development; Having facilities, green and clean spaces with works built according to the principle of “green architecture”, effectively utilizing sunlight, wind, rainwater, and prioritizing the use of environmentally friendly materials, maximizing energy savings, building and modernizing environmental treatment methods, and recycling waste; Building a “green” relationship between people and nature and the surrounding living environment. Operation and management must be based on the perspective of sustainable development, with the center being the University of Social Sciences Council, aiming to build a working, communication, and living style imbued with a “green” cultural consciousness, and actively participate in community-based green mobility initiatives listed as promoting green mobility systems, implementing green infrastructure standards beyond the school’s boundaries”.

In recent years, universities in Vietnam have been active in building the Green Campus toward sustainable development, including University of Economics Ho Chi Minh City – UEH. In November 2021, UEH built and implemented a strategy to become a Multidisciplinary and Sustainable University for the period 2021-2025 with a vision to 2030. To implement this strategy, the Green Campus project was born with the main pillars of operating research, developing and implementing waste classification plans, building green campuses, raising awareness, and changing the behavior of the community inside and outside UEH. In addition, UEH has launched practical activities to raise awareness of environmental protection for students, typically the program “UEH Green Campus 2023 – Green Life Day, Clean World, Green Soul”. This is a good opportunity for students to be exposed to knowledge regarding waste management and the classification process. Students were encouraged to take action by discussing waste classification and proper waste disposal and to participate in creative and entertaining activities after stressful study hours. The interesting thing in terms of this event is that students can experience natural products and enjoy the space in a more practical way related to environmental protection. In addition, the project “UEH Zero Waste Campus” was organized, marking the effective cooperation between UEH and the Vietnam Zero Waste Alliance (VZWA). This is a pioneering project in Ho Chi Minh City and Vietnam, demonstrating the determination and long-term vision of UEH leaders in solving the waste problem. “UEH Zero Waste Campus” has suggested a series of creative solutions, emphasizing the 3R model (Reduce – Reuse – Recycle) for waste classification and treatment. This project also focuses on applying technology in education and communication, focusing on users so that they can see more clearly the benefits of the project and encourage the development of a circular economy. Beyond that, the project also contributes to inspiring, changing the thinking and behavior of the young generation, opening up a greener future for the environment and society. In addition, UEH issued Regulations on the practice of green education at all campuses, introducing the subject of sustainable development into teaching from 2024. UEH’s efforts are not limited to creating environmental awareness for students; actually, they go further by implementing practical projects, helping students apply knowledge, change behavior in environmental protection, promote green thinking, and green action in the educational environment. 

UEH students’ understanding of Ho Chi Minh’s ideology on environmental protection and responsibility for environmental protection at school

Survey data from 320 students illustrate that most of them are aware of Ho Chi Minh’s ideology in the main curriculum. This is a good premise for integrating environmental protection issues into this subject to educate students. The survey results present that up to 62% of students thought that the responsibility for environmental protection belonged to both students and janitors; on the other hand, up to 29% of students were not aware of their responsibility, thinking that it was the janitor’s job. The number of students who understood and were highly knowledgeable about Ho Chi Minh’s ideology on environmental protection accounted for only 18% while the number of students who did not understand or not clearly accounted for 40%. This implies that the approach to Ho Chi Minh’s ideology on environmental protection and the sense of responsibility for environmental protection of UEH students are related and need to be improved.

Figures 1 and 2: Students’ degree of understanding of Ho Chi Minh’s perspective on environmental protection and the responsible subjects in environmental protection at universities

Source: The authors

Therefore, we need to focus on improving understanding of Ho Chi Minh’s perspective on environmental protection, promoting the learning of Ho Chi Minh’s examples and thoughts on environmental protection, helping students better understand their responsibilities and roles in maintaining a sustainable environment.

The research results mean that students clearly understand the importance of protecting natural resources with a high level of confidence; students have a precise view of national environmental issues; students have a precise and positive attitude towards environmental issues, especially with regard to recycling and using environmentally friendly products; students have good awareness and attitude, but their actual behavior in environmental protection is still limited. This result demonstrate that although students have positive awareness and viewpoints on the environment, stronger incentives are being needed to promote practical actions, contributing to more effective environmental protection in the future. In addition, the students participating in the study had a good awareness of their roles and responsibilities in environmental protection, especially in national and community issues. However, there is an inconsistency between awareness and actual behavior. Therefore, more efforts are needed to transform awareness into action, ensuring that environmental protection behaviors are implemented more practically and sustainably.

Students who are aware that their actions affect the environment, students who have a clear awareness and practical actions on environmental protection, or students who have a positive attitude toward recycling and reusing waste often have a more positive attitude on environmental protection. However, if students’ understanding of environmental issues is not deep enough or has not been transformed into specific actions to influence their attitudes, they may feel that national environmental problems are too far away and beyond their control, and have a feeling of optimism or skepticism about the effectiveness of current environmental protection solutions. Therefore, it is necessary to strengthen education to improve understanding of the environment, raise awareness of individuals in promoting awareness and action on environmental protection.

UEH students acting for the environment toward a green university

The survey data showed that most UEH students know what to do to maintain a green, sustainable university environment (chart on the left). It can be stated that students also know the importance of communication and education in environmental protection. This is a favorable factor for bringing Ho Chi Minh’s views on environmental protection into education for students and learners. In addition, saving energy, taking advantage of clean resources, and creating actions to preserve and protect green areas are also known to students, and their importance is recognized. This proves that awareness of environmental protection is gradually increasing in the UEH student community.

Figures 3 and 4: What students have done (left), are doing, and will do (right) to join hands in preserving the environment and contributing to building a green university.

Source: The authors

Based on the data collected from the survey on UEH students’ actions to build a sustainable university in the chart on the right, it can be concluded that the actions given account for a fairly high proportion, the difference between the ideas is not much, implying that these are all necessary and should be done to build a sustainable university. Actively implementing a green lifestyle, listed as recycling and reuse, accounts for 81.3%, showing a serious attitude and concern for maintaining a healthy living environment of UEH students. The support of 79.1% for using natural products with high applicability and products that are easily decomposable and cause little harm is a clear manifestation of creating a clean and sustainable living environment, showing that UEH students’ awareness of limiting the use of products that can harm the environment is relatively high. A positive sign regarding the issue of environmental pollution is that 77.8% of surveyed students are willing to change their personal travel habits to minimize negative impacts on the environment. Volunteering for the environment is also a notable and positive result. This means that the majority of surveyed students are aware of the importance and willing to devote their time and effort to participating in activities to improve the surrounding environment. In general, the survey results indicate that the majority of UEH students had a positive spirit and a high awareness of the importance of building a sustainable and open university environment. However, to maintain, to promote, and to spread these actions more strongly, more active support was needed from the University leaders, functional Departments, School management agencies, and all members of the UEH student community. 

Solutions to effectively apply Ho Chi Minh’s ideology on environmental protection to raise awareness among UEH students are as follows:

In order to further improve the attitude toward environmental protection among UEH students, the authors have made the following recommendations:

First, the Department of Ho Chi Minh’s Ideology, School of Politics (UEH) needs to strengthen the research on the content of Ho Chi Minh’s ideology on environmental protection and integrate this content into the teaching process of the subjects undertaken by the Department and Faculty.

Second, the UEH leaders and member Colleges, Departments, and functional Offices need to: (1) Encourage and create conditions for students to participate in practical activities on environmental protection listed as planting trees, collecting waste, saving energy, using environmentally friendly means of transport, etc. inside and outside the campus; (2) Create a green and sustainable learning and working environment for students and lecturers by applying green standards in the design, construction and management of the infrastructure such as using renewable energy, taking advantage of natural light, installing water-saving equipment, etc.; (3) Organize competitions related to environmental protection, integrate environmental protection elements into competitions and movements by Youth Union, Associations, clubs and teams; (4) Cooperate with agencies, organizations, and businesses to disseminate and implement environmental protection programs, projects, and initiatives in the region and the country to enhance the role and responsibility of UEH for the community and society. Third, educational, environmental management and communication agencies need to promote cooperation to develop and organize programs to propagate, educate and guide environmental protection as follows: (i) Building creative and impressive environmental signs, billboards and posters and displaying them in visible places to create clear awareness of this issue; (ii) Integrating the environment into cultural, sports, exhibition and competition activities will spread the message of environmental protection more effectively in the student community; (iii) Encouraging students to actively participate in environmental protection activities by planting trees, greening vacant areas in the area, participating in expanding forest areas, protecting watershed areas, conservation of special natural areas, and implementing regulations on public hygiene; (iv) Promoting the formation, development and consolidation of environmental awareness for all students at universities, train students in environmentally friendly living skills such as waste classification, energy and water saving to ensure the sustainability of environmental protection education. The above activities will raise students’ awareness of environmental protection, motivating them to take more specific actions to protect the environment in the future, like using natural resources economically, effectively, and limiting negative impacts on the living environment to form habits and attitudes in daily environmental protection. Fourthly, each student needs to improve knowledge about the environment, participate more actively, proactively and effectively in environmental protection activities inside and outside the school; demonstrate a sense of responsibility for environmental protection from the smallest actions, and spread love for the environment and awareness of environmental protection for a more sustainable environment, contributing to the country’s sustainable development according to the Party’s direction.

Research results stated that Ho Chi Minh’s ideology contains values ​​of love for nature, respect for the living environment, concern for the future of the whole society, and human life. This ideology is not only a valuable source of inspiration but also a philosophical foundation for building a green and sustainable academic community for UEH and all schools and universities at other levels. Therefore, bringing Ho Chi Minh’s perspective into environmental protection education for students and all learners is necessary as being the right direction. The combination of Ho Chi Minh’s ideology and current environmental issues has strengthened the environmental protection awareness of UEH students. What is more, students’ environmental protection awareness has an important influence on building a green and sustainable university. Therefore, educating students environmental protection awareness not only helps them carry out daily environmental protection actions but also creates a foundation for positive interactions between them and the surrounding environment, spreading messages that have an impact on the community, contributing to building a green university, a green and sustainable future.

The full-text research article on Applying Ho Chi Minh’s Ideology on Environmental Protection in Environmental Educating for Students of University of Economics Ho Chi Minh City Towards a Green University can be accessed HERE.

Authors: Do Minh Tu, Nguyen Tien Dat, Tran Ngoc Bao Ngan, Nguyen Hoang Bao Ngoc – University of Economics Ho Chi Minh City

This article is part of the series spreading research and applied knowledge from UEH with the message “Research Contribution For All – Research for the Community”. UEH cordially invites readers to read the next UEH Research Insights newsletter.

News, photos: The authors, UEH Department of Communications and Partnerships