UEH Green Campus 2023: Green Campus Approaches

The Green University Approach is demonstrated through environmentally friendly activities along with integrating sustainable principles into all aspects of everyday life at the university. Not only is the “green” relationship between people and the community but also green is between people and nature and the surrounding environment. How is this approach being applied at the University of Economics Ho Chi Minh City (UEH)? Let’s explore with Zeen!

UEH Green Campus

Within the framework of the UEH Green Campus Practice Regulations, the approach to the Green Campus orientates and encourages each UEHer to practice a green, environmentally friendly lifestyle at the university campuses through actual actions:

Practicing waste reduction;

Practicing classifying waste at source, recycling or reusing discarded materials to resources for other purposes;

Practicing saving resources including electricity, water, etc.;

Practicing saving office paper and encourage digital forms;

Maximizing physical activities and encourage the use of stairs within campuses;

Encouraging the choice and use of public transportation, UEH Shuttle Bus, to commute to UEH campuses.

Principles of 3R Practices at UEH

In waste management, important environmental issues refer to the safe treatment and disposal of waste and the management of greenhouse gas generation systems. 3R (Reduce – Reuse – Recycle) principles are effective solutions to the generation of waste and depletion of natural resources due to mass production and mass consumption of today’s civilized social system. Recognizing that, the UEH Green Campus project has applied the 3R model to waste management, which includes: (1) Reduce: The amount of waste each individual creates; (2) Reuse: Find a way to reuse trash, not throw it away; (3) Recycle: Find new ways to use trash to create new products for life.

This is also an environmental solution being applied by many countries around the world to protect and limit pollution.

Classifying waste at source

According to Worldbank’s statistics, approximately 3.9 million tons of PET, LDPE, HDPE and PP plastic are consumed in Vietnam. Among them, only 1.28 million tons (33%) are collected and recycled (CFR). 2.62 million tons of plastic are discarded, resulting in a loss of 75% of the value of plastic, equivalent to 2.2 – 2.9 billion USD per year. The reasons for the low plastic recycling rate in Vietnam include the current underappreciation of the value of plastic, limitations in policy and investment, etc., and one of the main reasons is the inadequacy in classifying waste at source. Therefore, classifying waste at source is of great importance in waste management, contributing to minimizing the risk of spreading infectious agents, toxic and dangerous elements. Sorting waste at source is a practical task that each citizen should do to join hands to protect the environment.

UEH Go Green Station

UEH Go Green Station is an area to practice classification before disposal according to regulations at each campus. There are 2 waste classification models at UEH, depending on the area and characteristics of the campus, the Green Green Station will be equipped:

Classification model 7 (referred to as model 7): The model requires the practice of separating and classifying waste according to 7 types: (1) liquid, (2) leftover food, (3) metal, (4) recycled plastic, (5) papers, (6) milk cartons and (7) residual waste. It is expected that in the long term, UEH will apply this model at all campuses.

Classification model 3 (referred to as model 3): A simple version of the classification model includes: (1) leftover food, (2) recyclable waste, and (3) residual waste. The model is applied in a number of small-scale campuses and areas.

“Time for go green” – It’s time for us to change our lifestyle and join hands to protect the environment!

News, photos: UEH Department of Marketing and Communications