Ho Chi Minh City youths cycle to kick off Earth Hour 2022

Miss Universe Vietnam H'Hen Niê, the ambassador of Earth Hour 2022, along with nearly 500 volunteers cycled on Sunday morning to kick off the environmental campaign, which was held at Ho Chi Minh City Youth Culture House in District 1.

The event was co-organized by the Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union and Sai Gon Giai Phong (Liberated Saigon) newspaper to raise awareness of environmental protection among the public.

Cycling is the starting activity of the campaign, marking its return to the offline format after two consecutive iterations conducted online due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Miss Universe Vietnam 2017 H'Hen Niê partakes in this year’s event in the role of the ambassador.

“I see better changes in how I think and do for our earth every time I join the event, thereby I am more confident to raise my voice on behalf of the young,” H'Hen Niê told Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper.

''Protecting the earth now is protecting us in the future."

Other practical activities within the campaign include planting a thousand trees along roadsides and riverbanks in suburban districts, protecting mangrove forests, refurbishing damaged walls, installing more solar power systems, renovating the urban power grid, and upgrading lighting systems for households in dire straits.

The organizers have also rolled out several ‘green’ projects, such as Green Connection, Green Food, and Green Footsteps.

“Earth Hour is more than just an hour for the earth -- it's a movement for our own future, for the benefit of people and the planet,” Tang Huu Phong, editor-in-chief of Sai Gon Giai Phong, was quoted by Earth Hour’s website as saying.

"During the years-long struggle against the pandemic, we've learned little by little how to deal with the biggest public health crisis of the century.

''In the meantime, we consider and re-establish our relationship with nature, in the hope of building a place where humans and nature coexist and thrive."

The Earth Hour 2022 campaign starts with the slogan ‘Switch off your lights and take part to shape our future.’

In Vietnam, the main event will take place from 7:30 to 8:30 pm on March 26, at the Ho Chi Minh City Youth Culture House.

Every year, at 8:30 pm on the last Saturday of March, supporters in over 190 countries and territories unite, taking action on and raising awareness of the issues facing the planet.

Earth Hour is a critical moment to unite people to reverse nature loss, said Marco Lambertini, director general at WWF International.

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