Hanoi (VNA) – A group of youngpeople from Hanoi have been travelling around the country, exchanging books forplastic waste to make eco-bricks, as they want to join the global efforts toreduce plastic waste.

The young volunteers call themselves the Green and Book Ambassadors (GBAs).

Established in 2012, the GBA has grown by dozens of membersfrom around the country and even abroad, sharing their dedication forenvironmental protection and hoping to inspire others to do the same.


“Over the past six years, the GBAs havetravelled extensively across Vietnam, particularly to disadvantaged and coastalareas to collect rubbish and provide books to needy students,” GBA co-founder PhamThi Phuong Thuy, 26, told the Vietnam News Agency.

“More and more young people want to join in andoffer financial support and ideas for the group to expand its coverage andactivities,” she said, noting that most of them come from the green energysector, and many are foreign tourists.

Wherever the GBAs go, they exchange books forplastic trash and teach children how to make eco-bricks with bottles andplastic bags.

“We use the bottles and plastic bags to make eco-bricks.Anyone can do it,” Thuy said, adding making eco-bricks are a great globalinitiative to curb plastic waste.

Claire Allured, a freelance British artistliving in Hanoi, serving as the GBA’s art consultant, expressed her interest inthe eco-brick making project given its environmental and creative values.

“I really enjoy functional art. You turnsomething being thrown away into something else which can be useful,” Alluredsaid.

She expressed her hope to be able to get moreinvolved with the project so she can provide more ideas, making more creativepieces out of people’s leftover waste.

EcoBricks come to Vietnam

The GBA project is part of efforts made by young Vietnamesenationwide to reduce plastic waste in the context of waste pollution becomingan urgent global issue.

Roughly 8 million tonnes of plastic waste aredumped into the ocean each year, and Vietnam is listed among the top fivesource nations.

According to international studies, it takes upto 100 years for plastic bags to decompose. The figure is over 400 years forplastic bottles. By 2050, the ocean will have more waste than fish if action isnot take soon.


EcoBricks represent a different approach to waste management.The initiative turns plastic waste into a highly insulating, robust,affordable, building material, which simultaneously tackles problems ofunemployment, waste and lack of housing. They can be used vertically as infillin timber-frame building systems, or horizontally, where they are mortaredtogether with clay or cement.

The story of EcoBricks started in Guatemala, and, via thePhilippines, goes to South Africa, and became an inspiration to other placesaround the world.

There are now 38 EcoBrick schools in Guatemala, with manymore planned.


Making ecobricks is becoming more popular in the Philippines, which was ratedas the world’s third biggest source of plastic pollution in the ocean,according to a report by Ocean Conservancy and the McKensey Centre for Businessand Environment in November 2015.

In the northern Philippines, as part of the curriculum, students are asked tobring in a completed EcoBrick each week, having written their homework on theside of it.

In Vietnam, environmental protection, including eco-brick making groups foundedby Vietnamese young people have bloomed in recent years, particularly in bigcities.


Taking advantage of the global initiative, the GBA group expandedtheir activities nationwide since 2016.

However, as a newly-founded group, they faced many challengesin calling for the community’s participation from the outset.

In fact, most of other groups face similar difficulties while implementingenvironmental protection ideas due to a lack of connectivity.

To cope with the situation, many environmental protection organisations haveorganised seminars and meetings to link these groups. Through these activities,those active in the field have the opportunity to share their experience andspread inspiration, helping to promote environmental protection acts. –VNA