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Published: December 7th 2006
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ENV is the first and most active environmental nonprofit organization in Vietnam. With a strong focus on public awareness and education, they have made great strides in public awareness since they formed in 2000 with a staff of 5. In 2006, they now have 22 staff and conduct a range of environmental awareness, training and advocacy roles.
We spent the morning in their office and met the staff. For those who don't know, this is a fairly new relationship. Two years ago, the Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium Conservation Committee awarded a mini-grant with funds from The Zoo Society to fund an issue of ENV's environmental magazine, Green Forest. It is the only environmental magazine in Vietnam and the demand far exceeds publication. The issue we funded highlighted wild cats indigenous to Vietnam, including the Clouded leopard. The magazine is distributed in the communities surrounding Tam Dao National Park and other areas in Vietnam and is regularly used by educators for lesson plans.
This is the first time we've spent any time with the entire staff, but their operation is impressive. Housed in a modest 3 story building(narrow and tall), the staff manage a variety of awareness and outreach
projects. Most recently, they completed a high-profile public education exhibition in Hanoi highlighting the plight of Vietnam's bears. There is high demand for bear bile which is consumed for medicinal purposes, but it is acquired through horrific methods which are not widely known by the public. To raise awareness, ENV created an art gallery featuring student artwork from a national competition and a "torture chamber" with a looping video. As visitors stood in a cage, they were surrounded by the screams of the bear on the video as the bile was removed. To get people to the exhibition, they secured the cooperation of a famous singer in Vietnam and several comedians. They signed the "Peace for Vietnam's Bears" posters, which also include the hotline to report wildlife trade cases. With celebrity signatures on them, they're fairly certain they've found a place on the wall instead of in the trash.
In addition to public awareness, they also operate a hotline with investigators who research and follow up on wildlife trade cases. Nearly everyone in the office told us with a laugh that thanks to the great work of their wildlife compliance officer, officials at all levels of government think ENV
Our creepy hotel in the mist
I think we were their first guests in years... is a huge environmental organization. What they don't know is the person hustling on the other end of the phone line is a tiny 20-something woman in heels and a tailored wool jacket. EVERYONE knows her, they say.
Education of children and the public is at the heart of what they do - they do programs in schools and with children during the summer, village programs in the evenings featuring puppet shows and entertainment about environmental issues, and public meetings of civic leaders in villages near the park to get the people in the village to identify the issues, problems and ways they can protect their natural resources.
After an orientation with various staff members, we all went to lunch at an area "rice" place. Basically, there are two things you can eat in Vietnam - pho (pronounced "fuh" - noodles and meat in a broth) or "rice" which is rice with a medley of meats on top, with the occasional tofu or sauteed spinach on top. Their staff was incredibly friendly and welcoming and they helped us heap our plates - lunch for $.70! Following rice, we went to get fruit juice drinks which were basically chopped
bits of fruit and melon with sweetened condensed milk, and someone brought over banana fritters and corn fritters from a vendor on the street.
We said farewell and headed off to Tam Dao National Park to see ENV's environmental training center. Quyen, the head of ENV (and also Doug's wife), was conducting a training for five Cambodians (four from Conservation International and one from the Fisheries Department). After a long drive through the countryside, mouths gaping at the water buffaloes working the fields, the women in conical hats hacking down sugar cane, and everything dusted with the rich red soil, we arrived at the training center.
Upon arrival, Quyen apologized that we would not be able to spend the night there in the traditional house as had been the plan. The local police got wind of that plan and for reasons not known to us, they asked her to have us stay at a hotel in the park instead. We listened to part of their training program (conducted in English), and then we all had dinner together and talked about the Clouded Leopard Project with Quyen and the Cambodian team.
As the sky darkened, we started to crash and they took us to the hotel up a steep, dark, windy and foggy road. We actually never saw the park, but I'm sure it's lovely. We immediately fell asleep and set our alarms for 5 a.m. so we could make our way back to the training center and then go to an ENV village program the next day.
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Judy Pell
non-member comment
Most interesting subject
A fascinating peek into the city of Hanoi and it's citizens... You did not mention the weather.. I assume that it is warm..Your contacts are most interesting and I am sure you will learn much from them regarding the animals of their country. Already, I am sympathizing with the bears...and the demand for bile! How terrible. for the poor animals.