Vietnam plans to celebrate this year’s World Environment Day, themed
“Think.Eat.Save”, in Hue City , the central province of Thua
Thien-Hue on June 5.
According to the United Nations
Environment Programme, the theme is intended to encourage people to
become more aware of the environmental impact of the food choices they
make and empower them to make informed decisions.
The
theme has a direct bearing on the daily life of everyone in the world,
said Tran Phong, Director of the Centre for Environment Training and
Communication under the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment,
at a press briefing on May 15.
A series of events will also be organised in Thua Thien-Hue province from June 1-5.
This includes a national meeting with the participation of Party and
State leaders and nearly 300 other delegations at Nghinh Luong Pavilion,
on the bank of the Huong (Perfume) River in Hue City.
Another event is the biennial Vietnam Environmental Awards 2013, which
honours 50 individuals and organisations who demonstrated outstanding
efforts in protecting natural resources and the environment.
Deputy Minister Bui Cach Tuyen said that the ministry has ordered 63
provinces and cities to celebrate the day by helping local residents
save food.
Vietnam began to celebrate the World Environment Day in 1982.
According to the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), every year
1.3 billion tonnes of food is wasted. At the same time, one in every
seven people in the world goes to bed hungry and more than 20,000
children under the age of five die daily from hunger.
FAO
estimates that a third of global food production is either wasted or
lost. Food waste is an enormous drain on natural resources and
contributes to negative environmental impacts.-VNA