Youth-Led Coastal Clean-Up Removes 250 kg of Waste and Demonstrates Local Leadership in Mũi Né 

12 December 2025, Mũi Né Beach, 70 Participants 

Reported by Lê Đoàn Ngọc Hân, Lê Đỗ Thanh Tú 

Building on the success of the Booth Day “Trash for Treats”, the No Plastic Mũi Né Project continued its momentum with Clean-up Activity #2 on 12 December 2025. The activity focused on hands-on waste collection in the Mũi Né area, directly reducing pollution while strengthening local youth leadership. 

The clean-up was completely planned and led by the Mũi Né local organizing team, marking a significant transition from mentored implementation to independent action. This milestone reflects the project’s commitment to sustainable capacity building and community empowerment, while providing participants with meaningful, real-world experience in teamwork and environmental stewardship. 

Key Takeaways 

1. Strengthened Local Ownership and Community Leadership: The activity demonstrated a successful transition to locally led environmental action, with youth organizers of the No Plastic Mũi Né Project, independently planning and implementing a large-scale clean-up. This reflects increased local leadership capacity, confidence, and institutional ownership, indicating that the project’s capacity-building approach is contributing to sustainable, community-driven environmental stewardship beyond external facilitation.  

2. Tangible Environmental Impact Through Effective Waste Collection: The cleanup successfully mobilized 70 participants and resulted in the collection of approximately 250 kg of waste from the local environment. This outcome reflects both strong participant engagement and improved on-ground coordination, contributing directly to reducing waste leakage in the coastal area of Mũi Né and reinforcing the importance of collective environmental responsibility. 

3. Evidence of Sustainable Capacity Building: The activity served as clear evidence of the effectiveness of the project’s training-of-trainers (ToT) model. Skills transferred from the Saigon team and co-founders including task delegation, safety coordination, participant management, and waste sorting – were effectively applied by the local team. This confirms the project’s long-term vision of building self-sustaining, youth-led environmental action at the local level. 

Main Highlights 

1. Date: 12 December 2025 

2. Venue or location: Mũi Né Beach, Bình Thuận 

3. Organizer: Local Mũi Né Organizing Team (trained by Saigon Organizing Team & Co-founders) 

4. Partners: GRAC Technology, Đồng Phục Á Châu (Asia Uniform), PEDACO, Xanh Việt Nam 

5. Participants: Local students, youth volunteers, and community members 

6. No. of participants: 70 participants 

Activities Implemented 

Clean-up Operation and On-the-ground Coordination 

The local organizing team independently managed all operational aspects of the cleanup, including participant briefings and task allocation, safety reminders and area zoning, as well as waste collection, preliminary sorting, and temporary storage. 

Through clear role distribution and efficient on-ground coordination, the team ensured smooth execution throughout the activity, resulting to the large volume of waste collected. 

Waste Collection Results 

A total of 250 kg of waste was collected during the cleanup. The waste primarily consisted of mixed plastics and general litter commonly found in coastal and public areas. All collected materials were coordinated with PEDACO for appropriate handling and processing, in line with the project’s commitment to responsible and sustainable waste management. 

Collaboration & Partnership 

The event was made possible through the support of several key partners, which are: 

1. Xanh Việt Nam Community (Xanh Việt Nam) is one of Vietnam’s largest environmental non-profit communities founded on August 25, 2019, by Ms. Nguyen Ngoc Anh. It operates on a national and international scale, with a permanent team in all 63 provinces and cities and a volunteer base of over 50,000 members for national cleanup campaigns and environmental awareness. 

• Contribution: Provided essential field equipment, including 100 trash pickers and 100 pairs of protective gloves, ensuring all volunteers were equipped with standardized tools for safe and efficient waste collection. 

2. Pedaco is a subsidiary of the Petrosetco General Services Joint Stock Corporation (PETROSETCO). PEDACO owns and operates the Lagi Waste Treatment & Organic Fertilizer Production Complex, providing high-standard industrial environmental solutions. 

• Contribution: Managed the entire logistics of waste transfer. PEDACO handled the transport of the full 250 kg of collected waste from Mũi Né to Lagi for professional processing and recycling, ensuring zero leakage back into the environment. 

3. Dong Phuc Á Châu (Asia Uniform) A reputable garment manufacturer specializing in high-quality corporate and community uniforms, known for supporting social impact projects across Vietnam. 

• Contribution: Sponsored 50 pieces of Viet Environeers’ official uniforms, significantly enhancing the team’s visual identity and professional presence during both the field activity and media captures. 

Outcome 

Environmental Impact 

Clean-up Activity 02 resulted in the removal of 250 kg of waste from the local environment, significantly reducing waste accumulation in public and coastal areas of Mũi Né. The intervention directly improved cleanliness and environmental quality within the cleanup zones, contributing to a safer and more sustainable local environment. 

Capacity Building Impact 

The activity marked a key milestone in youth capacity development, as the Mũi Né organizing team successfully executed the cleanup entirely independently. This achievement demonstrated the readiness of local youth to lead future environmental initiatives while reinforcing essential skills such as teamwork, leadership, coordination, and problem-solving through hands-on, real-world application. 

Programmatic Significance 

Clean-up Activity 02 provides strong validation of the No Plastic Mũi Né Project’s capacity-building model. The transition from mentored activities to fully locally led implementation represents a critical step toward long-term sustainability, community ownership, and the institutionalization of environmental action at the local level. 

Media and Awareness Impact 

The media campaign for Clean-up Activity 02 was implemented across Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok, generating 9,112+ total impressions. Notably, TikTok accounted for a 98% organic discovery rate, reaching over 6,000 new unique viewers. Beyond reach, the campaign achieved high-quality engagement, recording 231 interactions and 61 viral shares, indicating strong community advocacy. Engagement was highest among the 18–24 age group, effectively mobilizing the project’s primary target audience and strengthening the pipeline for future youth environmental leadership.