Vietnam is a fast developing country, and even in the country side waste management has become an important issue. Most waste is dumped, often in unauthorized places and burned at low temperatures, thus generating dangerous gases like dioxin.
70% of rural waste is organic and can be transformed as compost for agriculture. 10% is plastic and can be recycled for making pipes and other plastic items.
Thien Chí is a Vietnamese NGO with a long experience in community development. For the last 4 years it has also encouraged primary school pupils to collect wasted plastics to clean the environment, raise additional funds for the schools, and raise the awareness of the general public about the toxic impact of plastics. In May 2005 Thien Chí has won a competition organized by the World Bank on innovative approaches for the environment. With the encouragement of the local authorities it has started a low cost programme to recycle waste collected from the different local markets and by the school children. They are recycled and sold for profit, which are used to fund development programmes in the community. Research is being done to improve the system: produce compost of a higher quality and at a lower cost.
