ENV's army of volunteers play a vital role in protecting wildlife by reporting wildlife crimes, monitoring businesses in known wildlife trade hotspots, and participating in ENV awareness activities. Every month, ENV holds seminars to keep volunteers informed of wildlife trade news, successful cases, and training on species identification.
Hoang Loan Phuong loved turtles and owned dozens of rare and endangered Vietnamese species. However, after joining ENV's National Wildlife Protection Network of volunteers, she realized that it was important that turtles remain in the wild, not kept as pets. She decided to hand her turtles over to ENV to transfer to the Turtle Conservation Center in Cuc Phuong National Park.
On September 30, 2011, ENV's "100,000 pledges not to use bear bile and bear products" event was held at Pico Mall in Hanoi, and featured famous Vietnamese singer and winner of Vietnam Idol 2010, Uyen Linh.
The event marked the achievement of 100,000 Vietnamese citizens pledging to protect bears in Vietnam.
Thanks to the support from Uyen Linh, the event drew public and media attention and participation. She said it's more important than ever before to take concrete actions to stop bear bile extraction and the illegal trade of wild animals.
The "100,000 pledges not to use bear bile and bear products" event in 2011 drew a lot of public and media attention. The event also included a colorful display of artworks created by children featuring messages of bear protection.
“100,000 pledges not to use bear bile is a reflection of public attitudes,” said Mr. Tran Viet Hung, ENV's former Vice-Director. “But what is important, is that it is also an expression of public willingness to act on their beliefs and help protect bears.”
Famous singer Uyen Linh, winner of Vietnam Idol 2010, was the 100,000th signatory of ENV's pledge to protect Vietnam's bears. She is pictured here with ENV staff at the conclusion of the "100,000 pledges not to use bear bile or bear products" event held in September 2011.
A display of some of the more than 100,000 pledges collected by ENV, signed by ordinary Vietnamese citizens committing to not use bear bile or bear products.
A special ceremony was held on October 5, 2012 to officially hand a critically endangered “royal turtle” back to Cambodia.
The large mangrove terrapin (Batagur affinis) was first discovered by ENV staff in October 2010 at the Suối Tiên Cultural Resort on the outskirts of Ho Chi Minh City. According to Mr. Đinh Văn Vui, CEO of Suối Tiên Cultural Tourism, Ltd., a Cambodian official gave him the turtle as a gift almost 30 years ago, and it had lived in the park ever since.
After the ceremony, the Batagur was introduced into a conservation breeding program in an effort to boost the drastically low populations and increase the genetic diversity of this species.
Pictured: The "royal turtle" (Batagur affinis) when it arrived in Cambodia, after living in a cultural resort in Ho Chi Minh City for almost 30 years.
ENV spent nearly two years working to secure the turtle’s return, which is a particularly important species to Cambodia.
Mr. Tran Viet Hung, former Vice Director of ENV, said: “Cambodians value this species as part of their culture, referring to it as the ‘royal turtle’ because at one time, Cambodia’s king declared the turtle to be protected by a royal decree and strictly prohibited its hunting.”
However, wild populations of the species in Cambodia have declined remarkably over the past few decades, and the return of this turtle was a significant move for the future conservation of the species.
ENV's volunteer network was established in 2008, and today it contains more than 6,800 volunteers throughout the country. Volunteers are our eyes and ears out in the field, and actively assist ENV to protect wildlife by reporting wildlife crimes, monitoring businesses in their home area, and encouraging others to get involved.
Thanks to our volunteers, many restaurants have stopped selling wildlife, smugglers have been punished, and hundreds of animals have been rescued from the illegal wildlife trade!
ENV has reached millions of Vietnamese people with wildlife protection messages through television. A total of 32 Public Service Announcements urging the public not to consume bear bile, rhino horn, or other wildlife products, have been produced and aired on national and provincial television and reached a large segment of Vietnam’s 86 million people. Many of these PSAs feature famous national music, film, and sports celebrities.
Pictured: ENV working with a film crew and supermodel Ha Anh to create an anti-wildlife consumption PSA.
Pictured: ENV presenting a wildlife trade seminar to US Embassy staff members, as part of the corporate program.
In May 2012, the US Embassy in Hanoi partnered with ENV to help reduce demand for wildlife by becoming a "Wildlife Safety Zone". ENV displays anti-wildlife consumption awareness banners at the embassy, and gave a presentation to staff members about problems facing Vietnam's wildlife and encouraging them to take action. ENV's corporate program is a great way for organizations to actively demonstrate a shared commitment to help protect wildlife and secure the future of Vietnam's precious biodiversity.
Pictured: ENV's Vice-Director Tran Viet Hung working with pop singer My Tam in April 2011 to produce an advertisement for VOV radio.
Up until December 2012, ENV had aired more than 2,500 advertisements on the Voice of Vietnam (VOV) radio, reaching millions of listeners nationwide and urging people not to consume wildlife and to report wildlife crimes. ENV has also aired a VOV monthly radio show since 2005 on the illegal wildlife trade, discussing important issues such as rhino horn and tiger trade, highlighting recent news relating to enforcement, and encouraging the public not to consume wildlife.
An ENV staff member collecting DNA samples from tigers at Soc Son Rescue Center, north of Hanoi.
On 16 June, 2009, ENV organized a workshop to gather key National Assembly members and People's Committee leaders together to raise their awareness of tiger farming and tiger trade issues. The meeting was an important opportunity to explain the issues involved and get their support to help fight the problem at a policy and legislative level.
ENV carries out a range of community-based education and training programs for teachers, community stakeholder groups, and staff from National Parks and protected areas throughout Vietnam.
Pictured here are children participating in one of ENV's environmental lessons at Tam Dao, north of Hanoi. They are playing a game that teaches them about pollination.
Pictured: ENV's bear mascot meets kids in Hanoi to educate them about bear protection.
ENV’s bear exhibits call for an end to bear farming and encourage people to say “NO” to bear bile. They are held four times each month across the country, in a range of busy public locations, and feature signboards, a video of the bile extraction process, quiz, bear pledge, and an opinion topic to encourage the sharing of ideas.
For the first three months of each lunar new year, thousands of people make the pilgrimage to Huong Pagoda, north of Hanoi, to pray for good luck for the new year. Sadly, this significant religious site is also the scene of extensive wildlife crime, as almost every restaurant displays and sells wildlife meat.
In 2013, ENV launched a fierce campaign monitoring the site for crime, hanging awareness banners, and calling for stricter management from law enforcement and government to win the battle. The issue also gained a lot of media attention, and Mr. Tran Viet Hung (former ENV Vice-Director), can be seen here being interviewed for television news.
In August 2012, ENV held a four-day environmental education course on behalf of Denso Manufacturing Vietnam, for 17 enthusiastic and passionate young people. The course covered a range of topics relating to wildlife protection, and assisted the students with developing an action plan to carry out their own environmental project in their local community.
As part of the Denso Youth for Earth Action (DYEA) environmental education course, facilitated by ENV in August 2012, participants visited the Endangered Primate Rescue Center (EPRC) in Cuc Phuong National Park. During the visit, participants had the opportunity to see some of Vietnam's critically endangered primate species and learn about the role of rescue centers in providing a home for confiscated wildlife, and the rehabilitation and release of wildlife where possible.
ENV's green van stands out in the crowd, painted with a beautiful, brightly colored mural of wildlife in the jungle. The van is used to transport ENV staff and materials to public exhibits and events, and other campaign activities.
Pictured here are participants of the Denso Youth for Earth Action course, facilitated by ENV in August 2012, during their visit to see one of ENV's wildlife trade public exhibits in action at the Botanic Gardens in Hanoi.
On April 22, 2013, under the USAID-funded ARREST program, ENV hosted Vietnam's first national award ceremony to recognize the contributions and achievements of three outstanding law enforcement officers and two outstanding journalists for their wildlife protection efforts in Vietnam.
It was a great night, and an important event to promote and encourage positive change, and highlight those who demonstrate their commitment to wildlife protection through bold actions. The event was attended by representatives from government agencies and institutions, members of the National Assembly, local and international conservation organizations, and the media.
The Outstanding Service in Wildlife Protection Awards event was the first wildlife protection awards ceremony held in Vietnam, and was a special occasion to step back and look at the progress of biodiversity conservation in Vietnam.
On any given day, the situation in Vietnam can look rather bleak for wildlife. However, as ENV's Executive Director and Founder Vu Thi Quyen said, we can conclude without question that we are steadily moving in the right direction toward a better future for Vietnam’s wildlife.
Pictured: Vu Thi Quyen delivering the opening remarks at the ceremony.
The judging panel for the Outstanding Service in Wildlife Protection Awards was comprised of representatives from the US Embassy in Vietnam and local and international conservation organizations, including ENV, IUCN Vietnam, PanNature, TRAFFIC and the Wildlife Conservation Society.
From more than 60 nominations, they selected three outstanding law enforcement officers and two outstanding journalists for the awards.
Representatives from these partner organizations announced and presented the awards to the winners during the evening.
Pictured: Mr. Hoang Hai Van, journalist with Thanh Nien newspaper, receiving an Outstanding Journalist award from Mr. Steve Galster, Director of FREELAND. Mr. Van received the award for his long-running commitment to raising public awareness of environmental and wildlife protection issues. Mr. Van has produced countless articles over more than 20 years, raising public awareness of issues relating to traditional medicine made from wildlife, which have been invaluable for promoting a positive change in public attitudes and behavior.
On September 13, 2012, more than 50 national celebrities from throughout the country joined forces with ENV to call for an immediate end to bear farming in Vietnam.
At a press conference in Hanoi, pop star My Linh and comedian and actress Minh Vuong represented a collection of Vietnam's top celebrities in sport, film, music, and entertainment, to highlight the serious threat that bear farming and the bear bile industry pose to the survival of bears in the wild, both in Vietnam and the surrounding region.
Pictured: Mr. Tran Viet Hung, former ENV Vice-Director, being interviewed by the media at the Vietnam Bear Day press conference in Hanoi.
Also marking the occasion of Vietnam Bear Day, ENV announced the winners of a competition for young film-makers to produce a Public Service Announcement (PSA) urging the public not to consume bear bile.
Pictured: During the press conference, celebrities My Linh and Minh Vuong presented the "People's Choice" award to Dinh Ngoc Thanh, who racked up the most votes online for his PSA, an "Excellent Message" award to Le Hoai Lam for overall messaging and delivery, and a "Highly Commended" award to Dong Anh 360 Group.
On September 13, 2012, while ENV held a press conference in Hanoi to call for an immediate end to bear farming, ENV volunteers in seven major cities were simultaneously hosting public awareness events.
Events were held in Hanoi, Ha Long, Hai Phong, Vinh, Da Nang, Hue and Ho Chi Minh City to focus public attention on the issue, and to encourage people not to consume bear bile or other bear products.
ENV participated in the Wildlife Conservation Film Festival, hosted by the US Embassy, to celebrate Wildlife Conservation Day on December 4, 2012. Other NGOs present included Traffic, WWF, WCS and PanNature.
A great turn out of about 100 people, mostly university students, enjoyed the short films, information stalls, and the panel discussion at the end. ENV screened Tam Biet, Turtle, which tells the story of illegal wildlife trade from the perspective of a turtle.
