Abstract
Since the Doi Moi reform policies launched in Vietnam in 1986, remarkable economic development has given rise to serious environmental challenges in urban areas, such as air pollution, contamination of rivers, and an increase in garbage. To tackle these urban environmental issues, there is a real need for not only an improvement of infrastructure and regulation by the government, but also a reform of citizen awareness and behavior.
This paper proposes an environmental education program for junior high schools regarding the issue of household waste disposal. Aiming to encourage assertive environmental behavior through a reduction of household waste in Hanoi, the program has been developed by adapting local variables in Hanoi, such as knowledge of household waste, to the Hungerford and Volk model for nurturing behavior centered on environmental protection.
This approach is now reducing household waste in Hanoi, and has been effective at introducing environmental education through a context familiar to students. When the program was trialed at junior high schools in Hanoi, a number of positive results were achieved. However, some further improvements to the program are still necessary, and implementing these should yield the empowerment variables defined by Hungerford and Volk.
