by Sissy Mallard
I’m willing to admit it – I knew nothing about the history of Earth Day which started in my home country. It began in the US on April 22, 1970, organized by Sen. Gaylord Nelson to protest the industrial revolution and his actions resulted in a cleaner America-what a great legacy! The international Mother Earth Day, as it was dubbed by the UN in 1990, has over 1 billion participants today and the focus this year is on single-use plastic reduction. I hope everyone plans to participate in some way, big or small, not only on Sunday, April 22, 2018 but every day going forward. Let Earth Day serve as your starting point, let’s get motivated, I know we can do it! I don’t have any children of my own but I’m willing to do this for your kids and their kids, too-they are my future. I am already in love with this country and can’t imagine living anywhere else.
I’m proud to work for Vespa Adventures as we partner with VIETNAM SACH & XANH to sponsor and participate in Earth Day, we have cleanups all over the country and I’m so excited to “roll up my sleeves” and be part of the solution. You can always raise awareness in your own families and be part of the worldwide team that cares about our beautiful planet, if you really think about it-Mother Earth is the only planet we have so let’s all take small steps that can add up to big change. Vespa Adventures has two great leaders organizing our participation in Earth Day, please meet Phan Trung Minh Tue and Phan Le Thu Thuy, I’ve learned so much from their commitment to this cause. These two are always willing to meet with you and talk about how you can join us in keeping this part of the world beautiful and healthy, as are our cofounders Steve Mueller and his wife Phuong. Our staff, drivers and guides are working hard to “be the change we want to see in this world”! (Ghandi).
If you love eating fresh fish and seafood like me then join us because Asia is running out of room for more fish and shrimp farms, what will we have to do next to have fresh seafood? Our oceans worldwide are clogged with too much plastic waste and trash causing severe damage to every form of life that lives there. I know you have seen that terrible picture of the dead whale with plastic coming out of his mouth-it should make you stop and rethink what you can do. Much of the world’s population relies on fisheries or aquaculture, so pollution trends must be reverse for our very survival, not to mention the growth of the foods we love that come from our oceans. Just imagine if we add up a few small efforts by the millions of people in Saigon alone, what a dramatic change we can make!
Do you always have to use a straw? Can you buy one glass container to replace the plastic one that you probably lost the top to long ago? I’m noticing subtle changes since I arrived at the beginning of March and I see people becoming more aware of trash on the streets and they are now willing to do something about it. I, personally, am refilling my water bottle that I take to work every day and I use the green recycling cans that are popping up in many neighborhoods. Kids are teaching the older generations about the impact of littering and I see more people recycling plastic water bottles than ever before. Please join Vespa Adventures as we commit to making the future cleaner and greener for everyone!
