Global Mizuiku Summit 2024: 20 years of spreading sustainable values for water resources
Báo Pháp Luật Việt Nam•01/05/2024
On April 23rd, Suntory PepsiCo Vietnam held the opening ceremony of the 2024 Mizuiku Global Summit at the Japanese Embassy in Vietnam (Hanoi). This marks the first time this conference has been held in a country outside of Japan, and also the first time it has been held in Vietnam. The event took place over three days, from April 23rd to 25th, 2024, commemorating the 20th anniversary of the Mizuiku program's global implementation and the 10th anniversary of "Mizuiku – I Love Clean Water" in Vietnam.
Attending the event were leaders from various agencies and departments such as the Ministry of Education and Training, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development , the Japanese Embassy, the General Director of Suntory Group in charge of sustainable development, the CEO of Suntory PepsiCo Vietnam, and the heads of the Mizuiku program from countries including Thailand, China, New Zealand, Spain, France, and the United Kingdom. Speaking about the program's 20th anniversary, Mr. Masaaki Fujiwara, General Manager of Sustainable Development at Suntory Group, said: “Twenty years ago, we launched the “Mizuiku” program – an educational initiative to raise awareness of water conservation and protection among elementary school students. This is a testament to our unwavering commitment and dedication to water sustainability. Suntory Group hopes this program will become an educational initiative passed down from generation to generation. Through initiatives like Mizuiku, we hope to help children access sustainable clean water now and in the future, fostering an awareness of protecting the environment and our precious water resources.” Vietnam was the first country where Suntory expanded its project outside of Japan in 2015, under the name “Mizuiku – I Love Clean Water”. With the philosophy of “Sustainable Water Development”, the “Mizuiku – I Love Clean Water” program is implemented with two main objectives: to educate elementary school students about water conservation and to support infrastructure to improve access to clean water for children and the community. The program is comprehensively designed with activities both inside and outside the school, aiming to stimulate creativity and critical thinking in children through active education, fostering a love and awareness of nature conservation in future generations through forest experiences in national parks. After nearly a decade, the “Mizuiku – I Love Clean Water” program has been implemented in 24 provinces and cities nationwide, educating over 400,000 primary school students about water conservation and protection, and enhancing access to clean water for millions of students and teachers through the renovation of 151 facilities, including clean water systems and school toilets. 2023 marked a significant milestone for the program with its official strategic partnership with the Ministry of Education and Training. The program's materials, “Guidelines for Organizing Teaching and Learning on Water Conservation and Protection for Primary Schools,” were reviewed, approved, and incorporated into the national primary school curriculum. Mr. Jahanzeb Khan, CEO of Suntory PepsiCo Vietnam, emphasized: “As the leading beverage company in Vietnam, we recognize the importance of water throughout all our company operations. In 2024, we aim to create even more positive impacts, building on our strategic partnership with the Ministry of Education and Training. We envision the Mizuiku program not simply educating ABOUT water, but educating FOR water, educating to create sustainable impacts on this resource.” Speaking about this collaboration, Associate Professor Dr. Nguyen Thanh De - Director of the Department of Physical Education, Ministry of Education and Training, shared: “Over the past time, the Ministry of Education and Training of Vietnam has made efforts to implement many action programs to connect resources to build a school environment that meets hygiene standards, to support and educate the younger generation about protecting clean water sources. Among them, the 'Mizuiku – I Love Clean Water' program is one of the typical models of comprehensive cooperation agreements between the state and businesses for a common goal, bringing many benefits to the community, the environment, society and the young generation of Vietnam. 2023 was the first year of cooperation in implementing the program, and the initial results have been very impressive.” In addition to the activities throughout the three days of the Conference, April 23, 2024 also marked the announcement of awards for the photo contest with the themes "Water" and "Children" and the opening of the photo exhibition "Conserving Water Resources, Nurturing the Future" organized by Suntory Pepsico Vietnam and sponsored by the Japanese Embassy. The competition, which aimed to convey the message about the importance of water and raise public awareness, especially among the younger generation, about environmental protection and water resource conservation, was launched in December 2023 and attracted hundreds of entries within three months. The photo exhibition "Conserving Water Resources, Nurturing the Future" will be open to the public free of charge from April 23 to May 2, 2024, at the Japanese Embassy, 27 Lieu Giai Street, Ngoc Khanh Ward, Ba Dinh District, Hanoi .
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