Excellent history student from Da Nang won first prize in the 2025 UPU international letter writing competition

Female student good at history wins first prize in UPU letter writing contest

"To my dearest James Cameron!

I am the Atlantic Ocean! I love the Earth and I love you! For billions of years, I have protected the Earth, nurtured life, and kept the planet in balance. But today, I am writing to you, crying out for help in agony. I am dying, James!

Remember when I was strong, whales sang songs of freedom, corals danced, and the ocean currents flowed abundantly, nourishing the entire ecosystem. But now, that song has died, the dances have turned to dust, and my flow is weak and exhausted. I am very sick!"

Pham Doan Minh Khue, a 10C student at Le Quy Don High School for the Gifted, Da Nang City (Photo: P. Linh).

At the beginning of the letter, Pham Doan Minh Khue, a 10C student at Le Quy Don High School for the Gifted, Da Nang City, wrote this when playing the role of the ocean to the famous director James Cameron - the person behind the series of famous films: Titanic (1997), The Abyss (1989), Avatar (2009)...

Admiring the cinematic talent of Mr. James Cameron through his world- famous films, Minh Khue thought of a movie script about the ocean to send to the director.

As the ocean, the letter reads: "You made humanity cry with Titanic, marvel with The Abyss, sink in Avata. But now I need a movie to tell the truth, my own story: I am being killed and I die, humanity is also ending! I want the movie to be called: "The Ocean's Request".

According to Minh Khue's imagination, a detailed and dramatic movie script calls for the cooperation of all humanity to save the ocean: "Finally, the screen goes black again, the painful words of our Ocean: The above projects are just a drop in the ocean without the cooperation of all humanity. Save our Ocean or welcome the end of the world! And our painful roar becomes even more intense".

Mr. Pham Duc Long, Deputy Minister of Science and Technology (Photo: P. Linh).

Sharing with Dan Tri reporter , Minh Khue said she was very surprised and happy to have surpassed more than 1 million letters nationwide and won first prize.

It took me about a month to complete the above letter, after editing it about 4-5 times. "I like science fiction movies and watch them often. I think movies are the best way to spread the message of ocean protection and raise awareness of ocean protection among today's youth," Khue said.

It is known that in addition to her writing ability, Minh Khue is also very passionate about history. The female student was the valedictorian of the history subject in the entrance exam to grade 10 of Le Quy Don High School for the Gifted, and is a member of the history team in the exam to select excellent students of specialized high schools in the Coastal and Northern Delta regions in 2025.

With a love of history and archaeology, I plan to apply to Hanoi Pedagogical University and Da Nang Pedagogical University in the future.

Minh Khue reads the letter at the award ceremony (Photo: P. Linh).

The perfect script for an ocean movie

This is the 9th time that Da Nang students have won first prize in the national competition after 37 seasons held in Vietnam.

The judges highly appreciated Minh Khue's letter because she knew how to lead and integrate the theme in a subtle way. In particular, she built the perfect script for a film about the ocean, from the beginning, content to the end.

Pham Doan Minh Khue's letter was translated into French by the Organizing Committee and sent to the Universal Postal Union (UPU) in Switzerland for the international competition.

Speaking at the ceremony, Mr. Pham Duc Long, Deputy Minister of Science and Technology, said that this year's contest theme not only stimulates students' imagination and writing ability but also contributes to nurturing a sense of responsibility towards the environment - one of the urgent global issues today.

"We hope and believe that Minh Khue's letter will continue to bring pride to Vietnam in the international arena.

This is also a bright spot that continues to contribute to enhancing the image and position of Vietnam from generations of young people among many other activities demonstrating Vietnam's active and proactive role in the international arena with the country's rising position and strength and new position," said the Deputy Minister.

The 54th UPU International Letter Writing Competition was organized by the Universal Postal Union (UPU) with the theme: "Imagine you are an ocean. Write a letter to someone explaining why and how they should take good care of you and protect you."

In Vietnam, the contest was held for the 37th time, under the coordination of the Ministry of Science and Technology (formerly the Ministry of Information and Communications), the Ministry of Education and Training, the Central Committee of the Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union, etc.

The contest was launched and implemented nationwide from November 11, 2024 to March 5, 2025. The Organizing Committee received nearly 1.5 million entries from students nationwide. Localities with many quality entries are Hanoi, Hai Duong, Da Nang, Hue, Hai Phong, Bac Ninh, Nghe An, Ho Chi Minh City, Khanh Hoa...

After 5 rounds of judging, the National Jury selected 142 entries for the final round. Results: 1 first prize, 3 second prizes, 5 third prizes, 30 consolation prizes, 61 promising writer prizes; 10 ideas source prizes.

Below is the letter from Pham Doan Minh Khue:

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/giao-duc/nu-sinh-gioi-su-da-nang-gianh-giai-nhat-cuoc-thi-viet-thu-quoc-te-upu-2025-20250516105230001.htm