These launched programs are part of the coordinating plan between the Vietnam Fatherland Front Central Committee, the Ministry of Resources and Environment and religious organizations for environmental protection and climate change response.

The representative committee of Hoa Hao Buddhist Church in Ben Tre province has been operating practical models with the involvement of religions for raising religious followers’ awareness in promoting a green and clean environment in the locality.

The Buddhist representative committee in the province has established four advocacy teams with 28 members within four Hoa Hao Buddhist  executive boards in communes of An Hoa Tay (Ba Tri district), Quoi Thanh (Chau Thanh district), Khanh Thanh Tan (Mo Cay Bac district) and Vinh Binh (Cho Lach district). These advocacy teams have guided hundreds of households to install water storage and a rainwater drainage system, carry out waste processing by burning or burial, collect and properly discharge bags and bottles of plant protection drugs, etc.

Member of the Hoa Hao Buddhist Church’s Executive Committee cum Chairman of the church’s provincial representative committee Nguyễn Thanh Tùng informed that besides implementing social and charitable activities, the representative committee also paid attention to practical activities for environment protection and climate change adaption.

Chairman Nguyễn Thanh Tùng introduces water system in Son Hoa Temple

In its office based in Son Hoa Temple located in Vinh Binh commune of Cho Lach district, the provincial Hoa Hao Buddhist representative committee has provided free clean water to local people, helping them cope with the shortage of fresh water caused by saltwater intrusion.

In addition, the provincial Buddhist representative committee also encouraged Hoa Hao deacons and lay followers to proactively join in movement p, as well as change habits and lifestyles causing environmental pollution. Hoa Hao deacons have often held exchanges with local followers on environment protection, and asked them to keep clean and green worshiping places, rural roads and their houses, create habits of sorting waste before discharge and limiting use of plastic bags, etc.

Son Hoa Temple provides free fresh water for local residents

In 2020, in the contest "Religion and green environment" held by the Vietnam Fatherland Front Committee in the province in collaboration with environment protection division under the resources and environment department, with the participation of religious organizations and 25 registered models by religious worshipping establishments in the locality, the Hoa Hao Buddhist executive board in Tan Hoa commune of Chau Thanh district was awarded the first prize with the working model “environment protection, climate change response, waste classification for sustainable poverty reduction”.

In practice, the Hoa Hao Buddhist executive board in Tan Hoa has provided recycle bins to 75 households in Hamlet 3B with 2 baskets for each household, contributing to avoid impoper dispositions of family waste. When Hoa Hao Buddhist followers gathered for religious activities every month, the Buddhist executive board in Tan Hoa commune and the Vietnam Fatherland Front Committee in the commune would join and disseminated contents aimed at enhancing these followers’ awareness of environment protection and promoting practical activities such as cleaning and clearing bushes, planting trees, creating the rubbish hole in each family, etc.