CONSULTATION ON THE PROPOSAL TO ESTABLISH AN ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH NETWORK

Recently, at the Center for Community Capacity Development, Culture and Civilization (Nhan Van), a consultation meeting was held on the proposal to establish the Environmental Health Network, organized by the Vietnam Association for Conservation of Nature and Environment (VACNE) in coordination with relevant stakeholders.

In the context of increasing environmental pollution in Vietnam particularly air pollution, contamination from agricultural chemicals, and the open burning of agricultural residues which causes serious and long-term impacts on public health, ecosystems, and biodiversity, the need to strengthen cooperation in research, risk assessment, early warning, and environmental and health risk communication has become extremely urgent.

“Building a scientific foundation for public health protection”

From these concerning realities, the Nhan Van Center organized a meeting related to the Community Health Network within the framework of the project “Assessment of Air Pollution from Open Burning in Agriculture in Vietnam,” implemented by the Global Alliance on Health and Pollution (GAHP) in coordination with the Vietnam Association for Conservation of Nature and Environment (VACNE), together with partners proposing the establishment of an Environmental Health Network aimed at connecting scientists, experts, research institutions, and organizations working in the fields of environment and health.

Environmental Health Network Meeting at the Humanities Center

The meeting was attended by a large number of experts, Professors, and PhDs from many research and training institutions such as: The Institute of Plant Protection, the Institute of Chemical Research, environmental institutes, the Center for Environment and Community Development Research, Hanoi University of Pharmacy, the University of Science, Hue University, the University of Natural Sciences, Hanoi University of Natural Resources and Environment… along with organizations and networks working in the fields of environment and health.

The objective of the meeting was to consult professional opinions to finalize the Proposal for establishing the Network, while also identifying priority contents to be implemented in the coming time, ensuring scientific rigor, feasibility, and suitability with the practical context in Vietnam.

In the opening remarks, Dr. Nguyen Ngoc Sinh – President of the Vietnam Association for Conservation of Nature and Environment emphasized that the environment has long been one of the key issues that VACNE has pursued since its early days of establishment. According to Dr. Nguyen Ngoc Sinh, in addition to protecting natural resources and ecosystems, environmental issues increasingly show a direct and profound connection with human health.

Dr. Nguyen Ngoc Sinh – Chairman of VACNE chaired the meeting

In addition, over many years, VACNE has had the opportunity to work closely with leading experts and scientists both domestically and internationally, while gradually building and expanding communities and networks operating in the environmental sector. Notable examples include the Press Forum for environmental journalists, the Vietnam Clean Air Network now part of the Asia Clean Air Network, the Korea Environment Forum, as well as recent cooperative activities with the Global Alliance on Health and Pollution (GAHP) and the United Kingdom’s Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) in projects assessing air pollution caused by the open burning of agricultural residues.

“We recognize that the environment is not only a matter of natural resources or ecosystems, but an issue directly linked to public health. Therefore, establishing the Environmental Health Network is a necessary step to bring together experts not only in the environmental field but also in medicine and healthcare, so that they can jointly research, analyze, and propose solutions to reduce risks from environmental pollution and protect community health,” emphasized Dr. Nguyen Ngoc Sinh.

Clarifying the operational orientation and priority pillars of the Network

Also at the meeting, Dr. Dao Tung – Coordinator of the Global Alliance on Health and Pollution (GAHP) in Vietnam shared results and experiences from the cooperation process between GAHP and VACNE over the past three years.

According to Dr. Dao Tung, the open burning of agricultural residues is one of the main reasons why Vietnam is currently among the countries with high levels of air pollution. The impacts of environmental pollution, especially air pollution, on human health need to be recognized seriously and addressed in a systematic manner.

Dr. Dao Tung – Coordinator of GAHP in Vietnam shared his remarks

Within the framework of the projects implemented, GAHP and its partners have researched, proposed, and piloted various alternatives to open burning of agricultural residues, helping farmers both reduce environmental pollution and generate economic value while promoting sustainable agriculture. These models and solutions have been tested in practice and have shown strong potential for scaling up in many localities across the country.

“The establishment of the Environmental Health Network will create conditions to connect scientists and experts, share experiences, data, and practical lessons, thereby more widely disseminating solutions to protect the environment and community health,” Dr. Dao Tung said.

Experts also shared many opinions and exchanges at the meeting

At the meeting, many opinions emphasized the necessity of building mechanisms for sharing data and scientific evidence, especially data related to exposure to agricultural chemicals, air pollution from open burning of agricultural residues, and the associated health impacts. At the same time, the Network will not stop at academic research but will also aim to assess real-world risks and provide early warnings to communities by selecting several locations, population groups, and typical agricultural production models for monitoring, analysis, and evaluation of environmental health impacts. The research results will serve as a basis for developing policy recommendations, guidance documents, and risk communication messages that are accessible to the public.

The Health Network meeting connecting with experts from hubs in the Southern and Central regions

Another important topic discussed was the role of the Network in linking research results with practical interventions, particularly models that replace the open burning of agricultural residues which have been and are being implemented within projects of VACNE, GAHP, and partners. Participants noted that integrating health impact assessments into these models would help clarify the dual benefits for the environment, health, and the economy, thereby increasing their persuasiveness when being scaled up locally.

In the initial phase, the Network will prioritize completing its operational framework, identifying key thematic groups (air pollution, agricultural chemicals, rural community health), while also proposing pilot activities aimed at generating concrete, measurable results that can be used for policy planning.

With this approach, the establishment of the Environmental Health Network is not merely symbolic, but is expected to become a practical scientific tool, built with an open, flexible, and long-term orientation, contributing to narrowing the gap between research, policy, and action in the context of increasing environmental pollution and health risks in Vietnam.

sos