Rosa_Youth and SD_Report June 2011

8/4/2019 Rosa_Youth and SD_Report June 2011

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Prepared by: Live & Learn or Environment and Community

Data collection,

analysis and research

support:

Luong Minh Tan, Nguyen Quang Thanh, Nguyen Thuy Trang, Ha Quynh Nga,

Tran Thanh Thuy Nguyen Thu Lanh, Vuong Thi Loan

Final Edit and TechnicalCoordination:

Do Van Nguyet, Edward Boydell

Photo credit: Live & Learn and members o Green Generation Network

Special Thanks to Rosa Luxemburg Stitung or supporting this work

Abbreviations

SD Sustainable development

HCMC Ho Chi Minh City

SYSD Survey on Youth and Sustainable Development

NGO Non-governmental organization

NPO Non-prot organization

“A group o committed young people, who cooperate,exchange and work together or shared goal and

objectives. They have high responsibility and strong

organization over a certain period o time to contribute

to a robust, lasting and stable development.” (Female,

Ha Noi, student, 21. Online questionnaire)

“Sustainable Development is like building a house.

I we have a good oundation, then we are condent

to ollow up with decoration, building more foors,

carrying out repairs, and so on. And we are not

concerned that the house could collapse or begin to

lean as many houses have recently” (Male, Da Nang,

teacher/Youth Union Secretary, 32 years old. In-depth

interview)





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This survey aims tond out how young

people in Vietnam

perceive sustainable

development and

their participation

in sustainable

development

Executive Summary

Introduction

The Survey on Youth and Sustainable Development (SYSD) involved over

600 young people aged between 15 and 25 in over 28 provinces acrossVietnam. This survey aims to nd out how young people in Vietnam perceive

sustainable development and their participation in sustainable development.

The survey seeks to discover the ways in which young people have built their

interest, knowledge and awareness about sustainable development, their

participation and actions that they are taking, and actors that infuencing

youth’s awareness and action.

This report is built on the results rom the survey, with qualitative and

quantitative questions using both online and direct interviews. Conducted in

two months, this report also refects the outcome o a longer process, which

builds on our years o experiences o being, working with and understanding

the issues and perspectives o young people in Vietnam.



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Awareness of young people on

sustainable development

Sustainable development remains a relatively

new concern or the participating young people,

with two thirds mentioning that their interest in

SD started within the last three years. However,

most o participants elt that SD is either the most

important, or among the most important issues

that they ace. Youth are particularly concerned

about the topics o environmental pollution, climate

change and natural disasters, and the development

o a green economy.

Participants also shared their perceptions about therole and activity level o dierent stakeholders in

SD, with over two thirds o them eeling that NGO/

NPOs were the most active player. This may due

to the exposure o young people to NGO/NPOs

and the strong mandate o NGO/NPOs in social

development and environmental conservation. The

government was perceived as the next most active

player, but participants elt that the government

holds the highest responsibilities or SD, particularly

to guide and acilitate SD in Vietnam through policies

and planning. In the eyes o young people, business

plays a less active role, and their responsibility

should be to provide nancial resources and invest

in SD practices.

The participants show their optimism toward

international and Vietnamese policies or SD over

the last ve years, with a majority expressing

that they have resulted in outcomes somewhat

better, better and much better than beore. And

when predicting the impact o policies and plansor sustainable development in the next 5 years,

young people had even higher optimism. However,

during in-depth interviews both youth and adults

shared their concerns about current policies – they

elt many policies were abstract, unrealistic or

ineective in implementation.

Youth and their role for sustainable

development

When they refected on youth nowadays, the

participants painted a positive portrait o themselves

as an active, inormed and dynamic generation

in terms o both community/volunteer work and

global integration. They eel like young people

should engage more in community and volunteer

activities, have new and innovative ideas, and be

both culturally-sensitive and global-connected. In

particular, they elt that young people should take

sustainable actions in their personal lives and

encourage other people to ollow suit. Although

participants were unsure about their participationin decision-making processes, they expressed the

wish to have a more active role.

The majority o respondents had already been

involved in a range o activities related to SD rom

personal level to societal level, particularly through

participation in community/volunteer activities. Their

main reason or involvement is because they eel

good and useul when these community/volunteer

activities make meaningul contribution. They also

want to gain skills and, to a slightly lesser extent,

knowledge rom these activities. Young people

are very positive that youth-based activities are

eective, and elt there should be a greater number

o similar programs available.

The results rom this part o survey indicate that

youth organizations and interventions should

create a positive environment or young people

to meaningully engage with the realities o SD.

This could be through participating in community/ volunteer activities and at the same time to improve

their practical knowledge and skills. There is also

a need to build interest and acilitate responsible

citizenship by increasing the participation o young

people in decision-making processes.

Key findings



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Factors influencing youth’s awareness

and action on SD

Most o participants get inormation about SD

through mass media (TV and newspapers) and the

internet. While traditional education (e.g. in schools)

also plays a role, peer-to-peer learning rom riends,

colleagues and participation in clubs is also central

to building understanding, but more importantly,

care about SD among young people. Participants

expressed their main sources o inspiration about

SD is rom NGO/NPOs, teachers and riends.

To support young people to build their awareness

and action, young people required an environment

where they can actively learn through doing,

with action-oriented opportunities to practice and

engage with dierent issues and stakeholders.

This indicates that school curriculum and training

programs should have content and methods that

are practical and interesting.

Most o the young people expressed their wish

to contribute to SD and learn about SD throughparticipation in community and volunteer work.

To do these activities eectively, participants

expressed they need good knowledge and skills.

It is also necessary to mobilize nancial/technical

resources, and strong networking and institutional

support rom outside organizations to ensure that

youth-based activities, programs and organizations

to achieve eective and sustainable outcomes.

Conclusion and recommendations

These ndings give valuable inputs both or young

people, as well as the many organizations and

individuals that support them, in order to enhance

youth’s role in the journey towards sustainable

development.

• Find opportunities or young people to

understand and engage with a range o

specic SD issues in a comprehensive and

holistic manner, a manner that encourages

them to address the specic underlying causes

o general, big-picture environmental issues.

• Promote and support youth-based community

and volunteer programs/organizations that are

creating opportunities or youth to engage withSD, building their institutional and networking

capacity.

• Support youth participation in community and

volunteer programs/organizations as a learning

and action place or SD

• Gradually raise interest and engage young

people to meaningully participate in decision-

making processes at dierent levels, rom their

own amilies to schools/workplaces, as well as

at local, national and international level.

• Use interactive, participatory methods that

spark the interest and passion o young

people when integrating SD into programs

such as school-based activities and curricula,

campaigns, media and training courses.

• Encourage government organizations, the

business community, NGO/NPOs, leaders,

teachers and amily members to act as

responsible role-models who demonstrate

good practices or young people to learn rom

and ollow.



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What do young people in Vietnam know, understand and do about

sustainable development?

This was the key question that guided our research with over 600 young people and volunteers

aged 15-25 in Vietnam during the Survey on Youth and Sustainable Development (SYSD).

This survey aims to nd out how young people in Vietnam perceive sustainable development

and their participation in sustainable development. SYSD seeks to discover the ways in which

young people understand sustainable development, how they are taking action, and the

actors that are infuencing this awareness and action

SYSD and this report are intended to contribute to consultation or the global youth mobilization

campaign towards Rio +20, the United Nations Conerence on Environment and Sustainable

Development, to be held in Rio de Janeiro in 2012. It will also inorm uture interventions that

are designed to engage Vietnamese young people with sustainable development.

This report is not only the result o a one- or two-month survey, but also refects the outcomes

o a longer process, building on the research team’s years o experiences being young people,

working with them, and understanding their perspectives and concerns o Vietnamese youth.

1. Introduction



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Young people between 10 and 25 account or

27.9% o Vietnam’s population.1

Vietnamese youth are increasingly equipped with

globally-updated inormation and technology,oreign languages and contemporary knowledge

and awareness. However, these young people in

Vietnam ace numerous challenges now and in

their lietimes, including economic insecurity, HIV/

AIDS, climate change, mass immigration and rapid

urbanization. While parents, schools and the wider

public tend to provide young people with modern

inormation and technology, oreign language and

textbook knowledge, less attention is paid to the

social knowledge, values and lie skills that a young

person need to live a healthy, balanced lie and

contribute to a sustainable society.

National and global challenges are becoming worse,

and these problems require innovative solutions

and social change to solve. Young people can be

important agents or social change, economic

development and technological innovation. By

raising their awareness o development issues,

strengthening their capabilities and giving them

opportunities to engage, young people can developpositive attributes and skills that will help to build

a healthy and sustainable society. Young people

have resh and innovative ideas and are eager to

bring about movement and change. It is important

or adults, particularly decision makers, to see that

young people are not only the leaders and decision-

makers o tomorrow; but that young people can

contribute and acilitate positive change in their

own communities and the environment today.

In recent years, more and more Vietnamese youths,

students and young workers are demonstrating

their concern and care or social and environmental

issues through charity, environmental action

activities and in orming numerous volunteer

groups and clubs. For example, there are over

50 active volunteer and student clubs that were

ormed out o concern or environmental issues,

and now carry out a range o environmental

actions. The growing number o voluntary and sel-

organized environmental activities is a positive sign

o civil society development in Vietnam, as young

citizens want to express their concerns and take

leadership in building a sustainable lie and uture.

There is a need to urther explore this youth

capacity in sustainable development, as well as

their concerns and demands, in order to tailor

intervention programs and making them more

responsive to the needs o youth. This is the

rationale that guided this survey, conducted byLive & Learn with the support o Rosa Luxemburg

Stitung Vietnam.

1.1 Why youth and sustainable development?

1 Young people aged 10-25 account or 27.9% o Vietnam’s

population (GSO, Population census, 2009).



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The overall objective o SYSD is to assess the

capacity and needs o young people, particularly

youths and volunteer groups rom the North, Central

Region and South o Vietnam to raising awareness

and take action on sustainable development issues

The specifc objectives ocus on:

• Young people’s awareness o sustainable

development (SD) issues: When, what and

how youth understand SD; what issues

interest and concern them most; and the

perceptions o about the role o government,

NGOs, business in SD.

• Activities by youth on SD: types o youth

actions and the impacts o these; and the role

o youth in SD.

• Factors infuencing youth awareness and

action on SD issues: how did youth get

involved in SD, and what enabling actors

support youth’s role in SD

Target group: SYSD was conducted with young

Vietnamese people aged between15 and 25, with

a particular ocus on those who have participated

in community and volunteer activities, which

include including environmental and community

service activities, participation student groups

and clubs, involvement in government-sponsored

programs like the Youth Union and Young Pioneers,

and sustainable development and good citizenship

activities. The survey was supported by in-depth

interviews o 8 youth and 8 adults aged between

18 and 46, who participated to share their

perspectives on SD and youth.

1.2 Survey objective

1.3 The methodology

Methodologies: This is a combined quantitative

and qualitative survey, using questionnaires and

in-depth interviews. Online questionnaires were

completed by 600 young people rom volunteer

groups and universities in over 28 provinces in

North, Central and South Vietnam. The online

questionnaire was supplemented by 15 in-depth

interviews or youth and adults in Ha Noi, Da Nang

and Ho Chi Minh City.

Developing the survey and recruiting

participants

Designing the questionnaires

Several questions rom the SYSD were adapted

rom the rst global youth survey on sustainable

development, part o a youth consultation process

or the Road to or Rio +20, organized by Peace Child

international in the lead up to the UN Conerence

on Sustainable Development in 2012. Researchers

also reviewed several studies on youth in Vietnam

and internationally. A drat questionnaire was

trialed with a small number o young people in Ha

Noi and Ho Chi Minh City beore the nal version

was launched online. There were 5 main parts in

the questionnaire:

• Part 1: Demographic inormation o survey

participants, including age, gender, place o

residence, education level.

•Part 2:

Awareness and perceptions o the

participants about SD, what SD means to

them, what issues most concern them,

• Part 3: Youth perceptions/opinions about SD

policies and the roles o dierent actors.

• Part 4: Youth actors and their role in SD.

• Part 5: Factors infuencing youth awareness

and action on SD issues: how youth became

involved in SD and the enabling actors thatsupport the participation o youth in SD.



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In the in-depth interviews, participants were asked

about their insight into the roles, awareness and

activities o young people in relation to young

people. The qualitative results o these interviews

were used to complement the richness o the

questionnaire.

Recruiting participants and conducting the

survey

The questionnaire was made available online (using

the Google Docs platorm) and ofine (through

in-person interviews with youth) over a 2 month

period. Based on Live & Learn’s comprehensive

list o volunteer and youth groups across Vietnam,

survey invitations were sent to young people

thorough email, popular online orums and

social networks (mailing groups, acebook). Keyrepresentatives rom youth groups were requently

contacted and sent detailed instructions or inviting

their group members and other young people to ll

in the questionnaire. O the 600 participants, 450

completed the questionnaire online, and 150 were

surveyed in person.

Ha Noi, Da Nang and Ho Chi Minh City were selected

as locations or in-depth interviews as these cities

are the ocal points o much o the youth activities

and volunteer programs in Vietnam. Several active

youth were trained and coached to acilitate online

and direct interviews. During their data collection

eld trips, the research teams also invited youth

in Thanh Hoa and Quang Binh to complete the

questionnaires. Participation o youth in the survey

was voluntary and active youth groups or youth

acilitators received some incentives to support

their active engagement. For direct interviews,

a small contribution was paid to interviewees

toward the cost o travel and drinks at the caés

where interviews were conducted. It is important

to note that the survey was promoted through

existing youth programs, clubs and networks,

particularly targeting socially active Vietnameseyouth... The views, opinions and perspectives that

have emerged as a result o the survey ndings

are thereore not a representation o Vietnamese

youth in its entirety, but a refect a targeted sample

o engaged youth and active citizens who have an

existing connection with community and volunteer

activities.

Analysis of Survey Data

Data rom the online questionnaires werecombined with the data rom ofine responses. All

quantitative responses were analyzed with SPSS

ater coding and cleaning. In-depth interviews were

analyzed and combined with quantitative results

or urther interpretation.

A variety o people were involved as part o the

research team in order to assist in the process o

compiling, reviewing and analyzing various sections

o the survey.

I there were greater resources available or this

study, the survey would also included dierent

locations, in both rural and urban settings using a

greater number o direct interviews. This may be

something to consider as a ollow-up opportunity

in the uture.



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2. Key Findings

“Sustainable development is very vital. But it seems to me that people only care when

very bad thing happened…” (Male, Da Nang, student, 23. In-depth interview)

“…A group o committed young people, who cooperate, exchange and work together or

shared goal and objectives. They have high responsibility and strong organization over a

certain period o time to contribute to a robust, lasting and stable development.” (Female,

Ha Noi, student, 21. Online questionnaire)



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Region

The SYSD questionnaire involved a total sample o

600 participants rom 28 provinces. The majority

o respondents reside in the North o the Country

(44.5%), with 32.8% in Central Vietnam and 22.7%

rom the Southern region.

Age

O the 600 young people aged between 15 and

25 who participated in the research with the age

range o 14-25, the majority (46.3%) youth in

the age range o 20 – 21, with 18 – 19 year olds

coming in second (23.3%), ollowed by those aged

22 years and above (20.8%). This is due to the

act that the survey was heavily promoted among

online orums, groups and networks specically

or 2nd- 4th year university students. Youth aged

17 and under accounted or a small part (9.5%) o

the survey.

Gender

The gender distribution o the youth participants in

the research is 42% male and 52% emale. This is

likely to refect the greater participation o emales

than males in community and volunteer activities.

Education level

Almost two-thirds o the youth who participated in

the research are attending university (72.2%), with

those in high schools and below accounting or

15%. College, vocational school and post-graduate

students accounted or 9.5%, 1.8% and 1.5%

respectively. This indicates that survey participants

are airly well educated.

Participation in youth-based social

activities or being members of youth/

volunteer groups

The majority o the young people who participated

in this have been involved in at least one youth-

based community and volunteer activities (over

83%). Around 64% o the survey participants

identied themselves as current members o

clubs/youth groups, compared to the 37% o non-members.

As this survey was mainly promoted through youth

and volunteer network and online questionnaires,

the sample o youth are particularly more

knowledgeable, dynamic and open-minded. This

generation o youth is growing up with better

technology, communication and inormation

and has more access to rights and privileges

than some o their other peers. With the rise o

youth-led organizations and initiatives, there are

more opportunities or young people to engage

in dierent levels o socio-economic development

and to be exposed to a breadth o inormation,

nationally and globally.

9.20%

38.70%44.30%

7.80%No, I do not

Yes, but limited understanding

Yes, I do

Yes, very clearly

Figure 1. Do you think you understand about SD?

2.1 Demographic profile of survey respondents



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This part o the survey explored young people’s

exposure, experiences and concern in relation

to the term SD. Participants were asked abouttheir understanding o SD, how they became

interested, and about their opinions o the roles

o dierent stakeholders responsible or SD

like government organizations, businesses and

NGOs. Their responses to these questions is very

useul to understand the existing perceptions and

motivations o young people, an essential rst step

or any program or organization that aims to involve

youth in social change and encourage them to be

change agents.

Do you know what is meant by

‘sustainable development’?

More than hal o the participants eel that they

already have a good knowledge or understanding

about what sustainable development is (52.1%),

including 7.8% who think that they have very

clear and comprehensive understanding. The

rest considered themselves to have limited

understanding o SD (38.7%), or do not

understand what it is (9.2%). These numbers are

airly consistent across age groups. Regionally,

however, a greater majority o survey participants

are condent about their understanding o SD

in the south (66.9%), while both the north and

central have smaller number o participants who

eel that they understand SD (48.3% and 47.2%

respectively).

What do you think when you hear the

term ‘sustainable development”?

“I immediately think o the (well-rounded)

development o the economy and society

with no exploitation to natural resources, no

pollution, using clean energy and creating a

lot o social and community values. I really

hope Vietnamese enterprises and people

understand that issues o environmental

pollution and climate change are caused

by our human activities. So we need to do

something, starting rom small actions to ensure the development in the uture”

(Female, Ha Noi, student, 19. Online

questionnaire)

“Sustainable Development is like building a

house. I we have a good oundation, then we

are condent to ollow up with decoration,

building more foors, carrying out repairs,

and so on. And we are not concerned that

the house could collapse or begin to lean as

many houses have recently” (male, Da Nang,

teacher/Youth Union Secretary, 32 years old.

In-depth interview)

Table 1 summarizes the most requent way

that participants expressed their understanding

and thinking related to SD. Most participants’

understanding is linked closely to the harmony

Table 1. Popular expressions o the term ‘sustainable development’ by young people

1 Development that is stable, sustained, comprehensive, well-rounded, long-term, concerned with the uture

and is sucient

2 Environment, ecosystems, climate change, low carbon emissions

3 Developing society, reducing poverty, enhancing quality o lie; taking action or the benets o community

conserving traditional values, cultures, liestyles

4 Green economy, good economic growth, technology/innovation, sustainable extraction o resources/

production o goods, globalization

5 Human development, building awareness, capacity, knowledge

6 Vision, political systems, good institutions, pathways o development, long-term strategies, planning

7 Specic and concrete actions, youth’s role in sustainable development

2.2 Young people’s awareness of sustainable

development



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between society-economy-environment and

the popular Brundtland denition: "Sustainable

development is development that meets the needs

o the present without compromising the ability o

uture generations to meet their own needs". So

at the top in the list are thoughts o young people

about long-term, stable, lasting, comprehensive,uture-ocused and caring development. Next

in the list are expressions o a cleaner, greener

environment; a better society with improved

liestyles and quality o living; and then concerns

or community, and nally the economy. Frequent

expressions included terms such as “green

economy”, “recycling”, “sustainable resource

extraction”, “clean technology”, “low-carbon

growth”. This demonstrates that young people are

becoming up-to-date with these new concepts.

The next most popular expressions o understanding

include “human development, knowledge and

capacity development” and “vision, planning,

systems, politics, institutions”. Several youths

also mentioned about the importance o concrete

action or SD, as well as the participation o youth

in SD, and even took the chance to ask questions

“how to promote SD” in their expressions.

In-depth interviews revealed similar results -

interviewees had various denitions, but shared

common understanding o SD in association with

the holistic development o society, environment

and economy.

When did you begin to be concerned

about sustainable development?

It seems that sustainable development remains a

new concern or the participating young people,

with 67.5% reporting that their interest in SD started

within the last three years. 41.8% o participants

became interested within the last year. Only 9.5%

have had longer exposure. The high response rate to

the “Not interested yet” eld, 32.5% participants,

included those genuinely not interested and those

who gave no response to this question There was

an interesting correlation between interest in

sustainable development and participation in social

volunteer and community activities and clubs.

The percentage o young people responding “Notinterested yet” is only 15% (70/463) among youth

who have already participated in such activities,

compared to 91% (125/137) or those who have

not (Figure 2).

Many o youth interviewees mentioned they began

to be interested in SD when participating in social

activities or studying some subjects related to SD

in their university programs. They were concerned

that many young people are yet to pay attention

to SD. One youth who participated in an in-depth

interview explained that SD is such a big and

abstract issue, and as a student, she is more

concerned with studying.

How important is sustainable

development to you? What SD themes

are you concerned with?

“Sustainable development starts with very

small and specic actions… Humans are

mainly concerned with short-term benets,

not the long-term. So only when something

bad happens like climate change, tsunamis,

earthquakes, and so on, do they start to

become concerned” (Male, Da Nang,

student, 23. In-depth interview)

In this part, the survey explored youth’s perceptions

about the importance o SD to them, and their

concern or the dierent issues related to SD,

ranging rom unemployment to HIV (Figure 3).

Approximately 60% o the youth participants

considered SD to be the most important issue to

them, and about 21.5% think o SD as among top

important issues. The percentage o those who

considered SD as not important or somewhat

important is a small raction o the total participants,

32.50%

41.80%

16.20%

9.50%Not interested yet

In the recent one year

In the last 2-3 years

More than 3 years ago

Figure 2. When did you begin to be interested in sustainable

development?



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around 3.7%. These participants all came romthe Northern and Central part o Vietnam, and

approximately 60% o these participants are not

active members o groups/clubs or participants in

community and volunteer activities (12/22).

From the many SD issues, environmental pollution,

climate change and natural disasters, and green

economy emerged as the top three issues o

concern to young people (Table 2). The concerns

are consistent across gender groups, except or

the slight dierence that males were more likely

to put climate change as their top issue while

emales were more likely to select environmental

pollution. Next on the list o concerning issues

were: globalization, poverty, corruption and

unemployment.

The in-depth interviews also show that youngpeople seem to pay more attention to big-picture,

global environment-related issues, and that the

older they are, the more likely they are to care

about social-political issues such as corruption,

policies, culture and transportation. Also specic

themes in sustainable development received

less attention, even environmental issues like

energy and biodiversity. This nding about the

relative awareness and priority o dierent issues

challenges organizations and programs to cover

more diverse and specic themes, using methods

that allow young people to develop diverse,

multi-dimensional and holistic understanding o

sustainable development.

1.20% 2.50%

15%

21.50%59.80%

Not important at all

Somewhat important

It is important, but just as

important as other issues

It is more important than other issues

It is the most important issue

Figure 3. How important is SD to you?

Table 2. Ranking issues o concern (top 10)

Ranking Issues o concern Everyone Young male Young emale

1 Environmental pollution 46.33% 32.64% 58.97%

2 Climate change & Natural disasters 44.33% 38.19% 50.00%

3 Green Economy 26.17% 20.83% 31.09%

4 Infation 20.67% 20.49% 20.83%

5 Globalisation 17.83% 19.44% 16.35%

6 Human rights 15.33% 13.89% 16.67%

7 Poverty 15.00% 12.50% 17.31%

8 Cultural identities preservation 14.33% 10.07% 18.27%9 Corruption 14.00% 11.81% 16.03%

10 Energy 13.83% 14.24% 13.46%



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As well as exploring how youth’s attention and

awareness about SD, the survey also studied

how young people perceive the relative roles

o government, NGOs/NPOs, businesses and

individuals in SD and their expectations o these

individuals and stakeholders. And then nd out

about how youth perceived young people’s roles in

SD. These ndings start to touch the understanding

and concern o young people about governance.

The roles and responsibilities of

government, non-governmental

organizations, businesses andindividuals in sustainable development

For the multiple-choice question “In your opinion,

who are currently having many activities related

to sustainable development”, the majority o

participants thought that NGOs/NPOs (72%) as

well as the government (63%) are the most active

players. In the eyes o young people, businesses

(35%) and individual/citizens (24%) played less

active roles in promoting and having SD activities.

Some o the youth also mentioned specically thatthe youth are one o the most active stakeholders,

carrying out many initiatives (e.g. running youth-led

clubs/groups). O all the youth participants, only

18 answered that they ‘do not know’ whom or

which organizations are most active in the eld o

sustainable development (Figure 4).

In regard to the relative responsibility dierent

development players “who should hold the

highest responsibility in promoting SD”, the

majority o all participants think that the government

should hold the highest responsibility in achieving

SD, ollowed by individuals (18.2%), business

enterprises (9.5%) and NGOs/NPOs (7.7%).In ‘others’ option, participants considered that

achieving SD should be the highest responsibility

o every stakeholder. Similarly, many in-depth

interviewees thought that the government has the

power, makes policies and decisions infuencing

people in many years, invest or the long term.

Particularly, the responsibilities start rom the

leaders.

When broken-down into age groups, it seems that

younger participants eel greater responsibilityshould lie with individuals, with 31.6% o participants

under the age o 17 eeling that individuals play a

key role. It will be interesting to nd out why this

age group did not see any clear role or businesses

in SD (only 1.8%).

The survey also explored the dierent

responsibilities o each key stakeholder in greater

depth. Figure 5 shows that 51% o the participants

considered the government’s role should be to

guide and acilitate SD in Vietnam through policies

and plans. For the private sector, approximately

44.2% o participants think that businesses’ key

role in SD is to provide nancial resources and invest

in SD practices. For NGO/NPOs, the opinions o

the youth participants are very diverse, with three

priorities considered equally important: ‘initiating

SD models and practices’ (20.3%), ‘implementing/

coordinating activities’ (19.7%) and ‘Mobilising/

Engaging people to participate in social activities’

(19.4%). The nding shows a airly relevant andinteresting understanding and expectations o

young people about dierent stakeholders’ roles

and responsibilities.

0.00% 20.00% 40.00% 60.00% 80.00%

NGOs/NPOs

Government

Businesses

Individual

Others

I don’t know

Who is most active

Who should have highestresponsibility

Figure 4. Roles o dierent stakeholders

0.0% 10.0% 20.0% 30.0% 40.0% 50.0% 60.0%

Initiating sustainable models andpratices

Issuing policies to facilitate SD

Making development plans

Finance and investing in sustainabledevelopment

Implementing/Coordinating activities

Mobilising people to participate incommunity, volunteer activities

Other

Gov

NGO/NPO

Businesses

Figure 5. The key responsibilities o dierent stakeholders

2.3 Youth perceptions about roles and responsibilities

of different stakeholders in sustainable development



17

“The government has highest and oreront

responsibilities, and has to take rst steps

to enable other organizations to operate.

Local citizens only ollow the government

programs, but the programs must be suitable

and relevant”. (Female, Hanoi, student, 20. In-

depth interview)

“Responsibility [or Sustainable Development]

belongs to everyone, as we are all parts o the

whole. However, those with higher positions

have greater responsibilities”. (Female, Da

Nang, business, 35. In-depth interview)

Perceptions of policies and plans for

sustainable development in the world

and Vietnam

Exploring youth’s perspectives and eelings in

relation to the eectiveness o SD policies and plans

is an indicator o how optimistic or pessimistic and

cynical young people are about the development

and implementation government policy or

Sustainable Development, not about whether a

policy is right or wrong. The road to SD will requires

trust, commitment and energy rom young people.In addition, questions about SD policies and plans

encourage young people to think about their roles

as active citizens, who contribute to the process o

strategies, policies and plans rom ormulation to

implementation and evaluation in order to shape a

sustainable uture.

Overall, youth participants show their optimism

toward International and Vietnamese policies on SD

over the last ve years, with more than 70% and

60% think that the world and Vietnam respectively

is on the right track have been on the right direction

to achieve sustainability (somewhat better, better

and much better). However, the youth opinions

about Vietnam are less optimistic than what they

think at a global scale, since there are nearly twice

as many youth who think that at a global level thereis almost no change (21.7%), or that policies have

got worse (5.8%) in the last ve years (Table 3).

Youth are very optimistic about the eectiveness

o Vietnam’s SD policies in the uture, with more

than 73% participants eeling that the next 5 years

will be somewhat better, better and much better -

with over 12% opting or “much better” and 27%

or “better”. In both cases, there are a number o

youths showed their uncertainty about past and

uture policies’ eectiveness, with approximately

17% o the youth participants elt that “I do not

know”.

During in-depth interviews, both youth and adults

during in-depth interviews shared their concerns

or current policies – they elt many policies were

abstract and neither realistic nor eective yet. Many

interviewees shared that the implementation oten

dierent rom the approved plans. However, they

also shared positive views when talking about the

uture, and eeling that with more practical, relevant

and stable work to be done. And they consider

“being positive will bring good solutions”.

“I hope we will have better development, a

cleaner environment, and good policies to

create jobs or students ater graduation, and

to improve inrastructure or rural schools…”

(Female, Hanoi, student, 20. In-depth

interview)

Table 3. The eectiveness o policies on SD in the world and in Vietnam

Values Over the last 5 years In the next 5 years

In the world (%) In Vietnam (%) In Vietnam (%)

Much better 6.8 2.8 12.0

Better 26.0 18.3 27.7

Somewhat better 40.7 39.3 33.5

Do not know 12.3 12.0 17.0

Almost unchanged 11.3 21.7 9.0

Less sustainable 2.8 5.8 0.8

Total 100 100 100



18

“There is a strong and widespread rise

o youth club, student and volunteer

organizations. It is still uncertain to know

i these organizations or groups work

eectively, however they are good places

or young people to share, learn and express

their opinions as well as to contribute their

youthul energy and capacity”. (Female,

HCMC, student, 20. In-depth interview)

Youth also refected on their roles and

responsibilities or sustainable development. To

explore the roles o young people in SD, SYSD

encouraged young people to start by looking at

themselves, and refecting who they are and what

they should become. It then asked you to share

how they participated in SD, and the values and

impacts o community and volunteer activities or

those involved.

What is the portrait of young people

nowadays?

The survey understood youth’s perception o

themselves by getting their level o agreement to a

number o statements, such as “youth are active”,

“youth are passive” and “youth are just playing

around and ollowing trends”.

Figure 6 paints a portrait about how youth see

themselves. A clear majority o the participants

considered themselves to be active, core orces

in community/volunteer activities (81.1% agree

or strongly agree), innovative (79.1%) and active

in international activities (67.9%). They largely

disagreed with the statement that they are “passive

and mainly ocused on studying/working” (60.8%

disagree or strongly disagree) or that they only

“play around and ollow trends” (72.5%). This is a

very positive sel-portrait rom young people, even

more so when compared with their responses to

other questions in this survey.

In regards to whether the youth are actively

participating in the decision-making processes the

opinions were more diverse, with a considerable

number o participants (41.2%) neither agreeing

nor disagreeing with the statement, with more

than 17% think that youth not participating actively

in the decision-making processes.

Adults also shared diverse but positive views about

youth during in-depth interviews, representing

young people as an active, dynamic generation and

energetic orce in any development process. Young

people had good chances to possess good and

modern knowledge and also have great potential

or out-reach and replication o activities. However,

0.00% 10.00% 20.00% 30.00% 40.00% 50.00% 60.00%

Youth are active

Youth are innovative

Youth participate in decision-makingprocesses

Youth actively participate in internationalactivities

Youth are passive

Youth are only playing around and

following trends

Strongly disagree Disagree Neither agree or disagree Agree Strongly agree

Figure 6. Opinions about young people nowadays

2.4 The actions and roles of young people in

sustainable development



19

both youth and adults elt that there was a lack

o opportunities or young people to make their

voices heard, and make meaningul engagement in

workplaces or in rural areas. In urban areas, youth

activities received more attention, but their voices

were still weak.

What should young people be doing?

Following the sel-portrait question, the survey

continued to nd out youth’s expectations o what

young people nowadays should do (Figure 7). The

majority o participants expressed that young

people should participate more in community and

volunteer activities (80.7%). They also expressed

their expectations or young people to have new

and innovative ideas (75.5%), to learn more about

tradition & culture and to be able to get up-to-date

with the rapidly changing world (both 68.2%). Only

hal thought that young people need to participate

in the decision making processes, and only about

a third think that they should ocus even more onstudying/working. Participants also expect young

people to have love or their community and the

nation, improve and develop skills and knowledge,

and to be more dynamic, sharing, realistic, and so

on.

These ndings show young people demand to

have chances to have a more practical involvement

in SD, through participation in community and

volunteer activities, trying out new ideas, being

both more culturally-sensitive and globally-

updated. This challenges organizations and youth

programs to ensure a good enabling environment

or young people to build and pursue their

interests and passion or participating in practical

volunteer and community action. However, this

must be complemented by programs that oster

connections between this orm o citizenship and a

more active engagement in political and decision-

making processes, and also make connections

between dierent ideas and activities.

What types of activities for sustainable

development did you do and shoulddo?

The majority o survey participants were already

involved in several types o activities related to

SD, such as “taking actions at individual level (turn

o the lights, reduce plastic bags, etc)” (80%),

“encouraging other people to have sustainable

actions” (64.2%) and “studying inormation about

SD” (61.5%). Only 37.7% o survey respondents

thought that they already did “participating in

decision-making processes” (Figure 8). Youths

also shared some other activities like: organizing

0.00% 20.00% 40.00% 60.00% 80.00%

Focus on studying/working

Actively participate in decision/policy-makingprocesses

Be interested in tradition and culture

Keep up-to-date with international andnational trends

Have new & innovative ideas

Participate in community and volunteer activities

Figure 7. What should young people nowadays be doing

0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%

Take actions at individual level

Encourage other people about SD

Study information about SD

Participate in decision-makingprocesses

Other

you already did youth should do for SD

Figure 8. Activities that young people already did and should do

or SD



20

environment campaigns, sharing good inormation

and practices to riends, and so on.

Following rom these questions about what young

people should be doing and already did or SD,

SYSD also explored urther about what young

people should do to contribute to sustainabledevelopment (Figure 8). There are very consistent

results when participants opted mainly or

“take personal sustainable actions” (over 80%),

“encouraged other people to have sustainable

actions” (73%) and “study inormation about SD”

(69%). And on the top o their wish list, most of

participants thought that young people should

“Participate in community and volunteer

activities” (78%).

“To solve any problem, young people should

be aware o their roots. They should know

and be concerned about national challenges”.

(Female, HCMC, student, 19 years old. In-

depth interview)

From the dierent questions exploring about

participants’ interests and involvement with

decision-making processes, SYSD ound that

although young people seem uncertain about their

current roles and involvement in decision-making

processes, there is a desire to increase their

engagement. Only one third o the participants elt

like they currently participate, but almost hal elt

that they should participate in the uture. Ways to

engage with “decision-making processes”, such as

voting and getting involved in policy or regulation

development may not clear to young people, and it

will be useul or youth programs and interventions

to explore this area urther and encouraging young

people to be active and responsible citizens at

dierent levels and scopes o decision-making.

How are you involved in youth-basedactivities for sustainable development?

“Youth-led activities are oten carried out at

small-scales, with little nance or a lack o good

proessional expertise, and yet to bring deep

or lasting eects. However, they promote

a good source o energy and inspiration or

those who participate and or beneciaries

who eel attentive. Although these benets

are still not obvious, it does appear that they

helped young people to realize and improve

themselves. For this reason, [the activities

are] already a success”. (Male, Da Nang,

teacher/Youth Union Secretary, 32. In-depth

interview)

In this part, the survey also asked young people

their opinions about youth-based community and

volunteer activities/programs. Such as: How they

know about these activities and what do they think

about the eects and impacts o these activities.

For participants who are involved in these activities,

SYSD also explored their rationale or participating.

Only 17% survey participants have not participated

in any youth-based community and volunteer

activities. Among those who have been involved

in community or volunteer activities, the majority

0.0% 10.0% 20.0% 30.0% 40.0% 50.0% 60.0% 70.0%

My friends ask me to come along

These activities are very fun

Other

I want to meet people

I want to have more knowledge

I want to improve some skills

These activities are very meaningful

Figure 9. Why are you involved in youth-based activities or SD?



21

o respondents (57.5%) considered they were

normal participants, and 25.7% were involved in

coordination. They got inormation about youth-

based activities mainly through direct participation

(63.7%), and partly rom the media (24%).

It is very useul to discover why young people participate in community and volunteer

activities (Figure 9). The main reason (64.3%)

or youth involvement is because participants

elt “These activities are very meaningul”. This

indicates that their rst thoughts are with bringing

benets to their communities, society and the

environment. Personal learning objectives (such

as improving skills and knowledge) ollowed much

urther behind, with less than 18% o participants

selecting these reasons. Also, very ew young

people (less than 5%) got involved simply in orderto meet people or to have un. Youth programs

and organization must pay attention to these

diverse reasons or participation. In order to ensure

participation must make sure their activities are

meaningul to the young people they wish to

mobilize allowing young people to contribute

to their environment and community. Attention

should also be paid to opportunities or learning,

with a particular ocus on skill development.

When sharing their opinions about the

implementation of these community and

volunteer activities, very ew participants thought

“these activities are not eective” (1.8%). Over

80% o participants, both those already involved

and not, gave a positive evaluation that “they are

eective” (Table 4).

Among them, over 35% o participants thought

that “there are many eective activities” and a

similar number mentioned that “They are eective

but there are not many other similar activities”.

However, there is a clear dierence between those

who get involved and those not, as over 50% o

youth not involved selected “there are not many

similar activities”. This nding showed that young

people who not involved also elt positive with

community and volunteer programs. During in-depth interviews, both youth and adults during in-

depth interviews also shared positive eedback on

these activities and volunteer clubs/organization,

considering them to be a good place or young

people to apply theory in practice, learn about the

real-lie issues and improve their knowledge, skills

and living values.

Table 4. How eective are youth-based community and volunteer activities?

Everyone Youth involved Youth not involved

Not eective 1.8% 2.0% 1.0%

They are somewhat eective 13.8% 13.5% 15.4%

They are eective but there are not many similar

activities

42.0% 39.3% 54.8%

There are many eective activities 35.5% 38.3% 22.1%

Most o the activities are very eective 6.8% 6.9% 6.7%

Total (%) 100 100 100



22

"Very ew people know about SD, there

are even ewer people who have good

understanding about SD. We need to promote, share and communicate urther and

deeper or many citizens to understand and

develop sustainably." (Male, HCMC, student,

18 years old. In-depth interview)

Previous parts already showed youth’s perceptions

about SD, dierent stakeholder in SD and particularly

actions and the roles o young people. In this part,

SYSD investigated dierent actors supporting

young people to understand, raise awareness andactions in SD. These are valuable ndings or any

youth-related programs.

Where do young people get

information about SD from?

The mass media (TV, newspapers and radio) and

the internet are the most common source o

inormation about SD or the youth participants,

accounting or approximately 77.5% and 66.5%,respectively. A signicant number o participants

also listed schools/universities (60%), their clubs/

groups (45%) and their riends (44%) as their SD

sources (Figure 10).

Among diverse sources o SD inormation or young

people, amily plays a modest role. Other sources

o inormation about SD included workshops &training courses, posters & leafets, competitions

and youth orum/meetings.

Across age groups, the results are airly similar,

particularly in terms o the most and least popular

inormation sources (Figure 11). However, the

schools/universities seem to be more popular

sources to young people with the age o 17

and older, around 60% o participants selecting

compared to around 30% o younger participants.

Breaking down into online and ofine

questionnaires, the ranking o popular sources o

inormation are similar, with TV/media and internet

are most popular and amily as the least popular.

However, ofine respondents have ewer options

or access to SD inormation, in which or every

choices, there are much smaller percentage o

respondents. Such as 74% o online respondents

using internet or understanding SD, while only

43% o ofine respondents using.

During in-depth interviews, both young people

and adults also shared that their key sources

o inormation were internet and mass media.

Internet is easy to access and has very up-to-date

inormation. For young people, they get inormation

0.0% 20.0% 40.0% 60.0% 80.0% 100.0%

TV&media

Internet

School

Clubs/Groups

Friends

Family

Other

online respondents

offline respondents

every respondent

Figure 10. SD inormation sources or young people (online, ofine)

2.5 Factors influencing youth’s awareness and action

on sustainable development



23

rom their study at schools/universities, sharing

in youth organizations and voluntary clubs, as

well as rom their riends. For adults, they oten

get additional inormation rom exchanges with

business partners and colleagues. Both groups

demonstrated that peer-to-peer sharing is an

important way o creating awareness and building

knowledge o sustainable development.

“I oten watch TV news and use internet.

But my knowledge is still limited as I haven’t

attended any training course or event on

SD” (Female, Ha Noi, student, 20. In-depth

interview)

Sources of inspiration for learning and

actions of young people in SD

It is very important to identiy rom whom youth

get inspiration to learn and take action in SD (Figure

12). Among the sources o inspiration, three most

popular ones are rom Non-governmental/non-prot

organizations (NGOs/NPOs), their teachers and

their riends (more than 50% participants selected).Governmental leaders and businesses also play as

a good source to stimulate youth interests in the

issue. When listing other sources o inspiration,

youth mentioned their sel-motivation, curiosity,

and concerns about uture generations and their

youth group/club. Again, it seems that amilies play

a modest role in motivating youth’s involvement in

0.1230.15

0.18 0.1920.17

0.333

0.393

0.475 0.4720.442

0.333

0.6

0.622

0.608 0.587

0.702

0.764

0.7950.776 0.775

0.544

0.643

0.705 0.656 0.665

0

0.1

0.2

0.3

0.4

0.5

0.6

0.7

0.8

0.9

Below 17 18-19 20 – 21 Above 21 Average

Family

Friends

Youthgroup/club

School

Media

Internet

Others

Figure 11. SD inormation sources or young people (age groups)

- 10.0 20.0 30.0 40.0 50.0 60.0 70.0

NGO/NPOs

Teachers

Friends

Governmental leaders

Businesses

Family members

Colleagues

Other sources

Celebrities and well known people

%

Everyone

Non-members of youthgroups/clubs

Current members of youthgroups/clubs

Figure 12. Sources o inspiration or learning and action in sustainable development



24

SD in comparison to organizations and individuals

outside the amily.

There were signicant dierences in the sources

o inspiration between youth who are current

members o youth clubs/groups and those that

are not. For non-club members, they got most

inspiration rom teachers, and then riends and

NGOs/NPOs. For members o youth clubs/groups,

they selected NGOs/NPOs rst. This may be due to

the higher exposure o the youth/clubs members

to community and development activities outside

schools, which are oten acilitated by NGO/NPOs.

On the other hand, celebrities and amous people

were not popular sources o inspiration to young

people. This requires urther explorations to nd

good and positive role-models or infuencing the

public or a generation or changing the promotion

images that companies oten involved amous

celebrities in their community programs.

How to promote the awareness and

actions of young people in SD?

There are many dierent waysto build the interest

o young people in SD, including integrating SD

into school curriculum, running training courses, and

organizing youth-based activities and programs. Themajority o survey participants preerred interactive

methods which enable direct participation and

youth leadership, with 87% selecting “community

and volunteer activities” and 73.8% selecting “SD

orum/exchange” or young people (Figure 13).

Youth seems to be attracted to these “learning by

doing” “learning by sharing” methods rather than

more ormal studying. Having said that, more than

60% o participants elt that “training courses” and

“school curriculum” on SD are also necessary.

Similarly, during in-depth interviews adults and

youth interviewees also recommended active

learning-by-doing environments or young people.

They suggested democratic, learner-centered and

action-oriented opportunities or youth to explore

to the realities o SD and understand it in practice,

and engage with dierent issues and stakeholders.

In terms o school programs, training courses

and other orms o communication (competition,

events, etc), they recommended the content and

methods should be practical and interesting or

youth engagement. Some also suggested that

students should receive general SD inormation

and particular inormation related to his or her

study o subject.

“The best way is to involve young people

directly in community and volunteer

activities, such as environment protection.

That help them to recognize benets o these

activities and their roles, and they will have

active engagement.” (Male, Ha Noi, student,

26. In-depth interview)

0.0% 20.0% 40.0% 60.0% 80.0%

Organise community andvolunteer activities

Establish SD forum/fora

Organise SD training courses

Integrate SD into schoolcurriculum

Other:…

Figure 13. How to attract youth’s attention to SD



25

0.0% 20.0% 40.0% 60.0% 80.0% 100.0%

Knowledge and skills

Financial support

Networks, coaching andmentoring

Institutional support

Opportunities to learn fromfriends and other people

Other:…

Figure 14. What do young people need to ensure their SD activities/programs are eective?

With the rise o youth participation in community

and volunteer work, SYSD was also intended to

explore how to support these youth-based

activities and organizations better and more

eectively (Figure 14). Participants listed their top

enabling conditions to be “knowledge and skills”

(86%), “nancial support” (76%), “networksand coaching/mentoring” (72%), “institutional

support” (70%). These are the common diculties

that young people ace during the development

and implementation o any activity or program.

This nding demonstrates that young people have

a strong demand to improve their knowledge and

skills in organizing programs. Although young

people have enthusiasm and time, they also

need good support in terms o both nancial

provision and technical expertise. In particular, in-depth interviews also showed the importance o

institutional support to ensure good organization

o any youth-based activities, including obtaining

permission or operation rom relevant authorities.

A combination o these enabling actors is required

to help the small, but eective programs that are

run by young people to have long-term impact and

sustainability. These actors become more crucial

as most young people preer to learn and contribute

to SD through community and volunteer work.

“Use un and art-based activities (drama,

music). Apply any type o activities that is

realistic and riendly to young people and

avoid traditional methods or propaganda.”

(Male, Da Nang, Cultural House ocer, 30

years old. In-depth interview)

“Organize many activities to engage young

people, such as environment protection,support or the poor households, taking care

o patients suering rom cancers or children

as victims o Agent Orange, etc.” (Female, Ha

Noi, student, 20 years old. In-depth interview)



26

3. Conclusion andRecommendations

3.1 Key conclusions

“For public awareness activities, there are creative youth-based programs with

encouraging results. For in-depth activities, such as contribution in workshops,

conerences, and in community mobilization, young people also participate

but with not very clear role.” (Male, Ha Noi, student, 26. In-depth interview)

“There are a lot o things young people can do: Take small actions to protect

the environment. Use products made in Vietnam. Live economically. Equip

himsel or hersel with a lot o knowledge.” (Male, Da Nang, student, 23 years

old. In-depth interview)

“Young people have a lot o inormation sources to understand about SD. Ithink they could discuss with government ocers and be more proactive to

explore about SD issues.” (Female, HCMC, Business, 47. In-depth interview)

Participants expressed

their main sources

o inspiration about

SD comes rom

Non Government

Organizations (NGOs)

and Not or Prot

Organisations (NPOs),teachers and riends.



27

For youth who participated in the survey, sustainable

development is a relatively new issue, but has

become close to the most important issue that they

ace. They are most concerned about big picture

issues o environmental pollution, natural disasters

and climate change, and building a green economy.

However, they also associate SD with a wide rangeo other issues that are part o the environmental,

social, and economic and governance dimensions

o sustainable development.

Most o the participants get inormation about SD

through mass media (TV and newspapers) and the

internet. While traditional education (e.g. in schools)

also plays a role, peer-to-peer learning rom riends

and participation in clubs and volunteer activities

is also central to building not only understanding

but care and concern about SD among youngpeople. Care is closely linked to the inspiration to

get involved with SD. Participants expressed their

main sources o inspiration about SD comes rom

Non Government Organizations (NGOs) and Not or

Prot Organisations (NPOs), teachers and riends.

Youth consider NGOs and NPOs as the most

active stakeholder in SD, by initiating SD

practices, implementing activities and mobilizing

communities to engage in social development

activities. Youth, particularly those who have been

involved in community and volunteer activity,

clearly see NGO’s and NPOs as a source o

inormation, and inspiration to be aware and take

action to advance sustainable development. In the

eyes o young people, business plays a less active

role, and their responsibility should be to provide

nancial resources and invest in SD practices.

Youth also see government organizations as an

important and active stakeholder, with a rolein guiding SD through policy, law and practice.

They show their optimism toward international

and Vietnamese policies or SD over the last ve

years, with a majority expressing that they have

resulted in outcomes somewhat better, better and

much better than beore. And when predicting

the impact o policies and plans or sustainable

development in the next 5 years, young people had

even higher optimism. However, during in-depth

interviews both youth and adults shared their

concerns about current policies – they elt many

policies were abstract, unrealistic or ineective in

implementation.

Young people perceive themselves as active,

inormed and dynamic citizens in terms o both

community/volunteer work and national and

global awareness. The majority o respondents

had already been involved in a range o activities

related to SD rom personal level to societal level,

particularly through participation in community/ volunteer activities. They elt like more youth should

be involved in such activities, as well as having new

and innovative ideas, and being both culturally-

sensitive and global-connected. In particular, they

elt that young people should take sustainable

actions in their personal lives and encourage other

people to ollow suit. Although participants were

unsure about their participation in decision-making

processes, they expressed the wish to have a

more active role.

The survey also reveals some key ndings about

youth’s engagement in sustainable development

activities. Youth become involved in community

and volunteer activities related to SD is because

they eel good and useul when these community/

volunteer activities make a meaningul contribution.

They also want to gain skills and, to a slightly lesser

extent, knowledge rom their involvement. Young

people are very positive that youth-based activities

are eectively contributing to SD, and elt there

should be a greater number o similar programs

available to youth.

To do these activities eectively, participants

expressed they need good knowledge and skills.

It is also necessary to mobilize nancial/technical

resources, and strong networking and institutional

support rom outside organizations to ensure that

youth-based activities, programs and organizations

to achieve eective and sustainable outcomes.

In order to be engaged in other settings, youngpeople require an environment where they can

actively learn through doing, with action-oriented

opportunities to practice and engage with dierent

issues and stakeholders.



28

The ndings rom SYSD show a clear picture o a

group o young Vietnamese people, who became

concerned about SD only in recent years, but

have since become enthusiastic learning andcontributing to SD.

The young people involved in this survey are not

representative o all young people in Vietnam, with

the majority having better access to education

- inormation - technology and also youth-based

community/volunteer work. But their perceptions,

thoughts and wishes give valuable inputs both or

young people on their own SD journey, as well as

the many organizations and individuals that support

them, in order to enhance youth’s role in working

towards sustainable development.

Find opportunities for young people to

understand and engage with a range of

specific SD issues in a comprehensive

and holistic manner, a manner that

encourages them to address the

specific underlying causes of general,

big-picture environmental, social and

economic issues.

Youth are becoming interested in sustainable

development, but yet to be condent in their

understanding o the underlying causes, linkages

and systems involved. Their areas o study or

work, whether in technology or agriculture, are an

integral part o sustainable development process.

Youth need to be aware o not only global/national

or general issues, but also local, specic issues,

causes and eects, including those connected

to their own lives and careers. This will support

young people to condent to realize challenges,

opportunities and make responsible decisions and

actions whether at home, schools/workplaces, or in

public. For example, business students can explore

the issues o air trade right in their commerce

class and practice in their own choices and uture

work, rather than waiting until joining social work

or studying a specic subject about development.

Support youth participation in

community and volunteer programs/

organizations as a learning and action

place for SD

More and more young people participate in,

and even set up or coordinate, youth-based

organizations and programs. They nd these a

good place or them to contribute to SD and gain

practical knowledge and skills. Thereore, amilies,

schools/universities and youth-based programs/

organizations should explore the demands and

aspirations o and with young people, and work

with them to develop tailor-made and meaningul

activities or youth to contribute to sustainable

development.

Promote and support youth-based

community and volunteer programs/

organizations that create opportunities

for youth to engage with SD, building

their institutional and networking

capacity.

As the majority o young people in SYSD thought

that these programs/organizations are eective

and would like to see a greater number o similar

opportunities in the uture, they should be promoted

either in individual schools or university departments

or at local community level (district, province, etc)

with meaningul objectives and missions related

to SD. Relevant examples include volunteer clubs

on energy saving, youth groups using games with

disabled children, or a training course run by youth

or local children. Dierent stakeholders need to

take opportunities or cooperation, sharing and

networking with these programs and organizations

to implement their local and national SD agendas

eectively. Youth-based and -led organizations are

good examples o responsible citizen groups, and

a model that can be replicated in many situations.

3.2 Key recommendations



29

Gradually raising interest and

engaging young people to

meaningfully participate in decision-

making processes at different levels,

from their own families to schools/

workplaces, as well as at local, national

and international level.

Although young people are more eager to take

individual action and engage in youth-based

community/volunteer programs/organizations,

they eel unclear about their roles in decision-

making processes. This means youth-based

programs/organization should help young people to

understand linkages, connections, systems behind

specic issues. For example, volunteer work on

supporting lunch coupons or poor patients in one

hospital could gradually help a participant to explore

issues like health insurance policy or the poor.

Decision-making takes place in dierent orms

and ways. The values, attitudes and approaches

that youth learn through community/volunteer

activities should be regularly applied and integrate

into their daily lie, with their amilies and study/

workplace. Being aware o important issues and

being involved in the planning and implementing

actions to address them are positive attributes oactive citizens. Young people should be mentored

to recognize their participation into local and

national development process as engaged citizens.

Use interactive, participatory methods

that spark the interest and passion of

young people when integrating SD

into programs such as school-based

activities and curricula, campaigns,media and training courses.

Given the act that young people preer learning-

by-doing through action-oriented activities that

target specic issues or audiences, SD should

be integrated in school curriculum, campaigns

and workshops, with participatory and learner-

centered methods. Whether it is a lesson or a

training event, SD should be explored by young

people in interesting, experiential ways, through

actively participating in group work, case studies,simulations, quizzes and research, etc. to nd

out causes and solutions. With such interactive

methods, dicult issues like integrity or ethnic

minorities can easily engage many young people.

Furthermore, youth should be encouraged to take

the active role in organizing or even coordinating

any community/volunteer activity to make

meaningul participation. Campaigns like 350.organd Earth Hour are good examples o how youth

have mobilized civic actions with little resources,

and how young people learn best when they

actually do.

Encourage government organizations,

the business community, NGO/NPOs,

leaders, teachers and family members

to act as responsible role-models who

demonstrate good practices for young

people to learn from and follow.

The results o this survey also inspire

recommendations relevant to specic audiences.

These are outlined in Table 15.



30

Table 5. Recommendations to dierent stakeholders or supporting young people in SD

Group Recommendations

Young People • Explorelocal,nationalandinternationalSDissues,ndopportunitiestounderstand

connections, linkages, causes and solutions

• Participatein,orevensetuporcoordinate,youth-basedorganizationsandprogramsthat

address specic and diverse SD issues.

• ThinkaboutSDnotonlyinyourcluborvolunteeractivities,butalsothinkabouthowit

is linked to all aspects o your lie, including studies and uture career. Be a positive role

model or other young people and adults by thinking about SD in your every day lie and

actions.

• Thinkandactasresponsiblecitizens

Schools • YoungpeopleshouldbeencouragedtostartuptheirownSDinitiatives,groupsand

programs, and, where possible, to trial them in the school or local community.

• SDshouldbeintegratedinschoolcurriculum,campaignsandworkshops,with

participatory and learner-centered methods.

• Findopportunitiesforyoungpeopletounderstandandengagewitharangeofspecic

SD issues in a comprehensive and holistic manner, a manner that encourages them to

address the specic underlying causes o general, big-picture environmental, social and

economic issues.

• Teachersshouldberolemodelsforsustainabledevelopment,reectingthevaluesand

lessons they teach in their own practices and lives.

• Cooperatewithotherorganizationstosupportyouthengagementincommunityand

social work

Parents and

Family

• Encourageandsupportchildrentoparticipateactivelyincommunityandvolunteer

activities.

• Provideopportunitiesforchildrentocontributetoactivitiesrelatedtosustainable

development in the home (like asking them to identiy ways to save power, thinking about

where their ood comes rom, etc.)

• MentorandsharewithyouthaboutSDissues

Government

Organizations

• Facilitateandpromoteyouth-basedprogramsandorganizationsrelatedtoSD

• Createanenablingenvironmenttoeducateandinvolveyoungpeopleindecision-making

process rom local to national level.

• Identifyopportunitiesforyoungpeopletounderstandlocalandnationalsustainable

development challenges and mobilize their innovation and energy to identiy appropriate

solutions

• Encourageleaderstoberolemodelsforyoungpeople

For NGO/

NPOs:

• Cooperate,advocateandpartnerwithotherstakeholderstoensuregoodengagement

o young people in community/volunteer activities as an integral part o decision-making

processes at dierent levels.

• Sharegoodpracticesandlearningmethodologieswithotherorganizationstoengage

youths.

• Covermorediverseandspecicthemes,usingmethodsthatallowyoungpeople

to develop diverse, multi-dimensional and holistic understanding o sustainable

development.

Others • Promoteandadvocateforopportunitiestoinvolveyouthinresearch,campaignsetc.ina

meaningul manner



31

3.3 Limitations and Recommendations for Future

Research

Conducting the questionnaire online was a useul

tool or collecting a large number o responses

rom young people around the country. However,

the use o technology will limit the number and

diversity o respondents, particularly with young

people who have limit access to internet. It is

also dicult to check i all survey participants

understand clearly all questions, and there were

some errors when putting 1-2 questions rom paper-

based questionnaire to online one. Thereore some

results were not analyzed in the nal report, but to

draw useul lessons on how to use technology orsocial researches and to build youth’s leadership in

the survey.

This survey also targeted a large number o

youth who are already involved in sustainable

development issues. Beyond age, gender and

location, the survey did not collect any other

demographic inormation about participants, such

as ethnicity.

Further research conducted in the uture should

include a larger and more representative sample

o youth, with a greater number o in-person

interviews, in order to obtain statistically signicant

results. Research could also seek to include voices

o minority groups, such as ethnic minorities, who

are likely to have dierent issues and concerns

related to sustainable development. Such research

should include a mix o in-person and online

interviews as appropriate.



32

Questionnaire - Sustainable Development:

Awareness and Action of Young People

Annex 1



33

No. Question Answers

General Inormation

1 Name

2 Year o birth

3 Gender 1. Male

2. Female

4 Education level 1. Primary school

2. Secondary school

3. High School

4. Vocational school

5. College

6. Under-graduate

7. Post-graduate

5 Place o birth

6 Current address

7 Have you ever participated in any

youth-based community/volunteer

activities?

1. Yes.

2. No.

8 Are you currently participating in any

groups/clubs?

1. Yes. Clubs/Groups name: ……

2. No.

A. Awareness about Sustainable Development

A1 Do you know what is meant by

‘sustainable development’?

1. I never heard about the term beore (i you choose this

answer, please go straight to question No. A 14).

2. I know about the term but I do not know what it means.

3. I have a vague idea o what it means.

4. I think I have a airly good idea o what the term means.

5. Yes, I understand the term very well.

A2 From where and whom do you

learn/know about sustainable

development? (You can circle more

than one answer)

1. Through discussions in my amily

2. Through sharing knowledge among riends.

3. Through discussions with clubs/groups members.

4. Learn rom school and teachers.

5. Through TV, newspapers and radio

6. Through the Internet.

7. Other:..

A3 Who/Which organisations encourage

you to learn about sustainable

development and to have more

sustainable practices? (You can circle

more than one answer).

1. My amily members

2. My riends in schools

3. My colleagues

4. My teachers

5. Non-governmental/Non-prot organisations.

6. Celebrities/Well-known people

7. Businesses

8. Governmental leaders.

9. Other…

A4 In your opinion, is sustainable

development important?

1. Not important at all

2. Somewhat important

3. It is important, but just as important as other issues

4. It is more important than other issues

5. It is the most important issue



34

A5 In your opinion, who are currently

having many activities related to

sustainable development? (You can

circle more than one answer)

1. Government

2. NGO/NPOs

3. Businesses

4. Citizens/individuals

5. Other…

6. I don’t know

A6 In your opinion, who should hold

highest responsibility in achieving


1. Government

2. NGO/NPOs

3. Businesses

4. Citizens/individuals

5. Other…

A8 In your opinion, what is the most

important role o the government in

achieving sustainable development?

1. Initiating sustainable models and practices

2. Issuing policies to acilitate sustainable development.

3. Making development plans.

4. Allocating nancial resources and investing in sustainable

development practices.

5. Implementing/Coordinating social work activities6. Mobilising/Engaging people to participate in community/

social work activities.

7. Other…


important role o non-governmental/

non-prot organisations in achieving







5. Implementing/Coordinating social work activities

6. Mobilising/Engaging people to participate in community/

social work activities.7. Other…


important role o businesses in

achieving sustainable development?






5. Implementing/Coordinating social work activities

6. Mobilising/Engaging people to participate in community/

social work activities.

7. Other…

A11 How do you judging the eectiveness

o the world’s policies in aiming

towards achieving sustainable

development in the last ve years?

1. Worse

2. Almost unchanged.

3. Somewhat better.

4. Better

5. Much better

6. I do not know.

A12 How do you judging the eectiveness

o Vietnam’s policies in aiming

towards achieving sustainable

development in the last ve years?

1. Worse


3. Somewhat better.

4. Better

5. Much better

6. I do not know.



35

A13 How does the eectiveness o current

Vietnam’s sustainable development

policies compare to that o ve years

ago?

1. Worse


3. Somewhat better.

4. Better

5. Much better

6. I do not know.

A14 When you heard the term ‘sustainabledevelopment’, what do you think o it?

(Please list three words that comes

to your minds when you heard about

the term)

Since when have you interested in

Sustainable Development?

1. I am not interested yet

2. In the last one year

3. In the last 2-3 years

4. More than three years

A15 What level o agreement/

disagreement do you have with

the ollowing viewpoints on youth

nowadays?

Level

1. Strongly disagree

2. Disagree

3. Neither agree or disagree

4. Agree

5. Strongly agree

1. Active and is the core orces in community/volunteer

activities

2. Very creative and oten have new ideas

3. Actively participating in decision-making processes (e.g. in

the making o laws, regulations and policies etc.)

4. Actively participating in international activities.

5. Not very active, only ocus on study/works

6. Only playing around and ollowing trends.

A16 What do you expected most rom

youth nowadays? (please choose

three expectations).

1. Be interested in tradition and culture.

2. Focus on studying/working.

3. Participate more in social activities

4. Actively participate in decision/policy-making processes.

5. Get up-to-date with international and national trends.

6. Having new & innovative ideas.

A18 Among those themes which related

to sustainable on the next column,

which themes do you most interested

in? (Please choose three themes)

1. Infation

2. Green Economy/low carbon emissions

3. Unemployment

4. Corruption

5. Globalisation

6. Cultural identities preservation.

7. Respect, protect and conserve the identities o the

minorities (such as the ethnic minorities and homosexual

groups)

8. Rural and remote areas’ issues.

9. Religions

10. Cultural/Natural Heritage

11. Human rights

12. Poverty

13. Gender equity

14. HIV/AIDS

15. Health care or the poor

16. Environment pollution

17. Climate change & Natural Disasters

18. Biodiversity19. Energy

20. Inormation Technology

21. Politics (Election, Diplomacy etc.)

22. Other…



36

B. Actions

B1 What kind o sustainable practices do

you have?

1. Learning about sustainable development

2. Take actions at individual level (turn o the lights, recycling,

be vegetarian, reduce plastic bags consumption etc.)

3. Encourage other people to have sustainable practices

4. Participate in decision making processes.

B2 Have you ever participate in any youth

social/volunteer activities?

1. Participated as a member o organization board.

2. Participated as a participant.

3. Never (Please go straight to question B5)

B3 How do you know about youth social

activities?

1. Directly involve in the activities

2. Heard rom riends

3. Know rom the media (TV, newspapers and radio)

4. Other…

B4 What is the main reason or your

participation in such activities?

1. These activities are very meaningul

2. These activities are very un

3. I want to have more knowledge

4. I want to sharpen some o the skills5. I want to meet people.

6. My riends ask me to come along

7. Other…

B5 What do you think about youth’s role

in sustainable development?

1. Not eective

2. It is somewhat eective

3. It is eective but there are not many similar activities

4. There are many eective activities

5. Most o the activities are very eective

B7 In your opinion, what youth need to

have good sustainable actions? (You

can choose more than one answer).

1. Knowledge and skills

2. Networks, coaching and proessional consultancy

3. Opportunities to learn rom riends and other people

4. Financial support

5. Institutional support

6. Other…

B8 In your opinion, what can young

people do to contribute to sustainable

development in Vietnam? (Please

choose three most important actions)

1. Learning about sustainable development

2. Participate in community and volunteer activities

3. Encourage other people to do sustainable practices.

4. Take personal sustainable actions

5. Participate in the decision-making processes

6. Other:…

B9 In your opinion, what can be done to

make the youth more interested in

sustainable development? (You can

choose more than one answer)

1. Integrate SD into school curriculum

2. Organise SD training courses or youth.

3. Establish sustainable development orum or youth

4. Organise community and volunteer activities to mobilize

youth participation.

5. Other:…



37

Annex 2In-depth interview questionnaire and

guide – Sustainable development:

Awareness and Actions of young people



38

Introduction

This research is implemented by Live&Learn or Environment & Community – Vietnam, with supports rom

Rosa Luxemburg Stitung in Vietnam.

Objectives o the research:

• To get a better understanding o youth’s awareness and actions towards sustainability in Vietnam.

• To provide appropriate recommendations or the promotion o youth’s awareness and actions

towards sustainability in Vietnam.

Thank you very much or your time and your cooperation in this research!

Selection criteria

Number o interviewees: At least our interviewees or each city (Ha Noi, Da Nang, Ho Chi Minh City).

Age groups:

• 2 youth rom 15 – 30 years old.

• 2 adults rom 30 – 60 years old.

Gender: 1 male and 1 emale or each age group.

For the youth interviewees, one should have participated in social/voluntary activities or currently a member

o a youth clubs/volunteer group, the other one should has never been participated in any community/

voluntary activities or youth group/club.

Notes: You can choose to interviews those who have adequate knowledge about the community/issue

Guidance on taking notes

• Use mobiphone/recorder to record the interview.

• Use pen and notebook to note the main points o the answers and interviewee reaction during the

interview.

Follow the steps below to conduct the interview

1. Say hello, introduce yoursel and introduce about the research.

2. Conrm the interviewee’s agreement to participate in this interview once again and rearm that all the

inormation will remain condential.

3. Asking or permission to record the interview (i possible)

4. Conduct the interview.

5. Fill in necessary inormation and kindly asked the interviewee to sign in the conrmation orm.

6. Hand over the git/compensation (i any) to the interviewee

7. Say good bye.



Things need to pay attention to during the interview

• Do not insist the interviewee to answer the question i they do not want to.

• Do not conduct the interview i the interviewee shows signs o drunk or sickness.

• Avoid asking unrelated questions during the interview.

• I the interviewee does not know how to write, one can asked or the signature o the

interviewee’s representative.

Interview questions

1. Have you ever heard about the term “Sustainable Development”?

2. Do you interested in sustainability issues? Since when have you started getting interested in the

issues? And on which context(s)?

3. What do you think about sustainable development? (How important does it? and how should it be like

in practice)

4. From which sources o inormation (and/or rom whom) do you get to learn/know about sustainable

development? Among them, which is the most important to you?

5. Which sustainable development topic(s) do you most interested in? Why? (Possible Prompts: Infation,

Corruption, Globalisation, Climate Change/Disaster etc.)

6. Who (and/or which bodies) do you think held the highest responsibility or sustainable development?

Why?

7. Which sustainable development issues are the priorities or the Government, dierent organisations

and business? (Infation, Corruption, Globalisation, Climate Change/Disaster etc.)

8. What is your opinion about Vietnam’s sustainable development policies in the recent ve years? What

are their impacts to sustainable development in Vietnam? Why do you think as such?

9. In your opinion, how eective will the Vietnam’s sustainable development policies in the next ve

years? Why?

10. In your opinion, what youth should do or the sustainable development o Vietnam?

11. In your opinion, what (and how) can we do to get the youths in Vietnam more interested in sustainable

development?

12. Do you think we need to provide more inormation about sustainable development or youths? I yes,

which kind o inormation should be disseminated? And how?

13. What are the youth’s roles in society?

14. What do you expected the most rom youth nowadays? Why?

15. From your perspective, do current youth’s voluntary/social activities eective? I yes, which aspects do

you think they are eective?

16. What are the diculties or youth when implementing a social/voluntary activity? (Possible prompts:

Skills, unding, or institutional settings etc.)

Documents

Rosa_Youth and SD_Report June 2011