Charity
Vietnamese completed Antarctic expedition
  • | dtinews.vn | December 03, 2009 04:48 PM

Six Vietnamese are on their way home from the Antarctica, bringing a strong message for environmental protection.

The young Vietnamese joined a group of 47 members from 18 countries to take part in the International Antarctic Treaty Expedition 2009 (IATE 2009), which lasted for 15 days, to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the signing of the 1959 Antarctic Treaty.

The Vietnamese team

The expedition, led by Robert Swan OBE, a reputable explorer and environmentalist, has been successfully completed. The Vietnamese team is on their way home, bringing a message to call upon all Vietnamese to preserve and protect the environment and find solutions to address climate change.

In addition, the whole group sent a strong message to the world’s leaders prior to the up-coming United Nations Summit of Climate Change in Copenhagen, calling for global collaboration in finding solutions to environmental issues.

Robert Swan said: “The world’s leaders should consider the Antarctic Treaty as a successful story of the past century, in which all countries work together for a common goal of saving our planet.”

The Vietnamese team is committed to broadcast the environmental message in the country, and to work closely with the government, enterprises and people to deal with environmental protection.

“Our world is facing with an environmental crisis and Asia, the strongest growing area will be the key solution to this crisis if all countries in the region implement sustainable development policies and the people are aware of their important roles,” said Swan. “The Vietnamese team has been very active during the trip and I expect them to make changes in environmental protection activities of Vietnam.”

Nguyen Lan Anh, a journalist and Vietnamese team member, said: “We are lucky to witness the only untouched continent left. Our planet is really magical and we have to take actions to preserve it. I am very eager to share my experiences with all Vietnamese people.”  

The Antarctic Treaty was signed in Washington DC, USA 50 years ago to set aside Antarctica as a scientific preserve, established freedom of scientific investigation and banned military activity on that continent. Under the treaty, the Antarctica is not controlled by any particular countries.