Along Vietnam's coast a dedicated group is highlighting the pivotal role women play in tackling the nation's waste crisis.
Turquoise fishnet thread connects Ward 7 Market to Tran Phu beach 500 metres down the road. Nets once cast into the ocean have been resewn into bags, proudly carried between market stalls and filled with loose produce or meat packed into reusable containers. For the women shopping at this market in Tuy Hoa city, these bags have become a symbol of waste reduction and signal membership to a growing community committed to cutting plastics.
To Thi My Thuy carries one of these bags, at times complemented by a blue polo with "Phu Yen Zero Waste" splashed across its back. She is the leader of a "Zero Plastic Waste Shopper" Club, mobilising shoppers and sellers to adopt reusables. As chairwoman of the local Women's Union, her community connections run deep, reaching the market's primary demographic and the group primarily responsible for household waste responsibilities in Vietnam.
Thuy began working with nonprofit the Center for Supporting Green Development (GreenHub) a few years ago as part of their Phu Yen Zero Waste project, aiming to embed zero waste practices across the province.
Throughout Vietnam, plastic waste is overwhelming. The country generates 3.7 million tonnes of plastic waste per year, and only 10-15% is collected for recycling. In Tuy Hoa city, plastic is similarly pervasive. Clear blue sky and coastline hug Tuy Hoa city but chunks of polystyrene and the broken teeth of discarded plastic forks poke through the sand.
To weed plastics out of the market, Thuy and GreenHub needed to overcome a fear of change and inconvenience, according to Thuy. While vendors feared losing customers if they suggested reusables over single-use plastics, market customers worried about social isolation if they refused plastic.
Thuy recognised the challenges vendors and customers faced so established a club for both groups. A network and support system blossomed, bolstered by their visible blue uniform and bags, enthusiastic photo snapping and sharing of zero waste grocery hauls on social network groups. GreenHub and the Women's Union also supported the clubs with training and reusables.
Club members now shop equipped with reusable containers and bags, often buying from vendors who are part of the club and happy to pack goods in reusable containers.
I reduce 30 plastic bags a day. I wrap customers' items with banana leaves and newspapers, I don't use plastic bags.- Ms. Le Thi Kim Bong, a small vendor at the market.
In the three months of piloting the model, Thuy felt the buzz of change in her community. Ms. Tran Thi Binh, a small vendor at the market echoed these sentiments, reflecting how their efforts contributed to a more sustainable future. In this time, more than 10,000 plastic bags per month were reduced.
As the province adopts policies tackling waste, the clubs are evolving too. Vendors are taking on advocacy roles, using everyday exchanges as an opportunity to promote reusable solutions to the community.
Images by Emily Contador-Kelsall
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