Education center built, about 44,000 melaleuca trees planted

Local government honors firm for community contributions

Hyundai Engineering receives a commendation from the Thanh Hoa Provincial People's Committee at the handover ceremony for its climate change response support project, held Wednesday (local time) at Hong Duc University in Thanh Hoa Province, Vietnam. From left: Bin Jae-man, manager at Save the Children Korea; Song Myung-sook, head of Hyundai Engineering's marketing strategy division; Dau Thanh Tung, vice chairman of the Thanh Hoa Provincial People's Committee; and Vuong Dinh Giap, program director at Save the Children Vietnam. [Hyundai Engineering]
Hyundai Engineering receives a commendation from the Thanh Hoa Provincial People's Committee at the handover ceremony for its climate change response support project, held Wednesday (local time) at Hong Duc University in Thanh Hoa Province, Vietnam. From left: Bin Jae-man, manager at Save the Children Korea; Song Myung-sook, head of Hyundai Engineering's marketing strategy division; Dau Thanh Tung, vice chairman of the Thanh Hoa Provincial People's Committee; and Vuong Dinh Giap, program director at Save the Children Vietnam. [Hyundai Engineering]

Hyundai Engineering said Thursday it has concluded a three-year climate change response project in Vietnam's Thanh Hoa Province, handing over the education and environmental infrastructure it built to local institutions.

The company held a handover ceremony Wednesday (local time) at Hong Duc University in Thanh Hoa Province, transferring a climate change education center and a tree-planting site to Hong Duc University and Ben En National Park, respectively.

About 600 people attended, including Hyundai Engineering staff and representatives from the Thanh Hoa Provincial People's Committee, Hong Duc University and Ben En National Park. Participants reviewed the outcomes of three years of climate education and ecosystem restoration activities and shared plans for future operations. At the ceremony, Hyundai Engineering received an official commendation from the Thanh Hoa Provincial People's Committee, approved by the committee chairman, in recognition of its contributions to the local community.

Going forward, Hong Duc University and Ben En National Park will independently operate and manage the climate change education center and the tree-planting site, respectively. Hyundai Engineering said it plans to continue monitoring the project to ensure it remains on track locally.

Hyundai Engineering established the climate change education center at Hong Duc University in 2024 and has since provided educational programs aimed at raising awareness and building the capacity of students, teachers and local residents in Thanh Hoa Province to respond to climate change.

The programs targeted local high school students, covering the causes and effects of climate change and running student-led initiatives such as plastic recycling and waste sorting drives, environmental cleanup activities and a recycling ideas competition. Hyundai Engineering employee volunteers also traveled to the site to take part in climate education sessions and tree-planting activities.

Following the handover, Hong Duc University will operate the climate change education center independently. It plans to expand its reach from 11 high schools in Thanh Hoa Province to approximately 720,000 elementary, middle and high school students, incorporate climate change-related subjects into the regular curriculum, and educate about 3,000 incoming students each year.

To support ecosystem restoration, Hyundai Engineering planted about 44,000 melaleuca trees across a 10-hectare site — approximately 99,000 square meters — around Song Muc Lake in Ben En National Park. Melaleuca is a species well suited to preventing soil erosion and water pollution in freshwater wetlands, and is expected to help revive the ecosystem around the lake while protecting the water resources used by local residents.

Ben En National Park will take over management of the tree-planting site, drawing on its own budget, state funding and corporate sponsorship. The park plans to plant trees across a total of 200 hectares around Song Muc Lake by 2030, with the 10 hectares supported by Hyundai Engineering expected to serve as a foundation for that broader expansion.

"This project is an example of Hyundai Engineering putting into practice its value of contributing to better lives through the spaces we create," a company official said. "It is particularly meaningful in that we have laid the groundwork for the community to carry forward the results of this project and build a sustainable future on its own."

Meanwhile, Hyundai Engineering has also been supporting green space creation and ecosystem restoration at home, including establishing a "Plan Bee" garden at Bukseoul Dream Forest in Gangbuk-gu, Seoul.


lucky@heraldcorp.com