Grassroots Council Attends “Green Turtle Army” Launch

Celine Pham
Feb 25, 2018
2 min read

Student Organization: Collaboration between RMIT students from the School of Communication and Design and the local NGO Vietnam Sach va Xanh, “Green Turtle Army”.

Start/End date: On Wednesday, December 13th

Description: Grassroots Network was invited to attend the launching event of the new app “Anh Hung Rua Xanh” (or “Green Turtle Hero”).

The concept is based in the traditional Vietnamese legend of “Long Quy” -- an ancient turtle-dragon god entrusted with the duty of protecting the Earth. In this version, set thousands of years later in modern-day Vietnam, the old god’s powers are no longer enough to protect against widespread human destruction. Now, he must recruit the Earth’s new turtle-dragon guardians in the rising generation.

Purpose/Mission: The mission was to give general idea about littering in localized areas and global issue, littering through the “Green Turtle Army”, which is an anti-littering campaign aimed at young, local Vietnamese children, particularly in areas where environmental education programs are not yet developed.

Process:

The story, told through stunning animation, comes with its own adorable cast of turtle-dragon characters -- Tuti, Tutu, and Kari. In the new game, the characters travel through beautifully designed destinations in Vietnam -- Sapa, Ha Long Bay, and even Ho Chi Minh City -- and level up by picking up litter and killing plastic bottle monsters.

At the event, we were able to meet two of the co-founders of Vietnam Sach va Xanh -- Mr. Nhan, from the School of Business, and Mr. Rowen, founder of a magazine in Phu Quoc.

The event also saw the launch of Studio●V, a new initiative led by the RMIT School of Communication & Design dedicated to social and environmental outreach in Vietnam. We were able to talk to the Mr. Rick Bennett -- Head of the School of Communication & Design and the founder of Studio●V -- about Grassroots, high school activism, and how big impacts can come from small groups focusing directly on specific issues. We also were able to connect with Ms. Tram, the Senior Marketing Manager at RMIT. Overall, we had an amazing time connecting with so many interesting people.

Reflection & Next Steps: Needless to say, Grassroots has a lot to learn from Studio V and Vietnam Clean and Green. We got to see what we do as high school students, except at a much higher level and larger scale. We’re looking forward to working with these inspiring people at RMIT to develop and grow our impact as a Grassroots Network.