The
Vietnam Sea and Islands Week 2011, themed “Green Brainpower for Sustainable
Development of Vietnam’s Sea and Islands ” will be held nationwide from June
1-8.

The information was released by the Ministry of Natural Resources and
Environment (MoNRE) at a press conference in Hanoi on May 10.

The Vietnam Sea and Islands Week is an annual activity, aimed at raising public
awareness of the function, role and special importance of seas and oceans, the
sustainable development of oceans, and the minimisation of the adverse impacts
of climate change on Vietnam and the world as well.

The week is also designed to improve the sense of protecting natural resources
and the maritime environment as well as to enhance Vietnamese people’s national
pride of sovereignty over territorial waters and the long-term development of
the sea-based economy.

The central coastal province of Khanh Hoa was selected to host a number of main
activities during the week, including a meeting in response to the Vietnam Sea
and Islands Week 2011, forums highlighting brand name of the Vietnamese sea and
the sea-borne economy, and the inauguration of a showroom displaying maritime
resources of the Hoang Sa and Truong Sa archipelagoes.

In particular, more than 3,000 young people will hold each other’s hands to
create a map of Vietnam , which is expected to set a record.

At the press conference, MoNRE also announced the theme of the World Environment
Day 2011 “Forests – Nature at Your Service”, which emphasises the importance of
forests on the life and ecosystem.

On the same day, a scientific seminar on tapping sea and island potential for
the sustainable development of the central province of Quang Ngai and the whole
central region opened in Quang Ngai.

The two-day seminar will define factors that affect the exploitation of sea and
island potential as well as orientations and solutions for the development of
the sea-based economy in the 2011-2020 period.

VietNamNet/VNA