Hyundai Engineering Hands Over Climate Education Center and Wetland Forest in Vietnam to Local Operators

[Financial News] Local organizations will take over the operation of the climate change education center at Hong Duc University in Thanh Hoa Province, Vietnam, and the lakeside forest at Ben En National Park. The change in operators comes as Hyundai Engineering’s three-year support project has ended. The education program will expand to about 720,000 elementary, middle and high school students, while around 44,000 melaleuca trees have taken root around Song Muc Lake.
Hyundai Engineering said on the 15th that it held a handover ceremony for its climate change support project at Hong Duc University in Vietnam the previous day. About 600 people attended, including representatives of Ben En National Park and Hong Duc University, officials from the Thanh Hoa Province People’s Committee, and company employees. Attendees reviewed the education and ecological restoration achievements made so far and discussed plans for future operations. The company also received an official certificate of commendation following an evaluation by the People’s Committee and approval by its chairperson. The commendation recognized the company’s contribution to local community development.
In terms of ecological restoration, a new forest has been established across 10 hectares (about 30,000 pyeong) around Song Muc Lake in Ben En National Park. The melaleuca trees selected by the company are considered well suited to preventing soil erosion and water pollution in freshwater wetlands. Reviving the lake’s ecosystem is also expected to help protect the water resources used by local residents.
The scale of the planting far exceeded the original plan. In April last year, the company said it would plant about 10,000 trees in Ben En National Park by 2026, but the actual number planted has exceeded four times that figure. At the time, 18 employees selected through an internal company contest spent six days in the area planting 500 melaleuca trees with local residents. They also judged a waste-recycling contest involving students from 11 high schools.
Ben En National Park will manage the forest going forward. The costs will be covered by the park’s own budget, the national budget and corporate sponsorships. The park plans to plant trees across 200 hectares around Song Muc Lake by 2030, and the 10 hectares established in this project are expected to provide a foundation for that expansion.
Hong Duc University will operate the education center independently. Until now, its main target group has been students at 11 high schools in Thanh Hoa Province, but it will expand its reach to about 720,000 elementary, middle and high school students. The university plans to add a climate change course to its regular curriculum and teach about 3,000 incoming students each year.
The education center opened on September 10, 2024. Before it opened, company employees also took part in painting the building and creating murals. Since then, the center has held classes for students, teachers and local residents to help them understand the climate crisis and build their capacity to respond to it. High school students learned why climate change occurs and what consequences it brings, while also taking part in activities they organized themselves, such as plastic recycling, waste sorting, environmental cleanups and a recycling ideas contest. The company’s employee volunteer group also visited the area several times to help with classes and tree planting.
This project is the 13th initiative under Hyundai Engineering’s social contribution program, “New Hope School.” Launched in 2010, the program centers on building educational facilities in communities with which the company has formed ties through its overseas projects. Thanh Hoa Province became a beneficiary through the “AEON Mall Thanh Hoa” project, whose construction was handled by the company. The project partner is the international relief and development NGO Save the Children, and the two organizations have worked together on the initiative over the three years from 2024 to 2026. Hyundai Engineering plans to continue monitoring how well the project becomes established locally after the handover.
A Hyundai Engineering representative said, “This project is an example of putting into practice Hyundai Engineering’s value of seeking to contribute to better lives through the spaces we create. It is significant because we have laid the foundation for the local community to build on the project’s achievements and create a sustainable future for itself.”

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