Introducing our 2023 Kitchen God Day Campaign: “Together – Protect the water”
Join hands with Keep Vietnam Clean to protect our waterways, rivers and lakes during this year’s Kitchen God Day.
What is “Kitchen God Day?”
Kitchen God Day is a traditional custom of Vietnamese people. It is an occasion for people to express their gratitude to the gods and is also an opportunity for family members to gather together.
According to Vietnamese tradition, the Kitchen God oversees affairs of the home, business and kitchen. On the 23rd day of the last month of the Lunar New Year, the Kitchen God ascends to heaven to report on the year’s activities.
The celebrations for Kitchen God Day sees Vietnamese families releasing 2-3 carps into a river or lake in order to send the Kitchen God to heaven.
Why is this an issue for the environment?
Kitchen God Day is a serious environmental concern because, alongside the fish, non-biodegradable plastic bags and wrappers are discarded into the waterways.
Altars and incense bowls are also discarded directly into the water.
While no individual families have a significant impact, the collective impact of millions of families discarding waste into waterways is considerable. In cities like Hanoi, the Red River and major lakes quickly become choked with plastic and pollution during the celebration.
Keep Vietnam Clean’s Kitchen God Day Campaign
Our Kitchen God Day campaign is focused on protecting Vietnam’s waterways during the celebrations.
We’ll be spreading the message “Together – Protect the water” and taking direct action to prevent pollution entering waterways – and removing those pollutants that do.
Our activities include:
- Raising awareness of the issue via PR, social media and physical signage.
- Providing trash bags at popular fish release locations (e.g. Bridges)
- Removing pollutants and trash from waterways, riverbanks and lake edges.
- Hosting a themed painting competition to raise awareness and raise funds for the campaign.
- Working with Vietnamese influencers to create a viral rap song to publicise the campaign.
What can you do to help?
Our Kitchen God Day campaign is a significant operation which co-ordinates hundreds of volunteers and local organisations. It relies on donations from individuals and businesses alike.
Donations to Keep Vietnam Clean help us to pay for:
- The collection and disposal of trash and pollutants removed from waterways
- Equipment required for the safe removal of trash
- Physical signage to display at key locations
- Food & drink for our volunteers
If you would like to make a donation to support our Kitchen God Day Campaign, you can do so here: