Published May 13, 2026
PHA was created to unite scattered networks into one shared voice — linking plastic reduction with protecting public health, giving rise to models such as the “Green Hospital”.
Before PHA existed, a number of organizations and groups were already doing their part to address the increasingly severe plastic waste problem in Vietnam, and many solutions had been established, notably: the National Plastic Action Partnership (NPAP), the Vietnam Zero Waste Alliance (VZWA), the Vietnam One Health University Network (VOHUN), and so on. Although these had certain impacts and successes, it cannot be denied that unifying these different initiatives and networks would be very important to maximize the impact of community-oriented solutions. PHA was designed to connect these networks, share information and create a unified voice to reduce plastic waste pollution. PHA's mission is very clear: to mobilize technical and financial resources, share implementation experience and contribute to improving the effectiveness of operating initiatives. In parallel, establishing the “Plastic and Health Action Partnership” (PHA) is a suitable common plan to consolidate and put forward the most effective proposals, with the mission of connecting networks (Network-to-Network), sharing information (Information Hub), and creating a unified voice in the fight to reduce plastic waste pollution (One voice for Plastic and Health).
The Plastic and Health Action Partnership (PHA) is the name of a promising initiative that will change the way we think about plastic waste and its impacts on community health. The driving force behind PHA is a shared determination to reduce the alarming increase in plastic waste, which is devastating both the environment and the health of the Vietnamese people. Also from the foundation of a shared dream, the Plastic and Health Action Partnership (PHA) initiative is expected to quickly grow strong and to represent the spirit of cooperation and joint action with a vision of solving one of the most urgent environmental challenges of our time.
On December 17, 2021 in Hanoi, the launch ceremony of the “Plastic and Health Action Partnership” (PHA) took place successfully with the participation of more than 100 delegates from many stakeholders such as the Government, international organizations, non-governmental organizations, enterprises, universities, research institutes, etc. Also at this ceremony, GreenHub, together with 05 other organizations, officially established the executive board responsible for building and developing the mission and work plan of the Action Partnership. As of now, PHA has received the support of 26 partners, including government agencies, universities, research institutes, domestic and international non-governmental organizations, as well as leading enterprises in Vietnam. With this ever-expanding alliance, PHA has been able to begin operating and carry out various activities and workshops.
PHA officially went into operation with many diverse activities and workshops, including: organizing quarterly meetings for key members in the network, and developing digital and online tools and information channels for daily discussion, updating and communication.
In 2022-2023, in coordination with its partners, PHA organized many technical workshops on important topics that attracted broad community interest, such as the harmful impacts of single-use plastic on health, promoting circular solutions to reduce the impact of plastic pollution on health, and proposing specific policies and interventions for reducing plastic waste in Vietnam.
In every effort of the journey to promote plastic waste reduction, we all know that changing habits formed long ago is not easy at all. The PHA network also recognized that merely raising awareness of the negative impacts of plastic waste would not be enough to make a real difference. Therefore, what needed to be done was to connect the relationship between reducing plastic use and health, and very quickly PHA focused on mobilizing the participation of experts working in the health sector in events/projects with the potential for rapid deployment.
In the workshop held on August 17, 2022, the need to connect plastic-reduction activities and health protection was discussed thoroughly, making a strong impression on everyone. It was also from this discussion that the “Green Hospital” model was born. After the workshop, two key members of PHA, Family Health International (FHI 360) and the Center for Environmental Health Research and Development (CHERAD), quickly got to work. FHI focused on building the technical foundation for the model, while CHERAD took on the important role of communicating and adapting the idea to fit the Vietnamese context. The “Green Hospital” idea attracted the attention of an enterprise investing in this field - Vingroup. A representative from the group expressed their admiration as well as strong interest and a desire to apply this idea to the Vinmec hospital system once the model is fully and clearly developed.
It is precisely these successes that are concrete proof that PHA not only acts together to raise awareness, but is also joint action to create creative solutions with broad and large-scale impact. PHA has been and continues to relentlessly strive to connect resources and shape new ideas serving a cleaner, greener and healthier Vietnam for all of us.
PHA also continuously emphasizes and highlights the role of the “information hub” (Information Hub) as well as connecting networks (Network-to-network) by creating a platform for members to discuss and seek cooperation opportunities. A highlight of PHA is the active participation of private enterprises in plastic waste reduction activities. In the future, PHA will accompany and provide technical inputs for building the National Action Plan on Circular Economy.
We hope that the establishment of the ‘Plastic and Health Action Partnership’ will mark the beginning of a new era of cooperation, knowledge exchange and good practices around the challenges of plastic pollution. The Plastic and Health Action Partnership will be one of the first partnerships focused on plastic and its impacts on human health. These exchanges and dialogues will help us together address the urgent challenges in Vietnam's development sector.
— Ms. Christine Gandomi, Executive Director for Environment and Energy at USAID
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