On 31st May, the 3SIP2C project (short for “Sources, Sinks and Solutions to the Impacts of Plastics on Coastal Communities in Viet Nam”) led by our brilliant team of researchers from the Lyell Centre and five institutions in Viet Nam brought the stories of Vietnamese coastal communities to a wide audience at Dynamic Earth Science Centre. Through art and play visitors learned about the global plastic problem and how plastics move through rivers and oceans to end up on heavily polluted beaches, sink to the seabed, entangle and damage boat propellers and fishing equipment, and become microplastics and enter marine animals and food chains.
This event was part of the ASA People Fest 2026, organised by the Association of Social Anthropologist of the UK and the University of Edinburgh, showcasing the contributions, creativity and reach of anthropology to solve wider societal problems. The 3SIP2C project’s incredible success in community engagement and public action in Viet Nam, results from its interdisciplinary nature and excellent team dynamics and ability to integrate different sciences, methods, ideas, and finding into something that is both useful and inspiring for those affected by coastal plastic pollution.
At the event we demonstrated precisely this through materials carefully co-designed and crafted for wider audiences.
- Infographics illustrated key findings from our research.
- A photograph exhibition shed light into the severity of the plastic problem in coastal communities.
- Comics developed through workshops with Vietnamese youths and local communities told the story of a plastic bottle, illustrating the connection between upstream and downstream places, highly populated cities and coastal areas. Available here: https://lessplasticvietnam.com/publications/
We also restored the artwork created in collaboration with Tohe, a non-profit social enterprise based in Hanoi, that represents the coastal scene in Nam Dinh. The material used in making the artwork was collected from one of the most polluted beaches in the province, and was originally displayed at the International Centre for Interdisciplinary Science and Education in Quy Nhon, Viet Nam. At its new permanent home at Dynamic Earth Centre main hall area, the art piece offers visitors the opportunity to learn about coastal plastics, seeing firsthand what types of plastics end up on the beaches and how they disintegrate into microplastics.
The event also included many games for various age groups:
- A demo of a board game developed by Vietnamese youth through a series of workshops 3SIP2C ran in Hanoi and Cat Ba, Viet Nam.
- A scavenger hunt that teaches children about recyclable and non-recyclable plastics, emphasizing the need to use less plastic.
- And a Lego activity ran in collaboration with professional Lego builder Rod Gillies (Instagram: @thatrodgilliesbloke), where visitors built their own microscale fishing boats and added them to the Nam Dinh plastics art piece for permanent display.
