VietNamNet Bridge - HSI, WildAct Vietnam and the Hanoi Education and Training Department recently organized an event called Rhino Art Vietnam to raise awareness about rhino conservation and reducing rhino horn consumption.

Rhino Art originated in South Africa to provide a platform for children to share how they feel about rhino poaching. Rhino Art Vietnam was launched in May 2014. Over 4,500 students have been reached by Rhino Art Vietnam.

The project team visited each of 20 schools to give a short talk on rhinos and the poaching crisis. They then left a template for each of student to complete. Later, they returned to collect the 2,000 entries, which were judged by WildAct Vietnam, Humane Society International, Helping Rhinos and the Hanoi Education and Training Department.

The six winners - Nguyen Quynh Tram, Nguyen Ha Nhung, Nguyen Tuan Nam, Pham Thanh Hung, Bui Thi Kieu Trinh and Pham Quoc Nam - will receive a chaperoned trip to South Africa to attend the first-ever World Youth Rhino Summit, to be held on World Rhino Day, September 22, 2014.

“We are very impressed by the dedication of so many young Vietnamese students to helping to protect rhinos from poaching by reducing demand for rhino horn in Viet Nam,” said HSI Director of Wildlife Dr. Teresa Telecky. “The messages expressed in their artwork are sure to bring tremendous hope to people around the world who are concerned about the future of rhinos.” Help us stop rhino poaching and other forms of wildlife abuse.

Rhinos are threatened with extinction because of poaching to supply the illegal international trade in rhino horn. Only about 28,000 rhinos of five species exist in the wild today. More than a thousand rhinos were poached in 2013 in South Africa. At this rate, scientists have predicted that rhinos will be extinct by 2020.

Vietnam is the largest market for rhino horn, as many Vietnamese believe that it will improve health, treat specific aliments, and even cure cancer, although science has proven that rhino horn is not a cure for any human condition. In fact, rhino horn is composed of keratin, the same material that makes up human fingernails and hair.

T. Van