The year 2024 has emerged as a landmark period for the University of Da Nang (UD), cementing its position as a pivotal actor in the global effort to achieve the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). As one of Vietnam's three largest regional universities, UD has transitioned from being a participant in international development to an active co-creator of international best practices. This strategic evolution is evidenced by its deep and concurrent involvement in two distinct, high-impact international collaborations: the European Union's Erasmus+ SOHO project for sustainable tourism and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)-led Ending Plastic Pollution Innovation Challenge (EPPIC).

Architecting the Future of Green Tourism: A Global Educational Blueprint (The SOHO Project)

While the EPPIC project demonstrates the University of Da Nang's capacity to drive grassroots solutions, its central role in the SOHO project showcases its influence at the strategic level of international policy and educational design. This engagement frames UD as an equal partner in a global consortium tasked with creating a new international standard for education in sustainable tourism, directly addressing SDG 4 (Quality Education), SDG 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth), and SDG 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities).

A Global Challenge and a Collaborative Response

The global tourism industry, a major economic driver for Vietnam and the Asia-Pacific region, faces a dual crisis: the urgent need to mitigate its environmental impact, including significant CO2 emissions, and the challenge of rebuilding sustainably after the COVID-19 pandemic. The SOHO (Smart, Optimized, High-quality, and On-demand Tourism) project, a 36-month initiative funded by the European Union's prestigious Erasmus+ program, was conceived to address this challenge head-on by creating innovative educational frameworks for sustainable and green development.¹

The project's strength lies in its powerful international consortium, which is explicitly designed to review and synthesize comparative approaches from diverse higher education systems. The University of Da Nang, represented by both its central administration (UD) and its member University of Technology and Education (UTE), is a full beneficiary in this consortium. It collaborates as an equal partner with leading institutions from Europe—National University of Science and Technology POLITEHNICA Bucharest (Romania), Universite Lumiere Lyon 2 (France), and Politecnico di Milano (Italy)—and Asia—Universiti Sains Malaysia, Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman (Malaysia), American International University-Bangladesh, and Jahangirnagar University (Bangladesh).

Building International Best Practices in Sustainable Education

The core mission of the SOHO project is the collaborative development of a new, globally relevant educational blueprint for sustainable tourism. This process of creating an international best practice is structured through several key work packages in which UD plays a significant role.

• Work Package 2 (Innovative Curriculum Design): This foundational stage involves joint research into the training needs of the modern tourism industry and the collaborative design of a new, innovative curriculum that is fit for purpose globally.
• Work Package 3 (Development of Training Materials): Building on the curriculum framework, partners are co-creating expert-led, modular training materials. These modules cover critical areas for 21st-century tourism, including "Smart transportation," "Smart Sustainable Accommodation," and "Smart Renewable energy".
• Work Package 5 (Enhanced Knowledge & Competence Centres): To institutionalize and disseminate these new educational standards, the project will establish "Knowledge & Competence Centres" at partner universities. The University of Da Nang is a co-leader of this crucial work package, tasked with helping to define the model for these centres of excellence, which will serve as regional hubs for training, research, and policy recommendations.

The collaborative work was intensely active throughout 2024, demonstrating a sustained international effort. A pivotal moment was the international SOHO project conference hosted by UD's University of Technology and Education in Da Nang from July 18-19, 2024.

The conference at UD-UTE

(Source: https://www.udn.vn/english/Detail/the-international-conference-under-the-framework-of-soho-project)

During this event, delegates from all partner universities convened to discuss key project milestones, including curriculum design and the development of training materials. This major conference was part of a year-long series of high-level meetings, including a gathering in Italy in January 2024 and another in Malaysia in December 2024, underscoring the continuous nature of the collaboration.

The delegation from the University of Technology and Education took a commemorative photo with delegates from other countries at the 3rd Transnational Meeting of the SOHO project in Malaysia

Source: https://ute.udn.vn/TinTuc/9575/1/Dai-dien-Truong-Dai-hoc-Su-pham-Ky-thuat-Dai-hoc-Da-Nang-tham-gia-cuoc-hop-lan-thu-3-cua-du-an-SOHO.aspx

The Da Nang conference also provided the platform for the formal signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between the University of Da Nang and the American International University-Bangladesh (on July 19, 2024), further solidifying the partnership network. (Source: https://www.aiub.edu/mou-with-danang-university)

From Waste to Worth: Cultivating Grassroots Innovation to Combat Plastic Pollution (The EPPIC Project)

The University of Da Nang's engagement in the EPPIC project serves as a compelling case study in the development of practical, community-driven best practices for environmental sustainability. By transforming the university into an incubator for local solutions to a global problem, the collaboration demonstrates a powerful model for tackling SDG 14 (Life Below Water), SDG 12 (Responsible Consumption and Production), and SDG 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities).

The Context and the Collaboration

The urgency of the EPPIC initiative is rooted in local reality. Da Nang City generates over 80,000 tons of plastic waste annually, with a significant portion threatening its vital marine ecosystems. In response, the UNDP, with funding from the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation (Norad), launched the EPPIC project as a region-wide ASEAN initiative to source and incubate innovations that accelerate the transition to a circular economy for plastics.

In 2024, the project focused its efforts on academia through the "EPPIC University Challenge." The University of Da Nang was strategically selected as one of four key Vietnamese universities to participate, chosen for its regional importance and its location within a key "land to sea" waste flow corridor.¹The program was an intensive, five-month journey running from March to July 2024, engaging 400 students across the participating institutions who submitted a total of 141 innovative ideas.

The collaboration was structured to build lasting capacity, not just to source ideas. It employed a "Train the Trainer" methodology, with hands-on training sessions on innovation frameworks, Design Thinking, and circular economy principles. This expert training was delivered by the Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation (CEI) of Fulbright University Vietnam, demonstrating a clear effort to review and implement comparative international approaches by leveraging external expertise to enhance local capabilities.¹ The program's success was notable, with 84-86% of participants reporting that they had gained new, practical knowledge about innovation and plastic circularity.

Training workshop within the framework of the EPPIC project at the University of Da Nang on April 11, 2024

Source: https://www.undp.org/sites/g/files/zskgke326/files/2025-09/eppic_2024_case_study_on_4uni_eng.pdf

Developing Best Practices – The Student Innovators of 2024

The EPPIC University Challenge at UD was not merely an academic exercise; it was a crucible for developing tangible, market-oriented solutions. The program culminated in a university-level final round on July 20, 2024, from which two outstanding teams were selected to represent the university at the National Final Showcase in Ho Chi Minh City on July 26, 2024. These winning projects stand as concrete examples of the international best practices developed through the program—namely, the fostering of localized, technology-driven, and market-aware environmental solutions.

Best Practice Example 1: OSEIF (First Prize)

The first-prize winner from the University of Da Nang, OSEIF, introduced a smart waste-sorting device. This innovative apparatus utilizes sensors to automatically sort different types  of waste at the source. By automating this crucial first step, the OSEIF device makes subsequent waste management, recycling, and reuse significantly easier and more efficient. This technology directly addresses one of the most persistent bottlenecks in creating a functional circular economy: the challenge of effective at-source waste classification. It represents a best practice in applying accessible technology to solve a fundamental urban infrastructure problem.

Best Practice Example 2: BIOPLAS (Second Prize)

The second-prize project, BIOPLAS, focused on upstream innovation by creating a sustainable alternative to a common plastic product. The project involved research into combining coconut fiber—a widely available local resource—with safe, biodegradable binders to produce a new material suitable for manufacturing ballpen shells.1 This approach exemplifies a best practice in circular economy design by aiming to replace traditional, fossil-fuel-based plastics at the point of manufacture. It contributes to reducing reliance on non-renewable resources and promotes a model of sustainable development that leverages local agricultural byproducts.

The University of Da Nang's engagements in the EPPIC and SOHO projects in 2024 are not isolated initiatives but two complementary components of a comprehensive and sophisticated institutional strategy to lead on SDG implementation. Together, they demonstrate a holistic best practice for how a modern university can maximize its impact by operating on both tactical and strategic levels simultaneously.