Between April and June, young people across Da Nang together implemented the ‘Clean Civilised Alleys’ programme with the intention of turning untidy alleys into clean and beautiful spots for locals and visitors.

A lecturer and student from the Duy Tan University exchanging ideas about mural paintings.

In particular, Youth Union (YU) members from Hai Chau District’s Hoa Thuan Dong Ward joined forces with students from the Duy Tan University to create an arts space in alley No 233 on Trung Nu Vuong.

The YU members became involved in removing illegal advertisements and scraping stained layers of paint on the walls along the alley, whilst the students painted on these walls.

Lecturer Le Phuong Hieu from the University’s Architecture Faculty said that the mural paintings feature the stunning landscapes, beautiful bridges crossing the Han River, and tall buildings in the city.

“Participating YU members and students volunteer to do this meaningful work. The purpose of their voluntary work is to create clean and civilised alleys in the city, and raise public awareness about environmental protection”, Mr Hieu remarked.

Due to being very impressed by the enthusiasm of volunteers, some residents surrounding the alley used canvas sheets to shade sunlight, and provided free portions of rice and drink water for them. 

Mr Huynh Ba Vinh from the ward’s residential group No 13 said the practical activity done by the young volunteers would help locals prevent others from drawing graffiti on walls of their alleys, as well as raising public awareness of keeping their alleys cleaner, stopping the littering and indiscriminate dumping.

Mr Nguyen Thanh Phong, Secretary of the Hoa Thuan Dong Ward YU organisation, underlined that apart from creating glamorous mural paintings, his organisation encouraged local residents and businesses to install lighting systems in order to make their residential areas become brighter at night.

Meanwhile, another group of students from the University of Architecture, along with YU members from Hai Chau District’s Binh Thuan Ward, together beautified the alley No 340 on Phan Chau Trinh.

Their mural paintings depict innocent beauty of children, and natural landscapes and some animal species on the Son Tra Peninsula.

After 20 days of painting, the mural paintings have attracted a large number of visitors.

Secretary of the Hai Chau District YU organisation Nguyen Thi Anh Thao highlighted the significance of the ‘Clean Civilised Alleys’ model in raising awareness amongst local residents about protecting environment surrounding their residential areas, as well as creating beautiful images of YU members in the eyes of locals and visitors.