The Universal Postal Union (UPU) announced the results at the competition's closing ceremony on 19/9.
This year's competition saw over 1.6 million entries from 65 countries. Pham Doan Minh Khue, a 10th-grade student at Le Quy Don Specialized High School in Da Nang, won second place (silver medal). The first prize went to a student from Turkey, while a representative from Burkina Faso (a country in West Africa) took third place.
Khue is the 19th Vietnamese student to win a prize in the international round in the 37 years Vietnam has participated in the competition. Vietnamese students have previously won two first prizes, two second prizes, eight third prizes, and six honorable mentions.
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The organizers announce Pham Doan Minh Khue as the second-place winner of the 2025 International UPU Letter-Writing Competition. Photo: VGP |
The organizers announce Pham Doan Minh Khue as the second-place winner of the 2025 International UPU Letter-Writing Competition. Photo: VGP
The International UPU Letter-Writing Competition, organized by the Universal Postal Union since 1971, is open to students aged 10-15 from over 60 countries and territories. The competition aims to help students better understand the postal sector, improve their writing and literary appreciation skills, and express their views on current social issues.
This year's prompt asked students to imagine they are the ocean and write a letter to someone explaining why and how they should care for and protect it.
Khue chose to write to director James Cameron, the creative force behind blockbusters such as Titanic, Avatar, and The Abyss. Titanic earned Cameron Oscars for Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Film Editing.
In the letter, the Ocean, using the pronoun "I," describes its body being ravaged by humankind. Khue employed strong verbs and adjectives to convey the ocean's dire situation, writing, "Humans fill me with millions of tons of garbage," "drill deep into my heart, suck every drop of oil, and tear my flesh to search for resources." The Ocean implores the renowned director to make a film to awaken humanity.
Khue’s letter advanced to the international round after surpassing over 1.5 million other entries in the national round in March.
Thanh Hang
