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international and community development in Vietnam

Clean Water Comes to Quang Ngai

March 21st, 2013

March 22 is World Water Day! What better way to celebrate one of Earth’s most precious resources than to share with you its impact in VNHELP’s most recently completed water project?

With support from our partners and community, VNHELP brought clean water to 37 different schools in Quang Ngai province. Many schools in Vietnam lack access to a clean water source, which means students either have to bring their own water to school or drink unsanitized water from a tap. If there’s no tap, or if a student forgot to bring his water bottle to school, there’d be nothing to drink. Can you imagine how difficult it must be to go a whole day at school without a drop to drink? Thankfully, students at these schools no longer have to imagine such a situation. UV filtration systems were installed in the schools, and a faculty member at each of the school was trained on how to maintain the system.

To make this project even more meaningful, there was also a water, sanitation, and hygiene campaign to create better health awareness among children, teachers, and their families. Check out a slide show of the project below!

[meteor_slideshow slideshow=”qnwater”]

Thank you Ms. Mai Dolch for funding this project!

Celebrating International Women’s History: Ho Xuan Huong, Queen of Nom Poetry

March 21st, 2013

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For our second Women of Vietnam feature, we’re taking a closer look at Ho Xuan Huong, one of Vietnam’s most beloved poets often referred to as the “Queen of Nom Poetry.”

Even though her poems are widely known and there are even a number of streets named after her in Vietnam, Ho Xuan Huong has been something of an enigma. She is believed to have been born in 1772 and died in 1822. Her family history is disputed, but the general consensus is that she eventually became the concubine of a man named Tong Cuc, a ranking official of the Le Dynasty.

Despite her  role as a concubine, Ho Xuan Huong showed a rejection of social norms and irreverence uncommon for women of the time. (Remember that she was living in 17th/18th Century Vietnam–an era steeped in Confucian traditions, which brought with them the exaltation of education and family values, but often the subjugation of women as well.) Her convention-defying attitudes were conveyed in her poetry. She had an uncanny ability to write of mundane subjects, but inflect them with sensual undertones (or overtones). She was a master of the double entendre, delighting her audience and providing a rare voice against sociopolitical oppression.

Her poems were later translated into English by John Balaban in a book aptly titled Spring Essence, though it’s almost always better to read the original if you can. You can view some of them here.

Join the VNHELP Community Engagement Committee!

March 21st, 2013

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Are you interested in learning more about Vietnam and the social issues the country faces? Do you have a can-do attitude and believe that every individual can contribute to making this world a better place? Are you looking for a better way to get involved?

If you answered yes, yes, and yes, then VNHELP wants you to be part of our newly formed Community Engagement Committee! The Community Engagement Committee (CEC) will work closely with VNHELP to generate awareness and raisefunds for poverty alleviation in Vietnam. Beyond that, you’ll also have the opportunity to lead new initiatives, learn about various causes, educate the community, and form friendships with good people who share your values.

For more mature individuals, this is a great chance to give back to your community on a deeper level. For younger individuals, you’ll learn leadership skills and receive mentorship from your peers. (Click on “Read the rest of this entry” below to see additional details.)

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Evolution of a School: Lam Dong Elementary Opens in Minh Rong!

March 14th, 2013

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VNHELP recently completed the construction of Lam Dong Elementary, and the school held its opening ceremony in March. Students migrated from their old school to the new one. The day was captured in photos. View the slideshow below to see the evolution of a school–Lam Dong from start to finish!

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Here’s Why We Need International Women’s Day

March 8th, 2013

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Happy International Women’s Day everyone! On this day, we take a moment to celebrate all the wonderful contributions women have made to society. Some people might think, “Why do we even need an International Women’s Day? I hug my mom everyday without anyone reminding me, thank you very much!”

But the truth is, sometimes, if we don’t dedicate a moment to women, many of their contributions will go unappreciated and many of the challenges they face will still go unaddressed. Here’s a prime example of why we need International Women’s Day: according to the International Labour Organization (ILO), “Viet Nam is among a few countries in the world where gender pay gap has been widening while the gap has declined in most nations in the 2008-11 period compared to 1999-2007.”

On average, women in Vietnam make 70% – 80% of what men earn in comparable jobs. To reiterate: women earn up to 30% less than men for the same type of work! In a press release, the ILO stated, “The latest Labour Force Survey Report published in 2012 showed that female workers have lower monthly incomes than their male colleagues in all economic sectors – State, non-State and foreign-invested.”

Even in jobs traditionally dominated by women, such as healthcare and social work, women continue to earn less than their male counterparts. Furthermore, the glass ceiling is very much alive in Vietnam as the majority of management posts are still staffed by men. Vietnam also has a number of structural labor issues that increase the burden of low wages on women. For instance, even though working in healthcare may require more skills, jobs traditionally held by men but require less skills will still pay more.

These reasons alone point to why we need International Women’s Day. We need to bring these issues to the fore and rectify injustices. Really, we should be discussing these issues daily until women are treated truly equally to their male counterparts.

 

Source: International Labour Organization