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international and community development in Vietnam

Mangrove Forests: The Key to Managing Disasters and Boosting Income in Vietnam?

May 17th, 2012

Flooding in Vietnam (2011)

May is the start of the rainy season in Vietnam. Although heavy rains are often necessary to replenish the soil and renew the land, they also pose serious flooding risks that ultimately disrupt many livelihoods and leave people in a precarious position. Just this week, a cyclone wreaked havoc in Vietnam’s Lao Cao province, uprooting more than 100 trees, inundating the land and blowing the top off of 35 homes. According to Prevention Web, Vietnam ranks 4th of 162 countries in flood risks, 10th of 89 countries in cyclone risks and 12th of 76 countries in tsunami risks.

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Project Update: Getting to Know Son La and the Benefits of Education

May 16th, 2012

It’s hard not to be awestruck by the natural beauty of Son La province. Bordered by Laos to the South and Yen Bai, Lao Cai and Lao Chau provinces to the north, Son La is Vietnam’s 5th largest province.  The weather is temperate and roughly 80% of its land is mountainous, making it a hiker’s paradise.

Sweeping valleys

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We Moved Offices!

May 4th, 2012

VNHELP has a new home. Over the weekend, we moved down a floor to a different suite in the same building. Our new suite is more spacious, so now we have more room to greet visitors and display the different projects we’ve worked on in Vietnam. Do come by and say hi!

Special thanks to some truly wonderful volunteers who came by and helped us with the move. They were: Steve, Bill, Annie, and Dan of the local scouts; Khoa, a long time volunteer; and some of our staff’s family members. Although it was just one floor down, we really couldn’t have lugged down all that heavy furniture without them. VNHELP has the best volunteers, hands down.

A New School in Vietnam’s Son La Province

May 4th, 2012

Clack, clamp, scrape. Clack, clamp, scrape. The sound of a shovel dragging up against the dirt. On a warm April afternoon, a team of men are at working leveling the hilly grounds of Son La  province. They move with methodical precision, making sure the land is pat and the bricks are laid out tightly atop each other.

Here, a school will be built.

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VNHELP @ UC Santa Cruz’s Charity Show

April 25th, 2012

A big thank you to UC Santa Cruz’s Vietnamese Student Association for selecting VNHELP as the beneficiary for their 6th annual charity show. We’ll be at UCSC on May 13 to speak a little bit about our mission, our projects, and what drives us to work on behalf of Vietnam’s poor. The event starts at 7:30 p.m. and will also include performances from various UCSC student groups. You can view the event page here for more details and ticket information. Please come and join VNHELP in the festivities. It’s Mother’s Day on the 13th, so bring your moms for a fun-filled evening!