How Táo Xanh Forum Created a Safe Space for Gay Vietnamese Before Social Media
Before Vietnamese could hop on social media sites such as Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter to share our hot takes of the week, there was an era of past cybersphere when online forums were the crucial online space to connect local netizens.
Paul Christiansen in Environment
As Climate Change Threatens, Flood Waters Usher In Sustainable Opportunities for Communities in the Mekong Delta
The Mekong Delta is developing faster than Google Maps can keep up with. A stretch of road that was too narrow to accommodate cars and required a transition to motorbikes just six months ago was under construction during our August visit. Gargantuan machines for laying pulverized gravel inched aside to let our 7-seater pass so we could reach the home of Nguyễn Thị Thu Thủy to check in on her small fish drying home business.
Khôi Phạm in Natural Selection
10 Species of Lesser-Known Fruits to Get to Know Vietnam's Biodiversity
In the Vietnamese language, the word “cỏ” — meaning “grass” in the literal sense — is often used to signify that something is locally grown, no frills, and charmingly rustic; grassroots, if you will. Chó cỏ is the general term for the adorable mutts, usually mixes between Vietnam’s native dog species, born without the prestige of named breeds, while gym cỏ and net cỏ denote the casual gyms and internet cafes in one’s neighborhood. In the same vein of logic, may I put forth a new name for a special genre of Vietnamese fruits: trái cỏ?
How Vietnamese Architecture Adopted Modernism and Made It Our Own
Ask a person on the street what Vietnam’s distinctive style of architecture is, and the answer you get might be traditional architecture, like the historic curves of northern Vietnam’s village temples or the ornate regality of Nguyễn-Dynasty palaces. This time-honored style is widely accepted as the hallmark of Vietnam’s cultural wealth. What’s more fascinating but lesser-known is how this cultural vestige — which distinguished our architecture from that of China and Japan — has also managed to evolve in the new age, finding ways to exist right in the middle of our modern lifetime.
Uyên Đỗ in Society
On Grappling With Our Complicated Bond With Single-Use Raincoats
Like many Vietnamese, I have owned more crumpled raincoats than I can count. They're the disposable kind, cinched with a few rubber bands, folded into a misshapen rectangle, then stuffed unceremoniously into a scooter’s under-seat compartment or a desk drawer.
Elise Lương in Architecture
To Teach Children the Importance of Play, First Bring Playgrounds Back to Hanoi
In rapidly developing urban Hanoi, finding engaging outdoor play areas for young children is near impossible. But since 2014, the social enterprise Think Playgrounds has colored public spaces across Vietnam with wildly unique and legitimately sustainable designs, engaging with local communities to give children back their right to play.
As Wind Power Struggles to Thrive in Southeast Asia, Vietnam Leads With Early Momentum
Countries in mainland Southeast Asia have stark differences in renewable energy strategies, balancing them with ample but controversial hydropower and entrenched interests. While solar power has become accessible and cost effective, many of these nations have struggled to make wind power an essential part of renewable energy strategies, despite having locations with high potential. Meanwhile, others have become regional wind power leaders, such as Vietnam. In this explainer, we explore how various mainland Southeast Asian countries are engaging with wind power development.
How a Dance Project Is Reframing Deaf Identity in Saigon via Movement Art
Lắng Nghe Điểm Chạm is a project aiming to expand exposure opportunities and application potentials of performing arts into the life of marginalized and minority communities of Vietnam.
How Local Students are Preparing for Careers in Hospitality at EHL Group
While global tourism has certainly been negatively impacted over the last two years by the COVID-19 pandemic, it is sure to rebound and once again be an important driving force in Southeast Asia’s eco...
UNESCO Recognizes Nui Chua, Kon Ha Nung as Vietnam's New Biosphere Reserves
They are in Ninh Thuan and Gia Lai.
Vietnamese Company Buys 50m Doses of Spanish Covid-19 Vaccine
Another vaccine will come to Vietnam in the future.
Uyên Đỗ in Society
Love in the Time of Corona: Long-Distance Relationships When You're Just 1km Apart
In an ever-moving world, “long distance” has become a well-established concept in modern relationships. It’s easy to spot couples with one half living in a different time zone among our social circles...
Without Ride-Hailing, Public Buses, Saigon's Taxis Are Thrust Into the Frontline
Through the windows of a taxi cab making its way through deserted Ho Chi Minh City, the once-bustling Vietnamese metropolis is almost unrecognizable as empty street after empty street rolls by.
95% of Hanoi's Residents Over Age 18 Have Received At Least One Dose of a Covid Vaccine
According to Vietnam’s COVID-19 Vaccination Portal, about 95% of resident Hanoians aged 18 or above have received at least one dose of a Covid vaccine. On Sunday alone, the city administered 573,829 ...
5ha of Coastal Protection Forest Destroyed by Solar Power Project: 'It Was an Accident'
While carrying out site clearance for a solar power project in Binh Dinh Province, workers unlawfully destroyed a large swath of local coastal protection forest.
Khôi Phạm in Natural Selection
Lá Dứa: The OG Queen of Vietnamese Desserts
There’s a 99% chance that a Vietnamese child’s first exposure to lá dứa, or pandan, is in the form of rau câu.
Storm Conson Weakens While Typhoon Chanthu Gains Strength; Both Will Make Landfall this Weekend
As both storms move closer to land, Typhoon Chanthu has stolen energy from Tropical Storm Conson. Chanthu's wind speeds accelerated from 50 km/h to 260 km/h within just 48 hours.
Dr. Plastic, the Hanoi Duo Who Give New Life to Single-Use Plastic
Plastic pollution is considered one of the main environmental threats to our planet’s health.
[Photos] Renovation Project Brings Comfy Classrooms to Remote Son La School
It's hard to nourish the mind when the body is suffering.
With Just Few Games Left, VBA Cancels 2021 Basketball Season
There is more to life than ball.
Paul Christiansen in Natural Selection
Sao La: The Real-Life Unicorn of Vietnam
Disney’s Aladdin, Super Nintendo, digital fingerprint technology: the outside world was familiar with all these by 1992. Sao la, however, remained unknown.
Hung Vuong Hospital Opens Care Center for Babies Born to Mothers With Covid-19
As the coronavirus makes its way across Saigon and Vietnam, maternity care has become a particularly serious issue as more and more pregnant residents are getting infected.
A Homegrown Way to Fight Climate Change
As the impacts of climate change become ever-harder to ignore, it’s important to remember that some solutions exist close to home.
What We Know So Far About Vietnam's Domestic Covid-19 Vaccines
Aside from buying COVID-19 vaccines from elsewhere in the world, Vietnam is also trying to create its own version, with the hope of reaching herd immunity as soon as possible.
Vietnam to Receive 10m Covid-19 Vaccine Doses From Cuba This Year
The vaccines will arrive from Cuba between now and the end of the year.
