I ran along the sidewalk with a bouquet of marigold flowers in each hand, hoping that I would make the train in time. I dashed around the corner and before I knew it, I could see the opening of Union Station just ahead. It was 12:08 and the train was supposed to take off in two minutes. I saw my Global Scholars partner Theo just ahead, and we both ran to find our stop. We could hear the announcer on our train up ahead stating that they were ready to take off from the station. We frantically waved down the security guard who kindly ushered for the doors to be open. Phew! We made it just in time. The two-hour train ride to San Diego was full of scenic views along the coast of California.
The purpose of this trip was to visit Le Ly Hayslip, a renowned author, humanitarian, writer, and the founder of the Global Village Foundation - an organization that we were hoping to work with. Ms. Ly grew up in central Vietnam in a village called Ky La. During the Vietnam war, Ms. Ly was captured by the South Vietnamese on suspicion of aiding the Viet Cong and was later released due to a dowry that her parents proposed. She ended up fleeing her village after a turbulent time with the villagers; the very same who she grew up with. After living in Saigon and raising a child, Ms. Ly immigrated to San Diego with her American husband who she met in Vietnam. She currently resides in San Diego with her three sons. Ms. Ly courteously invited Theo and me to her house after we exchanged brief emails during the week. She stated that she was hosting a Vietnamese New Year party at her house. Her house was on top of a hill/mountain overlooking a large crop area which was reminiscent of the rice paddies in Vietnam. The gathering was from 2-5 and we arrived around 2:30. Several cars were parked outside of the house as we made our way to the front door. Immediately, we were greeted by Ms. Ly who gave each of us a hug and invited us into her house. She ushered us into her living room where there was a shrine of the Buddha and Ms. Ly’s ancestors. She accepted our marigold flowers and placed them beside the shrine before introducing us to the other people at the gathering. During the New Year Celebration, Theo and I ate food, participated in the red envelope tradition, talked with a Ukrainian friend of Ms. Ly who was interested in creating a non-profit, conversed with a woman named Eileen who worked with the Global Village Foundation (GVF), and gave a mini presentation on why we wanted to get involved with the GVF to Ms. Ly. Overall, Theo and I had a great time celebrating Vietnamese New Year with Ms. Ly, her friends, and her family. Besides connecting with Ms. Ly and her organization, it was a great way to celebrate the Vietnamese Lunar New Year and connect with people we had never met before. We are in the process of setting up a video call with Ms. Ly to further go in depth about our grant proposal.
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Recently, the city of Da Nang in Vietnam agreed to accelerate a digital transformation of a “smart city” project. Alongside FPT corporation, a technological software company, the two signed a Memorandum of Understanding on transforming the city between 2021-2025. A Memorandum of Understanding is a written formal agreement between two parties. The goal of the MoU is to put Da Nang on the list of ASEAN Smart City Networks in 2030.
The ASEAN Smart Cities Network is a collaborative platform where cities work to establish sustainable urban development in their respective cities through technology and education. Several of the cities include Ho Chi Minh City, Kuala Lumpur, Manila, Jakarta, and more. This new deal will hopefully continue to transform Da Nang into an eco-urban, smart city in the coming years through focusing on education, the environment, healthcare, and trade. One of the initiatives is helping combat the coronavirus pandemic for students. As cases rise and schools start to go online, the demand for online learning has skyrocketed. FPT has started to use artificial intelligence to tailor courses/content to students. Their platform includes over 2,000 math-related videos alone and their app reaches 3 million accounts across 40,000 schools. According to FPT, students learn 30 to 50% faster on their app as supposed to in-person learning. The app is designed to assign work and automatically grade tests. Overall, education in Vietnam has increased due to more parents emphasizing the need to send their children to top high schools. It was reported by the General Statistics Office that the spending on education has increased 2.3 times in a decade to around $304 per student or 7 million dong in 2020. More companies are taking advantage of the tech/online education boom such as EQuest focused on English and digital combination and Clevai centered around creating an online teaching platform for students. While the rise of education technology has increased, internet in rural areas in Vietnam is still limited. Overall, the smart city project between FPT and the city of Da Nang is one of many initiatives that have started to transform Vietnam as a whole. Education is a huge part of a country’s development/quality of life and this new focus on education has started to transform the lives of students and people all over the country. https://www.fpt-software.com/about-fpt-corporation/ https://asean.org/our-communities/asean-smart-cities-network/ https://www.itourvn.com/blog/the-education-system-in-vietnam https://en.vietnamplus.vn/da-nang-fpt-boost-smart-city-project/219983.vnp |