This is a guest essay written by Dr. Paul Olivier, a US expat who lives in Dalat, a major tourist destination that is known as the honeymoon capital of Viet Nam. The sad and infuriating stories he tells are common throughout Viet Nam. Too many people have a total disregard for the environment. Pollution is … Continue reading ‘Tis the Season to Burn Trash
Commentary
From the Sewer to Your Table?
Photos by Paul Olivier Here's a recent Facebook post from Paul Olivier, a US expat who has lived in Dalat for many years. As someone who is deeply concerned about the environment, he's taken thousands of photos documenting different kinds of pollution, including the cesspool that is Xuân Hương Lake, the heart of the city. … Continue reading From the Sewer to Your Table?
The Final Frontier for the Tobacco Industry: The Other Half
One of the dreams of the tobacco and alcoholic beverages industries is to persuade more young women to smoke and drink, following in the footsteps of their fathers and brothers. According to a 2015 Global Adult Tobacco Survey (GATS), 45.3% of men and 1.1% of women smoked. That's a lot of untapped con$umer potential. Six … Continue reading The Final Frontier for the Tobacco Industry: The Other Half
Investing in International Student Recruitment
Courtesy BridgeU I'm sorry but there are no free rides in the world of international student recruitment unless your institution is a global brand, e.g., Harvard, Oxford, etc. In the case of the US, think top 50, including Ivy League, schools. They built it a long time ago, have an international reputation, and prestige to … Continue reading Investing in International Student Recruitment
“When the consequences of conflicts last generations: Intergenerational mobility in Iraq and Vietnam”
Vietnamese refugees living at the Songkhla refugee camp in Thailand. UN Photo/John Isaac. I'm a subscriber to the World Bank Blogs, which is how I came to learn of this research on intergenerational mobility in Iraq and Viet Nam in the wake of invasion, occupation, and war. Here are the first two paragraphs in the … Continue reading “When the consequences of conflicts last generations: Intergenerational mobility in Iraq and Vietnam”
KHÔNG CẦN PHẢI GIỎI MỘT THỨ MỚI ĐI LÀM NÓ (Kurt Vonnegut On Learning New Skills)
Kurt Vonnegut. (Photo courtesy of Publishers Weekly) Follow this link for the English version. Bản dịch tiếng Việt tại đây: KHÔNG CẦN PHẢI GIỎI MỘT THỨ MỚI ĐI LÀM NÓ "Hồi tôi 15 tuổi, tôi dành một tháng để đi làm ở khu đào khảo cổ học. Một hôm khi tôi đang nói chuyện với … Continue reading KHÔNG CẦN PHẢI GIỎI MỘT THỨ MỚI ĐI LÀM NÓ (Kurt Vonnegut On Learning New Skills)
Chinese Missile Base Near Viet Nam’s Border? (Say It Ain’t So!)
This story is being covered by the Vietnamese and English language media in Viet Nam. The only difference is that the Vietnamese reports I've seen don't include any satellite photos. This alleged Chinese surface-to-air missile base is just 20 km (12 miles) from the border. Below are two photos. The first is from the linked … Continue reading Chinese Missile Base Near Viet Nam’s Border? (Say It Ain’t So!)
Vietnamese Enrollments in US Hold Steady in Latest SEVIS Update
Source: SEVIS Data Mapping Tool Amazingly, SEVIS issued another update in December 2020, i.e., in the US presidential interregnum, that provides a clear, real-time picture of international enrollments at US educational institutions. That was the third in one year, in addition to January and September 2020. Below are the top 10 sending countries with 12-20 … Continue reading Vietnamese Enrollments in US Hold Steady in Latest SEVIS Update
“Winning the Great Power Education: Revamping the U.S. Approach to Education Exchange”
I learned about this Center for Strategic & International Studies (CSIS) commentary from a colleague's LinkedIn post. Once I saw the source, CSIS, a quasi-USG, pro-US American NGO based in Washington, D.C., I knew exactly what "Great Power Education" referred to. It's all about winning the "hearts and minds of the next generation of global … Continue reading “Winning the Great Power Education: Revamping the U.S. Approach to Education Exchange”
Of Fish & Kitchen Gods: A Tết Ritual Needs To Be Carried Out in a Humane & Non-Polluting Manner
Dead carp floating in the To Lich River in Hanoi on Thursday. Photo by VnExpress/Ngoc Thanh (February 2018) On a recent commute to my office, I noticed numerous signs on the bridge over the Red River. They asked people not to throw fish into water river below. As this 2018 article notes, "the ritual is an … Continue reading Of Fish & Kitchen Gods: A Tết Ritual Needs To Be Carried Out in a Humane & Non-Polluting Manner
An International Educator in Vietnam 
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