The Vietnam Weekly Podcast

Today’s guests are Yen Vu, Assistant Professor and Major Coordinator in Literature at Fulbright University Vietnam, and Kevin Pham, Assistant Professor of Political Theory at the University of Amsterdam.

Yen and Kevin also host the excellent Nam Phong Dialogues, “a podcast with the purpose of making history (especially about Vietnam) accessible.”

We discussed the creation of Nam Phong Dialogues and why they chose to pursue a podcast, the inspiration behind the name, the importance of making Vietnamese history accessible, how they choose topics to discuss, current focal points within global Vietnamese studies, their thoughts on the TV adaptation of The Sympathizer and its broader significance in centering the Vietnamese experience of the war, navigating sensitive subject matter, and more.      

Check out Kevin’s new book, The Architects of Dignity: Vietnamese Visions of Decolonization, available from major booksellers starting tomorrow, September 24.

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Today’s guest is Kelly Vo, Founder & CEO of Dear Our Community and co-founder of Map Me - both of which you’ll hear about in this episode. I’ve known Kelly for a while and she’s a vital part of the sustainability community here in Vietnam - it took a while to schedule this discussion, a testament to how busy Kelly is with her various endeavors, but I’m very glad it happened. 

We discussed her work with Dear Our Community, getting young people engaged in sustainability, the importance of businesses communicating with young generations on sustainability in an authentic way, how organizations and companies need patience for results from investing in communications, and MapMe’s mission of focusing on Indigenous knowledge in addressing climate issues, especially in the Mekong Delta.     

Donate to Blue Dragon Children’s Foundation to support emergency post-typhoon aid: https://www.bluedragon.org/emergency-appeal-yagi/

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Today’s guest is Skye Maconachie, co-CEO of Blue Dragon Children’s Foundation.

I sat down with Skye at Blue Dragon’s busy office in Hanoi to discuss the organization’s ongoing response to Typhoon Yagi, which killed at least 262 people; the needs of flood-hit communities in the capital; the difficult situation in mountainous areas ravaged by deadly landslides; the importance of long-term support; and the resilience of the people of Vietnam.

This episode was recorded on a phone, so the audio quality isn’t as strong as a regular show.

Donate to Blue Dragon’s typhoon relief efforts here.

Today’s guest is Trường Trần, Captive Manager of the Cúc Phương Carnivore and Pangolin Conservation Program for Save Vietnam’s Wildlife, or SVW. He’s been with SVW since 2017 and is deeply involved in their conservation work, particularly their pangolin and Owston’s civet captive breeding programs.

We discussed these breeding programs, SVW’s anti-poaching work, research and monitoring of endangered species, the prominence of pangolins in the illegal wildlife trade, the biggest threats to Vietnam’s biodiversity, national efforts to preserve wildlife, how SVW rehabilitates and releases rescued animals, and where he hopes to see Vietnam’s biodiversity in the future.

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Support the podcast by Buying Me a Coffee.

Related Links:

Support SVW’s work here.

10 years of conservation: how many tigers left in the wild in Vietnam? (Vietnam+)

17 live tigers found in Nghe An basements (VnExpress International)

Extinction of the Javan Rhinoceros from Vietnam (WWF)

Today’s guest is Eric Olander, co-founder and Editor-in-Chief of the China-Global South Project. Eric and his team cover China’s presence across Southeast Asia, the Middle East, Africa, and South America, a vast expanse of countries that provides a refreshing alternative to the dominant (though important, of course)‘China vs. the West’ narrative.

Eric also hosts The China-Global South Podcast, which is required listening for anyone interested in global geopolitics.

We discussed General Secretary Tô Lâm’s visit to China; the deeply nuanced ties between Vietnam and China more broadly; how Vietnam’s ‘bamboo diplomacy’ serves as a model for other middle powers; the background of the China Global South Project and its start in Africa; frustrating media narratives regarding contemporary China, the phrase ‘global south’ itself;’ China’s approaches to Africa, Southeast Asia, and South America; the benefits of covering China from Southeast Asia; and more.

Check out the China Global South Project: https://chinaglobalsouth.com/

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Today’s guest is Washington State Senator Joe Nguyễn, whose district covers West Seattle and neighboring areas. Senator Nguyễn is Chair of the state senate’s Environment, Energy & Technology Committee, and one of the few Vietnamese-Americans in a state-level elected office.

We discussed the state trade mission to Vietnam he joined in April and his takeaways on renewable energy and other issues, his approach to the relationship between Washington State and Vietnam given his Vietnamese background, investment opportunities for American companies, carbon markets, and how Vietnamese officials view him plus the amusing phrase domestic media used to describe him.

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Today’s guests are Eddy Malesky, Professor of Political Economy at Duke University, and Paul Schuler, Associate Professor of Political Science at the University of Arizona. They are two of the five co-authors of the 2023 Provincial Governance and Public Administration Performance Index, or PAPI.

PAPI is “the country’s largest, annual, citizen-centric and nationwide policy monitoring tool.”

Eddy was previously a guest on the episode about the Provincial Competitiveness Index, which I recommend checking out if you haven’t already.

We discussed the origins of the PAPI and the need to assess public views on policy, the response over time from different levels of government, its evolution into an elite public opinion survey, the unique nature of the index on a global scale, PAPI’s dimensions and which matter most to people, the anti-corruption campaign’s reflection through the survey, significant trends over the years, and insights from the open-ended ‘issue of greatest concern’ question.

Related Links:

2023 PAPI Report

Vietnam's Best Public Opinion Source (Vietnam Weekly)

Today’s guest is Jack Nguyen, CEO of InCorp Vietnam, a corporate services firm that helps foreign businesses set up and operate in compliance with local regulations.

We discussed Vietnam potentially losing out on major investments due to uncompetitive tax incentives; the main concerns of companies considering entering the Vietnamese market; Vietnam’s strengths in attracting investment; the ongoing increase in Chinese investment; whether exporters should be concerned about future tariffs or political shifts in major markets like the U.S.; and the policy changes that would allow Vietnam to harness its investment potential fully.

This episode was recorded before General Secretary Nguyễn Phú Trọng died and President Joe Biden dropped out of the U.S. presidential race, events which are relevant to some of what you’ll hear.

Related Links:

Vietnam enjoys surge in FDI inflows in 2023 (Vietnam+)

Tech giants might shun or leave Vietnam if policy lacks investment support: ministry (The Investor)

Vietnam considers supporting R&D costs for businesses (The Investor)

Today’s guest is Eddie Thai, co-founder & general partner of Ascend Ventures Vietnam, or AVV. Few people in Vietnam have more tech funding experience than Eddie, and he’s been a great source of insight over the years.

We discussed tech here in the context of the global ‘funding winter,’ the country’s tech strengths and weaknesses, what Eddie looks for when deciding to invest, Vietnam’s nascent AI industry and the rising importance of ‘sovereign’ AI, his wish to see Vietnamese founders aim bigger and understand the hypercompetitive nature of their field, and his outlook for the sector.

You’ll also find out how many people with the last name ‘Nguyen’ work at the Magnificent 7 tech companies in the U.S., meaning Google, Amazon, Meta, Microsoft, Nvidia, Tesla, and Apple - the answer surprised me!

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Today’s guest is Bernard Kervyn, founder of the NGO Mekong Plus.

We discussed how the organization’s work has evolved given Vietnam’s rapid economic growth over the last 30 years, shifting their focus to people who live on less than US$1 per day, offering microfinance while avoiding its well-documented risks, the different ways communities support each other in Vietnam and Cambodia, and the broader goal of eliminating - not alleviating - poverty.

You can support Mekong Plus’s work here.