Today, we started the day with a lecture on sustainable economics in Vietnam. I was very interested in the topic of this lecture since one of the main reasons I wanted to come here on this trip was to learn about sustainability in developing economies. One tidbit of this lecture that I found very interesting was how dependent on coal Vietnam’s power supply is. This means that one of the most important ways for the country to be greener moving forward is to change the sources of electricity to things like wind and solar. This means that in Vietnam, innovations like electric cars and other things that replace fossil fuel use with electricity. This is a really different perspective for me, since products like these are a huge focus of environmentalism in the US. Another large difference in perspective is urgency. Climate change impacts, such as sea level rise, are already having big impacts here. This adds a sense of urgency that I found to be refreshing compared to the sometimes lackadaisical attitudes of some Americans. This lecture also touched on the amount of pollution in Hanoi, and I found the images of this to be a very moving testimony as to how important sustainable solutions are.

We also visited another company, this time touring FPT Software and their huge campus here in Ho Chi Minh City. I was excited to see many of the principles of green building that we discussed yesterday put into action throughout this building. The building featured outdoor hallways, which decrease air conditioning usage and increase access to fresh air for employees. I found this to be a super cool consideration, because no one would ever think to try that in Pittsburgh because of the winters. It really goes to show how the best green building is a building meant for its unique situation and environment. The outside of the building was also mostly white, which reflects heat away from the building and limits the heat island effect that large buildings and cities can create. This again ties to climate, since the hot summers here make limiting that effect even more important. There was also an impressive amount of greenery, which improves air quality and provides beautiful areas for employees to take their breaks in.

After our tour, we got to hear about the company from the perspective of Phil, who works there as a business analyst. I was a bit surprised by some of the work culture differences. For example, people are significantly less likely to work from home in Vietnam than they are in the western countries that FPT Software works with. I suspect that part of this is caused by just how welcoming and nice the workspace is. The campus had coffee and areas to play sports or relax, and our tour guides mentioned after work clubs within the company. With such a nice workspace and a sense of community, who would want to work from home? Phil also mentioned this sense of community in the discussion we had with him. I think that a company that is able and willing to create a community and a space for that community is a company that would be nice to work for.

I really enjoyed my day today, especially since so much of what we did felt very connected to sustainability.