Day three, here we go!!! We started our day at UEF again with a guest lecture on “the role of green transformation and the sustainable economy in Vietnam.” It was really fascinating to compare green initiatives in Vietnam to those in the U.S. and to learn about how green transformations are affected by Vietnamese culture. I appreciated the discussion on the business aspect of sustainable practices, the reasons that businesses are inclined to implement green initiatives and how they’re doing so in Vietnam. Certain aspects of this transformation to sustainability shocked me because of the stark contrast in comparison to American and European cultures. For example, one of the first green transformation proposals I remember was shifting from plastic bags to reusable bags, and charging for plastic bags. In Vietnam, people everywhere use plastic bags all the time, so much so that they’re taking no action towards reducing plastic bag use. Most of the effort is focused on reducing coal as an energy source and reducing pollution, especially in the major cities like Ho Chi Minh City. After this intriguing lecture, we learned more simple conversation piece in Vietnamese!
Our company site visit today was with FPT software, and it was very impressive, to say the least. The building was based on a park theme, with lots of natural light, green spaces, various sports courts, and themed rooms and lobbies. After learning about Vietnam’s green initiatives, I was able to look at this building campus in a different way, analyzing the positive environmental effects of such a natural company space. The open air workspaces and emphasis on natural light usage probably save the company some money in electricity costs, however, I don’t think the building campus was the most environmentally conscious or efficient. I think more could be done to reduce air conditioning costs and take advantage of the outdoor spaces with fans, etc., but FPT is definitely a greener building than most. My favorite part of the building, though, was the meeting space designed based on the Mekong delta. I appreciated FPT’s love of the country’s unique features and the way it embraces the elements into the workplace. As far as the company presentation goes, I enjoyed the Q&A panel since, personally, I learn best when I want to discuss the topics and when the speaker is engaging the audience. Since my research paper involves women in the Vietnam workplace, I appreciated Phil touching on the recent increase in female software developers within FPT- yes, I asked the question, but the answer was more interesting than I was expecting. The specific roles within the company have different ratios of women to men, and, since Phil has been with FPT for 8 years, he was able to discuss longer term changes and the way that the gender balance compares to that of other countries. I’m happy to see an increase in women in FPT and many other companies in Vietnam. In addition to the improvement of gender equality, the employee happiness and satisfaction was the most appealing aspect of the company to me. It felt like everyone was happy to come to work and that FPT cares for its employees and their consistent learning and professional development in ways that you don’t see much of in the states. If I could make it happen, I’d love to work for FPT.
Although we ended the official part of the day in traffic, we had all you can eat Korean bbq for dinner, which was absolutely delicious!!! I’m never going to be able to go back to eating the food in the U.S. without reminiscing the food here in Vietnam. I’m thrilled for day 4, can’t wait!!!
