- Author: Wendy Powers
Our first full day in Can Tho started early. In order to experience the full effect of one of Vietnam's largest floating markets, we had to be up at 3:30; a typical time for my days in Oakland so not a big problem for me. But the traffic congestion was quite different. Hundreds of boats each selling different fresh food items were parked on the river while tourist boats maneuvered through looking for their favorite vendor. Some of the vendors prepared hot soup for tourists. I'm not clear how effective these floating markets are for selling large quantities of produce given that most of the purchasers appeared to be tourists but Can Tho has a long history of using this approach to market in the Mekong.
At daybreak we left the river and headed to campus for a day of meetings. It was in those meetings that I learned of the work by David Biggs from UC Riverside. I will definitely need to connect with him as this course progresses. We also met with the advanced students in the biotechnology program who take all of their coursework in English. And we toured the current facilities and saw plans for the new agriculture building, paid for by Japan, which is scheduled for completion in 2018. Given that ground has not broken yet, I'd have to guess the campus works at a much faster pace than U.S. campuses or the building occupants are in for a disappointment if they think it will really be completed by 2018. We met with three of the largest faculties on the campus to talk about our purpose for the trip and areas for cooperation and partnership. Overall, it made for a long day. Given that we would repeat the schedule the following day (Saturday) before making the 4-hour drive back to Ho Chi Minh City, it's clear that the group at Can Tho are hardworking academics deeply committed to their goal of international recognition in academics, including agriculture.
Reality has set back in as I head to Oakland for the day. Overall, a great trip with tremendous opportunity for UC ANR. Liz and I will need to take a few days to catch up at home and then start thinking of next steps, recognizing that it's not hard to schedule twice the amount of activities that is feasible for the time we will actually have to spend in Vietnam when the course runs. One thing that really stuck out as I made my way through airports was the number of spring breakers and U.S. tourist groups that also spent a hot and humid week exploring all that Vietnam has to offer. While my fifth trip there, I always come away having learned so much from a place that is rapidly changing and clearly on the world's radar screen.
- Author: Wendy Powers
I am in Vietnam this week talking with 3 different universities about establishing a study abroad course around the topic of global food security and climate change. The intent of the course is to engage undergraduate students and Extension professionals in conversations around the topic in a broad sense that spans the breadth of Extension program areas. The conversation would take place pre-and post-trip to Vietnam.
I sat with faculty from Nong Lam University near Ho Chi Minh and our discussion shifted to some of the current challenges in the region. As they talked about the severe drought in the highlands region where coffee is a major commodity and the impact that the drought has downstream with increased salinity in the Mekong Delta region, I recalled a very similar conversation with Bob Hutmacher and the West Side REC superintendent, Merf. Students who enroll in the course will work on projects to develop creative solutions to the challenges they observe. Those same projects may provide options to our own challenges in California. Engagement with Extension professionals will be useful to students as a reality check for their ideas.
If you haven't been to Vietnam, it's a fascinating country. With 93 million people, rising sea level, and national goals of decreased reliance on food imports Vietnam makes for a great case study for the course. I've had the opportunity to visit multiple times and never tire of it. This evening we left Ho Chi Minh and arrived in Hanoi. Tomorrow we visit with friends at Hanoi Agricultural University (now Vietnam National University of Agriculture); our hosts for the course when I co-instructed it through Michigan State University. It will be interesting to see where the conversation goes tomorrow given that we are now in the Red River Delta region and perspectives may be different.