“A Little Vietnam” project: Sowing green seeds of hope in remote Aur Village

Aur is a remote village located in the middle of the majestic Truong Son mountain forest. It is now home to 23 households with nearly 100 residents, most of whom are Co Tu people.

With no convenient roads and no mobile signal, villagers mainly depends on slash-and-burn farming, livestock and forest protection. Despite these hardships, they still preserve the traditions handed down from their ancestors.

Because of this uniqueness, Aur Village is a “meeting point” for volunteers nationwide who have never met each other but share the same outlook on life: loving nature, protecting the environment and sharing with the community.

With the project “A Little Vietnam”, a group of enthusiastic young people have recently brought the villagers dozens of fruit and woody plant varieties such as jackfruit, mango, guava, star apple, coconut and durian after crossing 9km of forest road and walking for 5 hours.

Mr. Vo Minh Tan, the founder of the project, said “We give the people 2-3 batches of seedlings this year. Everyone will also come back and plant trees together, as well as instruct villagers on how to take care of them. I believe that fruit trees and woody plants will help local people have a more sustainable life in the future".

In the next few years, these green shoots will bear fruits, thereby helping people improve their income and, more importantly, increase their confidence to stay with the mountains and forests, he added.

This trip has not only provided necessities before the flood season but also conveyed a profound message about environmental protection and inspired a green lifestyle among young people.

The saplings planted today, jackfruit, mango, and star apple, will not only offer shade and bear fruit, but in the long term will help stabilize the soil, retain water, improve the ecosystem and increase income for villagers.

The seedlings given today will not only sprout green on the land of Aur Village, but also demonstrate the responsibility of young people in protecting the environment and sharing love with mountains people.