Dow has made a firm commitment to Vietnam. This commitment goes beyond the financial investment, but sustainably becoming a part of the industry, contributing to shape the society, sharing best practices to benefit the industries, and developing Vietnamese to lead and manage the organization.
As a demonstration of Dow’s strong commitment to Vietnam, Dow has implemented many corporate social responsibility programs to various communities in the country.
Green Operations
With the commitment to the environment, Dow, since 2012 has collaborated with the Office of Business for Sustainable Development (SDforB) of the Vietnamese Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) and The Ministry of Industry and Trade (MOIT) on conducting Cleaner Production and Waste Management (CP&WM) training programs among business enterprises in Vietnam for the sustainable development of the country. To date, a total of 2,500 enterprises have been trained from this program.
During the terms of 2017-2020, acting as a Vice-Chair of Vietnam Business Council for Sustainable Development (VBCSD), Dow has actively contributed to the sustainable development direction of Vietnam through VBCSD’s work plan activities and the Vietnam Corporate Sustainability Forum to help the Vietnamese business community better develop their business in a sustainable way. Especially, Dow introduced a new concept of Circular Economy to the Vietnamese business community to reduce waste and minimize the dependence on raw materials.
Significantly, on January 23, 2018, Dow partnered with Vietnam Business Council for Sustainable Development, Coca-Cola Vietnam and Unilever Vietnam to jointly conduct the Project of “Zero Waste to Nature” for plastics waste, at the same time, to organize many seminars to enhance the public awareness about waste classification and plastics recycle.
Leadership In Action Program
Significantly, in 2017, for the first time, Dow’s fifth annual Leadership in Action (LIA) program reached out to Vietnam. 43 employees across the globe collaborated with six strategic non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and universities in Hanoi and Hai Phong, Vietnam to address issues related to water quality and access, environmental cleanup, education and career readiness that contribute to the betterment of the Vietnamese. The six signature projects included: Reducing environmental engineering program and industry gaps to support graduates to easily get jobs in both local and domestic companies; Revising university curricula and developing new subjects relating to green growth and sustainable development; Restoring and protecting the ecosystem of West Lake aided by the development of a comprehensive baseline database for West Lake’s depth, water quality, ecosystem health and water pollution sources; Encouraging greater participation of local people in the citizen science model in water resources monitoring; Creating sustainable solutions for rural waste reduction in partnership with Ocean Conservancy; Enhancing university training capacity on soft skills such as leadership, communication, teamwork and problem solving skills.
Water for Health
Water is essential to life, and clean water is essential to health. Where there is no access to clean drinking water, people are stricken with deadly diseases. Clean water is not only important for homes. Hospitals also need clean water for the safety of all their patients. In Mekong Delta, clean water is rare.
Dow saw the opportunity to help by utilizing its technology and working with various hospitals in Mekong Delta to install reverse osmosis water purification systems. Through this technology, Mekong’s salty underground water was purified to make it clean and safe for drinking and hospital use.
In order to help a greater number of people, large water purification systems were installed in many hospitals across the country. This enabled these hospitals to sell and share safe drinking water with people in the nearby communities and help ensure their health and safety.
Since 2001, Dow has donated and installed more than 50 reverse osmosis water purification systems to rural hospitals and schools. In areas with no or difficult access to clean and safe drinking water, each system with a capacity of dispensing up to 7,000 liters per day provides safe drinking water to patients and people from underprivileged family backgrounds.
Moreover, in a tropical country that is often visited by typhoons, severe flooding affects the lives and health of many people. It was one of the serious problems faced by the Vietnam Red Cross in their attempts to help victims of calamities. Lack of safe drinking water made their task difficult as transporting safe drinking water from other areas to remote localities suffering by calamities was not only a huge challenge but also costly. In 2013, a mobile water purification system was donated to Vietnam Red Cross to support disaster relief efforts and provide safe drinking water to victims of natural calamities in remote areas. Dow also designed and built a mobile reverse osmosis water purification system for the Vietnam Red Cross able to dispense safe drinking water for the people on location during relief and disaster rehabilitation efforts.
Home for the Underprivileged
The problem of decent housing is also one of the problems facing the underprivileged members of the Vietnamese society. Partnering with Habitat for Humanity, Dow implemented the project of "Building House, Building Hope" for the underprivileged in need. Through this endeavor, a vast number of families were helped and lives of people were touched and transformed by giving them the opportunity to enjoy a better quality of life.. As of today, the company has built more than 50 houses for the underprivileged throughout the country.
Empowerment through Education
Our youth are the future of the nation. Providing them with quality education not only helps individuals and families but will also help motion the nation to progress. In Vietnam, not all students have access to quality education. Some schools lack basic facilities such as books, equipment, and decent school buildings.
Believing that education is key and that science will enable a sustainable world, Dow, since 2002, has been supporting science education in Vietnam by donating IT equipment to universities, books to charity homes, renovating schools, sponsoring chemistry contests, and providing scholarships to deserving students. Dow has granted these students with the opportunity to advance their future.
Dow Vietnam builds future workforce for chemical industry
In partnership with Chemical Society of Vietnam, Dow organized 11 field trips to visit several state-of-the-art chemical plants in Vietnam for more than 600 chemistry students across the country to better their understanding about chemistry career and industry. In addition, Dow Vietnam also organized a workshop to share experience on workforce training for chemical industry, green chemistry curriculum at university and sustainable development of Vietnam chemical industry.
Medical Missions
With advancement in science and technology, Dow has also been embarking on a mission to bring medical help and benefits to the underprivileged members of the Vietnamese society by donating medical equipment, constructing and repairing new departments of infirmaries in provincial hospitals allowing doctors to provide better healthcare and patients to have better treatment.
Donations to Children’s Hospital 2 in Ho Chi Minh City to conduct free surgery for 10 children aged between 8 to 14 years suffering from chronic diseases and heart ailments are also extended.
Dow for Vietnam, Now and in the Future
Dow is committed in sustainably contributing to Vietnam’s growth and prosperity. While continuing to add value to most of the country’s advanced manufacturing industries, raise employment, and generate revenue for the country’s economy. The company’s unwavering dedication to address growing national and economic concerns will become even stronger in the years to come, as it focuses on good corporate responsibilities founded on sustainability and safety for all Vietnamese citizens.
Beach Clean-up:
Partnering with the local government, universities and customers, Dow Vietnam organized a beach clean-up event in Vung Tau City on the International Ocean Clean-up Day to raise the environmental conservation awareness among the general public with more than 300 employee and community volunteers joined the event.
Dow Vietnam STEM Program:
Dow Vietnam STEM Program aims to inspire more than 120 students from four top technology universities to develop innovative solutions to address their community challenges related to food safety and sustainability.