An immersive experience addressing gender inequities in Vietnam
In May of 2025, Professor Ben Tran spent two weeks in Vietnam with Vanderbilt undergraduate students Christin Ann Sanchez ('25), Ren Adajar ('27), and Kaitlyn Wong ('27). Together, they explored themes of gender equity in the context of the country's rapid transformation over the past 25 years.
Specifically, the group studied how social roles, family expectations, education, and economic opportunities have evolved, particularly for women and girls in the global supply chain of fashion and textiles. They gained first-hand insight into how mass-produced clothes are made and the lives of those who made them, while also experiencing Vietnam's tradition of "slow fashion" through textile weaving and natural dyeing in a remote area of northern Vietnam.
Through this immersive experience, they developed a deeper understanding of gender issues in Vietnam's garment industry and the ongoing efforts industry professionals, government officials, journalists, and gender experts are making to address them. "The trip's purpose was quite simple: to see what all goes into the production of a t-shirt," said Professor Tran. "But what we experienced were the manifestations of history, the aftermath of war and violence, the unequal divisions of labor and gender, and conversations and perspectives of people making our everyday things."
This immersive experience was supported in part by the Provost's Faculty Immersion Grant.
