Ban Lien
Location
26 kilometers away from the town of Bac Ha, Lao Cai province, nestled within the Hoang Lien Son mountain range is Ban Lien commune. Ban Lien is an ethnic Tay village full of life, rice terraces, and primordial forests.
the situation
Ban Lien is the gathering point for many smaller villages nestled deep in the forests. The entire region is separated from the rest of Vietnam by the dangerous terrain, causing the locals to be trapped in poverty and children from getting limited education.
Despite the hardships, the people of Ban Lien still maintain an optimistic, kind-hearted, and hardworking character.
Ban Lien’s Tea Industry
Ban Lien’s main industry is tea, which naturally grows on the surrounding mountainsides and is harvested by local families. The tea is bought by the local tea cooperative (HTXCBL), which also employs the local tea factory.
SANSE works closely with the cooperative in planning our trips’ logistics, and their experience and knowledge of Ban Lien also help further our understanding of the area.
However, the primary and secondary schools in the area are what attracted our attention. These schools allowed hundreds of children from neighboring villages to study in an organized curriculum, albeit far from home. It is through listening to these children's dreams and the dedicated work of schoolteachers who relocated to Ban Lien to help these young learners out that made us realize that the best, most sustainable way forward for villages like Ban Lien is through the pursuit of higher education.
The positive spirit and unique natural resources of Ban Lien allowed SANSE to believe in its potential to develop and prosper. Furthermore, its strategic location as a gathering place will help our activities in Ban Lien to cascade and impact in the entire region.
PHOTO COLLECTIVE
The photo album below will be regularly updated with photos of our trips to Ban Lien.
