Hai Hai

Overview: Hai Hai is Vietnamese Festival across the United States, bringing the experience of being in Vietnam away from Vietnam.

Challenges: As a young Asian person in America, I often feel disconnected with my sense of culture. I’m scared of losing touch with traditions within my family, and I feel as if young people of color my age (Gen Z and Millenials) can relate to this issue. It’s hard to know how to keep tradition and culture alive especially being far away from home and from family.

Approach: I wanted to create a “home away from home” experience for Vietnamese American youth. Especially after leaving for college, it feels hard to keep a sense of my culture and traditions. With a festival, Vietnamese people across America can keep in touch with their culture and meet other people who feel the way they feel.