RESPONSIBLE . ETHICAL . SUSTAINABLE

Many people who visit Sapa become inspired to give something back. With the help of four Australian volunteers, Shu Tan, a young single mother from the Black Hmong tribe, was able to turn her dream of helping her people into a reality. Working together, they funded the first Hmong owned homestay in Sapa and established a socially conscious trekking service. Running on the social enterprise blueprint, Sapa O’Chau put the money earned back into the community through projects such as providing winter clothes to children and improvements to the village schools.

Later, Shu decided to tackle the problem of illiteracy among Sapa’s young tour guides and street vendors, many of whom never had the chance to go to school. With the help of a Norwegian anthropology student she organized informal English night classes for a small group of enthusiastic youths in a room provided by a local hotel. As these Sapa O’Chau classes grew in popularity, so did the need for more facilities. In the summer of 2010, the Sapa O’Chau school opened.

Today, Sapa O’Chau runs on the same social enterprise principles on which it was founded: working hard and giving back to Sapa and all ethnic minorities. It is made up of four inter-connected pieces: the school, the café, the Hmong handicraft store and the tour operation.

The direct beneficiaries are trekking guides, homestay owners, students, craftswomen and volunteers. These are driven by the trekking operations, cafe operations and Hmong handicraft store. Sapa O'Chau is trying to get ethnic minority highschool age students back to school using a holistic approach. When the children attend school, the family will need to hire extra help for the farm. Hence, if Sapa O'Chau creates job opportunities for parents of these children, more children can attend school. These students can have better job opportunities after completing higher education

Sapa O'Chau

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Sapa O'Chau

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