Megan Chan

Meet Megan Chan, a WUSC e-volunteer based in Vancouver, BC, and providing communication support to one of our partners, the Center for Development and Integration (CDI) in Hanoi, Vietnam. CDI is a Vietnamese non-government, non-profit organization working for the rights of the disadvantaged groups [including women and people living under the poverty line] to build a society of equity, solidarity and sustainable development.“

CDI has several ongoing projects, but Megan’s favourite is a photobook project: The Invisibles Among Us. The book features short stories and photos of working people in Hanoi, and as CDI puts it, it is “simply a collection of many confidences, that we rarely have time to listen to, from strangers.”

“This book is beautifully made and engages and educates people on the daily lives of working people in Hanoi”, Megan tells us.

In her role with CDI, Megan is responsible for language quality of documents in English such as policy briefs, and digital content posted through social media channels.

She believes that “by providing CDI’s work in different languages, CDI is able to reach larger audiences to educate them on the struggles of their people and share their concerns”, and that “change can only occur when people know about the issues that require it.”

Megan is in her fourth year studying International Development at the University of Waterloo. Before taking on her assignment with WUSC, Megan already had tremendous work and volunteer experience in areas of community development, facilitation, training, public speaking, social media management and photography.

Megan’s motivation to volunteer stems from her own story:

“My family immigrated from Vietnam to Canada. Many years ago, they faced the many financial and political hardships of which CDI is aware of and working to mitigate. Their projects include working towards labour rights and proper governance. I feel so privileged to be able to work with them and see their projects come to effect in the next few months.”

Here are Megan’s recommendations on taking care of each other and spreading joy:

“To those who are feeling down during this time, I encourage you to do the usual walks for exercise, but remember to stop and smell the roses! These past few months have given me the time to watch the sunset a few times a week, a privilege I didn’t have the time for before. Even through the hardest days, the sun sets over and over again to bring us to a fresh new day. Taking the time to admire the beauty of nature can be shared with others, too!”

Are you also making a difference in your community? Share your story and connect with us on social media using the hashtag #WUSCSomeGoodNews.