Our Core Team
Contributing Columnist
Brian Luong
Chief Editor
Brian currently is enrolled in the DMD-MBA joint degree program at Harvard School of Dental Medicine and Harvard Business School in Boston, Massachusetts. Prior to Harvard, Brian attended UC Irvine. At UCI, he conducted research in toxicology, specifically the effects of chemotherapeutic agents on human granulosa cells, the results of which were published in a journal. These collective experiences have been the foundation for his drive and passion. [contact]
Isabella Nga Lai
Assistant Chief Editor
Isabella is currently a research assistant at Jules Stein Eye Institute of UCLA and will be matriculating at Stanford School of Medicine in Fall of 2010. She completed her undergraduate studies at Harvard University, obtaining a degree in neurobiology, a certificate in Health Policy, and a citation in Spanish language and literature. During her undergraduate years, Isabella has been heavily involved with the Vietnamese community, serving as the President of the Intercollegiate VIetnamese Student Association of New England and the Vice-Chairman of the Boston Tet Festival Committee. Through OneVietnam, Isabella hopes that she can continue her passion to work with the Vietnamese Community and share her academic interests.
James H. Bao
Editor, Business and Social Initiatives
James is a financial analyst and Co-Founder of OneVietnam. He sees economic development as a critical lever for improving the quality of life of the 80 million people living in Vietnam today. Through OneVietnam, James hopes to encourage and facilitate business investment in Vietnam. As a Regents’ and Chancellor Scholar, James was awarded a full scholarship to UC Berkeley and graduated from Haas School of Business with a B.S. in Business Administration. [Contact] [Portfolio]
Uyen Nguyen
Economics, Foreign Affairs, and Entertainment
Uyen is an economic and litigation consultant and Co-Founder of OneVietnam. She lives in San Francisco and enjoy every minute in the beautiful city. Development economics is Uyen’s life passion, and through OneVietnam she advocates future economic development and corporate social responsibility in Vietnam. Aside from economics, Uyen has also starred in and directed several Vietnamese culture shows, drawing audiences over 2000 in number and generating north of $20,000 in revenue for VSA. Uyen graduated Cum Laude from UC Berkeley with a B.S. in Economics. [Contact]
Hoang Bao
Editorials & Culture
Hoang is a consultant specializing in data governance, information systems, and forensic accounting. Hoang was born in Vietnam and holds a special connection to the country. He graduated with a BS and a MS in Computer Science from Cal Poly – San Luis Obispo. During his time there, he served as a leader in the Vietnamese American community through the university Vietnamese Student Association. He has a keen interest in the growth and progress of Vietnamese communities around the world. Hoang currently works for a global advisory firm in Silicon Valley and continues to share his understanding of the Vietnamese culture with OneVietnam.
Neil Nguyen
Economics & Business Editorials
Neil is a mechanical engineer who aspires to make his own robot so he no longer needs to do house chores. Neil was born and raised in Vietnam for 14 years. He graduated from UC Berkeley with a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering. During his time at Berkeley, Neil studied abroad in South Korea and Japan, researching post-war development in Japan. Through his research, Neil hopes to use Japan as a model to develop an efficient infrastructure in Vietnam, especially a subway system. Through OneVietnam, Neil looks forward to work with other Vietnam enthusiasts to build up a better country. [contact]
Paul Pham, Engineering
Paul is a freelance programmer who was part of the team that created the first web-based email service called Hotmail. After the company was acquired by Microsoft Corporation, he went on to work as a server architect for several years, developing the main revenue generating engine for Hotmail called WebCourier. Paul then left Hotmail to work as a program manager for a mobile device software company and for a biotechnology company, where he designed and built the hardware and software data infrastructure. [contact]
Sara Bui
Sarah has been apart of many projects of various scales and activities, and now directs a non-profit tutoring organization, Jubilee Vietnamese Tutoring Center, that serves to edify and aid the young students of the community. As of Fall/Winter 2009, she will be co-leading a fashion/art show, Embriven, as its organizer and marketing manager, in which all funds will be dedicated to raise awareness against sex slavery around the world. [Contact]
Le-Quyen Le
Quyen is currently an Investment Analyst at CIM Group, a private equity firm based in Los Angeles. She previously worked at Bank of America Merrill Lynch as an Analyst in the Real Estate Investment Banking Group and was involved in a variety of transactions, including equity, debt and M&A. Quyen graduated from the University of California, Berkeley with a B.S. in Business Administration and a B.A. in Economics. [contact]
Phong Quan
Phong is currently a J.D. Candidate at the UC Berkeley, Boalt Hall School of Law. In 2007, Phong moved to Vietnam where he lived and worked for the next two years. For most of that time, he was a paralegal at Baker & McKenzie, LLP in Saigon, working in a variety of areas from WTO law to Banking & Finance. While in Vietnam he also volunteer-taught English and organized events for local charities and non-profits. [contact]
