[VOVWORLD] - As Vietnam prepares to celebrate the 81st anniversary of National Day on September 2, Hanoi is staging a wide range of art programs, exhibitions, displays and public activities.  These events will explore new ways of experiencing history, bringing stories of the struggle for independence closer to contemporary audiences and turning memories of the past into a dialogue with each successive generation.

[VOVWORLD] - Amid the misty mountain passes of Tung Vai in Tuyen Quang province, in northeastern Vietnam, the Border Guard station does more than guard the border. For many poor children in the area, it has become a second home. Many children at risk of dropping out of school have received support from the border guards, who encourage them to stay in school and pursue their dreams.

[VOVWORLD] - The Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology is one of the five agencies tasked with examining the samples collected during the ongoing 500-Day Campaign to Accelerate the Search, Recovery, and Identification of Fallen Soldiers’ Remains. Each sample is processed by the academy’s scientists in a special procedure.

[VOVWORLD] - Victims of Agent Orange/dioxin—ranging in age from 15 to 36—live with permanent cognitive and physical disabilities. The lasting impacts of the war include intellectual disabilities, visual impairment, and severe speech delays. Staff at Facility 1 of the Da Nang City Center for the Protection of Agent Orange Victims and Disadvantaged Children provide daily care, education, and support to help ease those wounds.

[VOVWORLD] - In the remote border commune of Kim Bang in Nghe An province, a new school is being built, bringing hope to local children and their families. With support from Vietnam's Ministry of National Defense, the kindergarten will provide a safe and modern place for children living along the Vietnam–Laos border, replacing classrooms that have long struggled with old facilities and seasonal flooding.

[VOVWORLD] - More than 50 years after the war ended, some missions are still not over. In forests and mountains that were once battlefields, Vietnamese recovery teams continue searching for the remains of fallen soldiers, hoping to bring them home. Working alongside the Vietnamese teams are US veterans who once served in Vietnam.

[VOVWORLD] - More than five decades after the war, thousands of graves in martyrs’ cemeteries in Dak Lak province remain marked only as “Unknown Martyr”. Local authorities are intensifying efforts to collect DNA samples and digitize burial records under the ongoing 500-day campaign to identify fallen soldiers in order to help restore the identities of those who laid down their lives for the nation.

[VOVWORLD] - On January 31, 1968, Vietnamese people and soldiers undertook a historic Spring General Offensive and Uprising, widely known as the Tet Offensive. Many laid down their lives during the battle. Now, soldiers and officers from the Ho Chi Minh City High Command are working day and night searching for the remains of these heroes to return them to their loved ones.

[VOVWORLD] - At martyrs’ cemeteries in Son La province, a mission is underway: exhuming the remains of fallen soldiers and collecting biological samples for DNA analysis to identify those whose identities remain unknown. Under the hot summer sun, soldiers and local residents are carrying out every task with care and reverence. They understand that every DNA sample represents another chance to reunite a fallen hero with his family.

[VOVWORLD] - Today, it's easier than ever before to stay connected. Smartphones allow us to talk to our loved ones from thousands of km away, or work, study, and entertain ourselves anywhere; but these devices are also changing the way family members communicate with each other. Many Vietnamese families are setting up "tech-free zones" – small breaks in the day from phones and social media to preserve the simple but precious connections between family members.