Vietnam Women's Union

President of Vietnam Women’s Union congratulates the first Vietnamese-origin woman in space

28/04/2025

Ms. Nguyen Thi Tuyen, the President of the Vietnam Women’s Union (VWU), has extended her heartfelt congratulations and pride to Ms. Amanda Nguyen, the first Vietnamese - origin woman descent to journey into space, affirming that this historic milestone highlights the brilliance and talent of the Vietnamese people in general and the Vietnamese women in particular, both in the United States and globally.

On April 14^th (local time), at a launch site in West Texas, U.S., Blue Origin - the aerospace company founded by billionaire Jeff Bezos - successfully conducted its New Shepard NS-31 mission, carrying a crew of six exceptional women into space.

_{Amanda Nguyen says "Hello Vietnam" from inside the New Shepard spacecraft}

Among them was Ms. Amanda Nguyen, founder and CEO of the non-profit organization RISE. During the flight, she greeted the nation with a heartfelt message: “Hello Vietnam” from inside the spacecraft.

The suborbital flight flew 100 kilometers above Earth before landing safely. This was Blue Origin’s 11th mission carrying people into space. With this journey, Amanda Nguyen became the first woman of Vietnamese heritage to travel into space - a groundbreaking moment that has inspired pride among Vietnamese communities worldwide.

Nguyen’s journey to space is being hailed as a symbol of resilience, courage, and the limitless potential of Vietnamese women on the global stage.

Born on October 10, 1991, Amanda Nguyen graduated from Harvard University and interned at NASA in 2013. She later worked at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics and served as a liaison officer at the U.S. Department of State under the Obama administration.

In 2014, she founded RISE, an NGO dedicated to advocating for the civil rights of sexual assault survivors. Her tireless efforts earned her a nomination for the Nobel Peace Prize in 2019.