The Founder
Venerable Huyen Dieu is a proud gardener and renown international spiritual leader. Born in Ben Tre Province, Vietnam, he embarked on the Buddhist monastic path at a young age. He eventually received a scholarship to study abroad in France and received his Ph.D from the University of Sorbonne (France). After a period of being a professor teaching at universities and continuing doing “the Buddha’s work” in France, Venerable Huyen Dieu founded two Viet Nam Buddhist Monasteries in India and Nepal. Through many obstacles and challenges, he established the first Vietnamese temple in Bodhgaya, India, the sacred site where Buddha attained enlightenment under the Bodhi Tree. Under his leadership, he was also instrumental in working with the government of Nepal and Buddhist organizations and societies around the world in revitalizing the city of Lumbini, Nepal, the birthplace of Lord Buddha. His vision and leadership transformed Lumbini from a once deserted land into a thriving and more developed city of today. Venerable Huyen Dieu established the first Vietnamese temple in Lumbini and mobilized the development of over 36 additional Buddhist temples representing various countries in this sacred site. During the development of the temple in Lumbini, Nepal experienced a bloody civil war that resulted in over 14,000 deaths. Venerable Huyen Dieu was the key person in delivering a peaceful resolution ending this civil war. Venerable Huyen Dieu is currently the chairman of the International Buddhist Federation in Lumbini and the founder of two Viet Nam Phat Quoc Tu (Viet Nam Buddhist Monastery) in Bodhgaya, India and Lumbini, Nepal. Venerable Huyen Dieu has contributed immensely to the proliferation of Buddhism on a global scale. Despite many accolades and notoriety, he prefers to be viewed as a simple gardener who enjoys hands-on gardening work and philanthropic, community, and charity services.
The Mission
The mission of Nguoi Lam Vuon Foundation is to encourage individual participation and contribution towards addressing the global goal of having cleaner air and enhancing the global consciousness of living in healthier environments. To continue in the caring pursuit of respecting, protecting and preserving Mother Earth for not only our generation, but for future generations to come. The Nguoi Lam Vuon Foundation wishes that each of us take on the role of ‘nguoi lam vuon’ or gardener and be the change agent for the environment in our daily lives. From our consumption habits, to our engagement with Mother Earth, to our active participation in tree plantation, each of us can make a difference no matter how big or small the contributions, even if it is through planting trees, one seed at a time…
Our Objective
To promote a grass root movement of tree plantation and re-forestation around the world through individual and community participation and engagement. The initial goal of Nguoi Lam Vuon Foundation is to plant 18 million trees around the world with the aspiration that through the collective consciousness, support and active participation from each of us, this global movement would achieve many more million trees planted worldwide beyond the initial goal.