THINK PLAYGROUNDS

CREATING A SAFE SPACE TO PLAY

It’s no secret that play is foundational to early childhood development. Yet all too often, safe outdoor play spaces are hard to find in underserved urban and rural communities alike. Rarer still are playgrounds suited to children with disabilities. Until recently, Vietnam’s Phú Nghĩa Village was one such place.

Located on the outskirts of Hanoi, Phú Nghĩa is home to some 150 children, eight of whom are living with disabilities. The community desperately needed a safe, accessible and engaging place for their children to play.

To meet this challenge, the community partnered with AKP and Think Playgrounds, a social venture on a mission to promote children’s right to play by designing and building inclusive playgrounds and safe, healthy urban spaces. Founded in 2014, Think Playgrounds has built over 270 public playgrounds throughout Vietnam.

With funding from AKP and technical expertise from Think Playgrounds, the families of Phú Nghĩa now have a brand-new playground right in the town square. Complete with a playhouse, swing set, teeter-totter and more, the playground is made of sustainable materials and designed with accessibility for children with disabilities in mind.

“We went to the inauguration ceremony of the playground yesterday and I saw the excitement and the happy smiles on the faces of the people, especially the children in Phú Nghĩa Village at the playground. Talking with me, the chairman of the village told me that the commune has over 700 people and the playground we sponsor is the only place for the children to play — so it is truly appreciated.”

— Nguyen Tran, A&K Hanoi Branch Manager

AKP is looking forward to growing our partnership with Think Playgrounds to create more safe, accessible and inclusive places where all children can play.