History
Glocal Ventures, Inc. (GVI) has been committed to Vietnam since 1998. In 2003, GVI began to see the importance of mobilizing volunteers in the U.S. to engage every domain of society in Vietnam to bring about transformation. To further this goal, GVI opened a representative office in Hanoi in 2007. It has been recognized by the Vietnamese government as an international non-governmental organization (INGO) since 2005.
Dr. Bob Roberts, Jr. - President
Bob Roberts, Jr. is a leading practitioner and writer on "glocal" - global and local - transformation of individuals, communities, and nations. He is the author of Transformation: How Glocal Churches Transform Lives and the World, as well as, Glocalization: How Followers of Christ Engage the New Flat Earth, Zondervan Publisher, and is the founding pastor of Northwood Church, which launched GVI. Bob is a graduate of Baylor University (BA), Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary (M. Div), and Fuller Seminary (D. Min).
Matt Robertson - International Director
In the early 90’s, Matt and his wife began as church planters in Eastern Europe. Matt has also served as an Organizational Development consultant in the software industry, as the National Director for Habitat for Humanity in Uganda, and most recently as the Director of Church Partnerships for World Vision US. Matt is a graduate of Point Loma Nazarene University (BA) and has a Masters degree in Organizational Leadership from Eastern University. He and wife Shela have two children. His passion and calling is to be a bridge between the church and the poor to make a transformational impact.
Vu Manh Tan - Project Director
Tan (pronounced "Dun") has been working with GVI since 2007 as a Project Director. Before joining GVI, Tan has travelled with several International Non-government Organizations (INGOs) in Vietnam such as Hands of Hope, Plan International, Medrix, English language Institute (ELI) where he served in various roles, including: Administrative Officer, Project Assistant and Program Supervisor. He has also provided consulting for Water and Sanitation groups working in Vietnam. Tan graduated from Hanoi University of Foreign Language (2000) with a BA in Linguistics and from Hanoi Foreign Trade University (2003) with a Bachelors degree in Business. He is married to Phuong Anh, and has two children a daughter born in 2005 and a son born in 2009.
