artLIVE – In celebration of its 18th anniversary, IPL Enlightened Leadership School hosted the forum ‘A Dialogue on the Portrait of the New Generation of Entrepreneurs’ at Rex Hotel Saigon on November 14.
IPL’s 18th-anniversary forum offered fresh perspectives on the young entrepreneurial generation: enlightened, integrative, and guided by culture, humanity, and a spirit of service. The event attracted over 800 young entrepreneurs and leaders, along with scholars, educators, social activists, and top business figures, creating an evening full of knowledge, experiences, and the ethos of IPL’s enlightened leadership.
Spreading the Spirit of Enlightenment – Integration
The forum “A Dialogue on the Portrait of the New Generation of Entrepreneurs” featured inspiring insights from leading scholars, business leaders, and experts, including educator Giản Tư Trung, social activist Tôn Nữ Thị Ninh, Professors Phan Văn Trường and Trần Hải Hạc, economist Trần Sĩ Chương, journalist Vũ Kim Hạnh, writer Dạ Ngân, poet Hoàng Hưng, director Việt Linh, and entrepreneurs leading major corporations such as TTC, Thiên Long, Đồng Tâm, Kềm Nghĩa, alongside multiple generations of IPLers, graduates of IPL Enlightened Leadership School, who continue to make a positive impact on society.
The event, held biennially, provides a platform for generations of young entrepreneurs and leaders to meet, learn, and engage in dialogue with their predecessors, spreading the values of Enlightenment and Integration, core principles shaping Vietnam’s new generation of entrepreneurs.
In addition, the occasion celebrated previous IPLers officially graduating from the IPL Journey, while welcoming the 2025 cohort, outstanding individuals who triumphed over five rigorous selection rounds across eight months to receive the IPL Scholarship and participate in IPL’s Enlightened Leadership Development Program.
At the forum, Dr. Giản Tư Trung, educator and Principal of IPL Enlightened Leadership School, shared: “To realize the aspiration of a strong and thriving Vietnam, our nation must cultivate five national virtues: Enlightenment, Humanity, Patriotism, Perseverance, and Integration. When each individual learns to awaken their humanity, nurture these national virtues, and develop their own character, the individual grows alongside the community, and the community gains the strength to propel the nation forward sustainably.”
18-Year journey – From the spirit of Đông Kinh Nghĩa Thục to enlightened leadership
Often called the “21st-century Đông Kinh Nghĩa Thục,” IPL Enlightened Leadership School has, over the past 18 years, built a community of young entrepreneurs guided by the principles of liberal education, humanity, and a commitment to social service.
Founded on November 21, 2007, and inspired by the reformist spirit of Đông Kinh Nghĩa Thục (1907), a pioneering school dedicated to public enlightenment and social reform, IPL has steadfastly pursued its mission to develop a generation of entrepreneurs endowed with leadership skills, business acumen, cultural depth, and patriotic spirit.
Students and alumni of IPL are young entrepreneurs carefully selected through a rigorous process and awarded the full IPL Scholarship to embark on a meticulously designed, unique leadership development journey imbued with the spirit of enlightenment.
Operating on a non-profit, non-governmental, and non-religious basis, IPL aims to cultivate a new generation of entrepreneurs – leaders who are not only skilled and business-savvy but also culturally grounded, humane, and patriotic; a generation that embraces the principle: “Business is about generating profit by serving society through the goodness of one’s products and services”.
Throughout its formation and development, IPL has successfully integrated the “Vietnamese spirit” with “global excellence”, and “liberal education” with “leadership development”. The liberal education component is overseen by the IRED Education Institute, while the leadership development segment is delivered by the PACE Management Academy in collaboration with global partners such as FranklinCovey, SIY Global, Blanchard, and the American Management Association in Vietnam.
As a result, IPL Enlightened Leadership School is regarded by experts and the community as one of the “most exceptional schools in Vietnam,” often hailed as the “21st-century Đông Kinh Nghĩa Thục”.
Photo: The organizing committee
