Background

For 20 years, Blue Dragon has been a leading light in the fight to end human trafficking in Vietnam. In 2020, we completed our 1,000th rescue of a human trafficking survivor. We have assisted thousands more victims of exploitation, reuniting them with their families and giving them the support they need to recover and thrive.

Since the beginning of 2023, the number of calls for help that Blue Dragon receives from people trapped in slavery and their families has been higher than ever before. Within the first quarter of 2023, the number of human trafficking victims we rescued and assisted (99) amounted to over 80 per cent of the entire previous year (123). 

The victims are girls trafficked into forced prostitution in Vietnam and abroad, women sold into forced ‘marriages’, and boys or men deceived by false promises of work but instead sold to scam compounds across Southeast Asia. 

And while the number of people trafficked from Vietnam to surrounding countries has soared, we have also witnessed worrying growth in the number of children on the streets of Hanoi – Vietnam’s capital city.

Children are travelling to Hanoi, mostly from ethnic minority communities in northern Vietnam, hoping to find work to support their families. But the reality is that there is very little work for them. Most of the time they end up lost, alone and exceptionally vulnerable. Street children can quickly become targets for people who trick them into accepting unpaid work. These unscrupulous people take their legal documents and personal possessions, before eventually abandoning them on the streets with no way to get home. 

Blue Dragon’s resources had been being stretched to the point that we could not respond to everyone in need of help. And that’s why Blue Dragon made the decision to launch an emergency appeal in May 2023. 

Creator / originator

Blue Dragon Children’s Foundation – Communications & Fundraising Department

Summary / objectives

Our emergency appeal was urgently needed. The charity hoped to raise funds that would help us respond to the unprecedented rise in calls for help from people who were trapped in scam compounds, forced ‘marriages’ and brothels across Southeast Asia. 

Merits

A sense of urgency

The campaign highlighted cases of people trapped in slavery and used images that captured the shocking situations where Blue Dragon found them.

The ask for help was very specific and tangible to the immediate need for safe accommodation, food, psychological counselling, health care and rescues. The message that Blue Dragon was nearing our maximum capacity to help, for the first time ever, was repeated and emphasised in our emails and on the website, which indicate that the need was time sensitive.

Consistent messaging and frequent visibility 

Across our platforms (Blue Dragon’s website, social media or email), the messaging was consistent. 

During the campaign period, we sent emails weekly, reaching our supporters regularly. We sent follow-up emails after the first official launch email and tailored the follow up content depending on whether the recipient had or hadn’t opened the initial email and whether they’d donated yet or not.

Double the impact

The campaign leveraged matching donations from some specific donors, giving other supporters an incentive to donate and take action immediately. A total of 79 donors took up this offer and US$8,000 was received through matching donations.

Transparency

We promised people that when supporters donated to this emergency appeal, we would keep them informed about the number of people Blue Dragon rescued each week until the end of the year. This would keep donors engaged and informed about the impacts of their contributions. You can see a sample of these updates, in this LinkedIn post. 

(We didn’t stop when the year ended and have kept it going since. The weekly ‘rescue report series’, as it was named, has become one of the most opened emails Blue Dragon sends – with an open rate of over 62 per cent.)

Results

The emergency appeal raised US$157,673 within one month. 

A total of 551 people donated, 22 per cent of whom were new supporters. 

This fund enabled Blue Dragon to rescue and provide emergency support to 104 victims of human trafficking and 102 street children. It showed us the incredible commitment from our community of supporters. 

Influence / impact

This was the first time Blue Dragon was at risk of not being able to help everyone who needed us – and through this emergency appeal, we acknowledged it publicly. We found that being open about sharing our vulnerability was crucial. It helped our supporters understand the urgency and significance of their donations to Blue Dragon as well as see our commitment to the work of rescuing and caring for people in need. 

This campaign led to the creation of a group of nearly 600 donors who donated to Blue Dragon and expressed their interest in receiving weekly updates about our rescue work. This allows us to maintain the donor engagement with Blue Dragon via emails, connecting them with our mission and the impact they create.  

Final notes

With this appeal, Blue Dragon struck a balance between communicating the crisis situation we were facing, with not discouraging donors from taking action because the issue was too big or too challenging for anyone to solve.

We did this by providing background information about the situation; explaining Blue Dragon’s role in dealing with it; and giving people a clear and specific way to contribute, making it easier for them to take action.

© IMAGES: All courtesy of Blue Dragon Children’s Foundation

Editor’s note: If you would like to view more great examples of fundraising in times of crisis, please visit SOFII’s Crisis Fundraising showcase here.