Fuelling change: A biography of the beehive coal briquette in post-Đổi Mới Vietnam

Abstract

This article focuses on the beehive coal briquette in Vietnam. Although apparently an ordinary cooking fuel, the author argues that this briquette is a perfect object for exploring the unfolding and experiences of Đổi mới, the economic and social reform processes launched in 1986. The author takes a biographical approach as she traces the beehive coal briquette from its birth to its rise and demise as a cooking fuel in Vietnam. Along the way, the article explores the diverse interactions and relations between objects, humans and nature, and their unequal outcomes. The example of the beehive coal briquette shows how everyday things not only reflect social change and vice-versa but can also produce change.