I just got back from the US.Spanning two worlds that are so different, where I am perceived so differently
can be confusing for the brain.I can’t
decide if I prefer to do my visit to the US in one big annual chunk, as I used
to, or in more sporadic bursts of other-worldness as I seem to be doing this
year.Anyway, this was a long trip.
In over a month in the US, I contributed greatly to my
carbon consumption and deducted greatly from my bank account, visiting family,
friends, and PEPY supporters across North America.I also contributed to my knowledge and
inspiration accounts as I learned from many people on my journey, and I wanted
to share some inspirational quotes and experiences I had for this month’s
lessons learned section.
One of the highlights of my trip was joining the Adventure
Travel World Summit in Quebec, Canada.There were many
great speakers, but a few highlights worth sharing were Jeff Greenwald’s speech
where he basically said:*Tourism that
changes OUR lives, makes us better people and opens up new worlds to us, is
what many of us have been selling.But,
that’s no longer good enough.We now
need to look at travel as a way to positively improve the world around us, not
just ourselves. * Jeff’s organization “Ethical Traveler” aims to spread these
messages and includes 13 tips for the Accidental Ambassador to help us all become more responsible travelers.
Another speaker I really enjoyed at the ATWS was Dr. J.
Wallace Nicholas.Who wouldn’t love an
ocean conservationist who is now studying neuroscience and has dedicated his
life to protecting sea turtles?!His
speech was inspiring, describing how it hurt him to watch his two daughters
fall in love with nature, as he knows that their hearts will be broken.He said we all MUST fall in love with nature,
though, and help our children do the same, so that indeed, when our hearts do
break, we have the will to fight back against all those forces that are
destroying our planet, and help future generations still have something to fall
in love with.His organization, Ocean
Revolution, is working to create a revolution to protect the 71% of the earth
which is covered in water.He gave us
each a blue marble to pass on to someone else to spread his revolutionary message.(Consider yourself marbled – pass it on!)
On my first day back in the US, I attended The Feast, a
collection of inspiring people with a collective will-to-do-good fueled by
inspired do-gooders presenting their ideas and knowledge in TED-like short
presentations.Oh, and it is run by
“creatives”, a term that always sort of makes me jealous to hear.I want to be a “creative” – I think I’m
pretty creative! – but in the new form it seems to have taken it refers to
artists, musicians, web designers, etc – i.e. people whose stick figures look
and sing a lot better than mine do.Anyway, the creatives running the show, Mike and Jerri, are pretty darn
deserving of the word, and they get 10 points for putting on an energy packed
event.
I listened to a talk by Elizabeth Scharpf, which had me
nodding the whole time… SHE gets it.More than any other group I have heard about,
I think the design and concept behind SHE (Sustainable Health Enterprises) is an
exemplary model of how social enterprise should be done.SHE is a lesson learned in and of
itself.All of the development lessons I
have learned are wrapped up in SHE: a program designed around community needs,
local ownership and buy-in, use of locally available materials, capacity
building/training/education as a key component, community components designed
to be economically sustainable. . . they have it all.Elizabeth reminded me of this lesson: stop,
listen and look around.The needs and
solutions are both in front of you, if you don’t push past them with your
preconceived notions!
Meeting Daniel Epstein from The Unreasonable Institute at The Feast reminded me how important names can be.Who WOULDN’T want to attend The Unreasonable
Institute with a name like that!?(Pssst, they are accepting applications right now!)If they had named it the “Learning Center for
Responsible and Successful Social Venturing”, I might have been less inclined
to yell, SIGN ME UP at first glance.
I also had the pleasure of meeting Rafe Furst at The
Feast, as he was my “Micro-Sponsor”.In
other words, I only had to pay a little bit to join the conference and he paid
a lot to help me get there.Mike and
Jerri matched us up with our Micro-Sponsors based on our interests, and I was
reminded of how important it is to live a life you believe in through speaking
with Rafe.
The final speaker at The Feast, Brian Bordainick was by far
the most enjoyable speaker for me to watch.Not because it was the most flashy or “creative” or unreasonable even,
but because it was honest and heartfelt and fabulous.A story he told, which really resonated with
me and many other entrepreneurs in the room I’m sure, was one I have and will
tell many times.Brian, who began
working in a hurricane damaged area in New Orleans through Teach for America,
had been appointed the Athletic Director at a school, though little to no
sports facilities or budget were available.Step by step he began a project called The 9th Ward Field
of Dreams, aimed at creating a multi-million dollar sports facility in this hurricane
damaged area.One day, as he was walking
through the halls, depressed about a donation that had fallen through or
annoyed at the barriers he was coming up against, he grumbled about how nothing
was working out and he might as well quit, and one of his football players came
up and put his arm over his shoulder and said “Baby, ain’t nobody told you to
start this to begin with!”
Nearly everyone in the room laughed.Anyone who has started something that
sometimes feels like IT’S driving YOU, who has started a company or a business
or a project and felt so overwhelmed by it that sometimes they wish they hadn’t
started it, would laugh at this, because they know that feeling.They also know that Brian, like each of us,
quickly came around to realize that, despite the frustrations and struggle to perfect
that which we are striving towards, doing something you believe in beats doing
something less inspiring for someone else’s gain any day. I got back to
Cambodia a few weeks ago with my head full of new ideas and my inbox full of
unread messages.The transition back
into either of these two opposing worlds is always tough, but I have been
reminded over and over again of Brian’s quote as hey, ain’t nobdy told us to
start this to begin with anyway, so we had better be enjoying it and making our
time worth while, because no one else will!I’m grateful to our amazing team here who constantly remind me that this
is indeed where I want to be and that, if we keep working hard and learning the
lessons presented to us, we can indeed make our work worthwhile.Happy Thanksgiving, and thank YOU for being a
part of why we do our work!
After 8 months of recruitment, applications, entrance testing, interviews, and family visits in partnership with PEPY, The Asian University for Women has chosen 5 scholarship recipients from Cambodia to join their 2009 Access Academy in Chittagong Bangladesh. Congratulations to Chat Vylyny, Keang Saren, Duong Leakana, So Rattanak Thida, and Oy Sreymom! Though small in number, this year's entering Khmer class is incredibly strong in motivation, ability, and heart.
Below, meet selected AUW scholar Keang Saren and her extended family. Saren (first on the left) is currently finishing 12th grade at Pouk High School, in Siem Reap province. She is one of the top students in her class, and has always dreamed of studying abroad. Saren and the 4 other Cambodian young women will depart for Bangladesh in mid-August this year. Stay tuned as we follow their progress throughout the year!
45,000 Dollars these advocates raised in last week’s first Dubai fundraiser.
1 Junior high school in Chanleas Dai, now complete due to this funding.
300 Students expected to attend the JHS next year.
24 Number of hours in the day that we're grateful for what this team has achieved.
2 Men on stilts present at the event.
30 Minutes of live radio time Daniela, Maryann and volunteer Jeff Strachan had on a popular Dubai talk show.
8 Meetings with press, arranged by former volunteers.
12 plus Former volunteers already booked on return trips.
Infinite .......... Our gratitude to all those who participated in the event, organized our trip and the fundraisers/press/social events surrounding it, donated, and supported us in Dubai.
We can’t express in words how incredible our week in Dubai has been. From the minute we arrived at the airport we have been taken care of like family. From our hotel and transportation arrangements, to hosting an incredibly successful fundraising event, to networking with businesses and press who might be interested in spreading the PEPY message, to sharing all that is Emirati with us, we have been overwhelmed at the kindness and support from our friends in the UAE. We can only try to thank you enough, through continuing the work we are doing, putting this funding to good use, and welcoming you back again with arms open.
Special thanks to Jeff, Phukaka, Michael, Kamelia, Nojoud, Manikan, Sonal, Liza, Heba, Alanoud, Fatma, Kristi and all the lovely ladies from Zayed for making all of the above possible.
The Classroom Libraries project you’ve been reading about for the past few months has launched!
Over the past few weeks, 50 classroom library units were installed in 10 different schools and over 12,000 books were placed in the hands of eager teachers and children. Along with the library units and books, each school received an activity manual, as well as the most important element: training. Training included one day of introductory training and two days of skills training, in order to prepare teachers to use the books to promote learning and love of reading.
The culmination of the first phase of the Classroom Library project was a 5 day workshop with Room to Read, who also helped to partially fund the project. During the workshop we shared our experiences with the Classroom Library Project, our plans for the future, and how we hope Room to Read can integrate this model into their work in Cambodia. Expect to hear more soon from this exciting project!
One of the things I love about being part of the AsianUniversity for Women recruitment process is that I get a small taste of the results we are hoping for in Chanleas Dai: young people finding their passion and pursuing it. For most of my days at PEPY I’m surrounded by primary and secondary school students: young people who are still 5-10 years away from pursuing their dreams. They inspire me daily, however it’s difficult to see the big picture of what impacts they will have on their community and country.
This week I had the opportunity to get to know 45 bright young women who are Cambodia’s tomorrow, those who will be the ones to make waves in education, finance, foreign affairs, IT, and business. They represent the hopes I have for every student in Chanleas Dai, not because they will be leaders, but because they are following their passions. They are excited about learning, motivated, thoughtful, community-oriented, and confident. For three days I met with the short-listed AUW candidates in Phnom Penh, monitoring their entrance exam and then interviewing them along with two Khmer selection committee members. We saw charisma, determination, self-confidence, and ambition as we spoke with each of them about their dreams, motivations and challenges.
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