Cambodia, a-hoy!

Okay, so let the blogging begin.

It’s been awhile since I have regularly written things for the blog. Partly because I’ve been in America working and it doesn’t seem as vital to my sanity or the cultural updates as when I am living abroad. But with the recent decision to move overseas again it’s time.

In the middle of August 2016 (a mere 3 ½ months from now) I will board a plane bound for Southeast Asia. I will be joining an amazing team of Australians and a few New Zealanders with RAW Impact. A sustainable project organization. I explain it easiest with the proverb “Give a man a fish feed him for a day; teach a man to fish feed him for a lifetime.” We’re doing the teaching part.

I went over for my interview in March and instantly fell in love with everything, the Cambodian people, the volunteers/staff and the structure and mission of RAW. The Cambodian people are a very kind, hospitable people who have moved on from the past and are gung-ho about starting fresh and fighting for a better tomorrow. The volunteers are more or less just like summer camp staff, which should explain why and how they are so awesome. If that doesn’t help then call and I’ll give a detailed 10 point explanation.

RAW as an NGO (Non-Governmental Organization), oh man. They are on point. The plan is to always be able to walk away from a project and have the locals running the whole thing. Whether it is a school, community center or an agricultural program. They might now have all the answers but they are doing things and working hard to make that corner of the world a better place and I cannot wait to be a part of it. The internal structure is quite impressive too. It’s not often that I have been involved with an NGO that doesn’t have the director calling every shot instead of delegating and dividing the work up. There are departments, like education, projects, growth, volunteers (I know, I know Brett, I didn’t put them in the right order or category but I was having trouble remember the right order and category. I’ll have to study it better once I get there). There is a chain of command and they follow it. It makes the small organized part of me giddy. Plus as an administrator how can I not love a good flow chart?

RAW is in its middle growth stage, they’ve been around for a couple years but are not yet to the giant mega organization stage. I am however excited to be a part of its growth. On the other hand though, being in the early stages of an NGO that pours all of its funds into the projects they run they can’t hire me as a salaried employee right now. So I am going to be working quite hard over the next few months to find people who also have the passion for sustainable projects and empowering a local community for change. If by chance that is you stay tuned in the next few days and I’ll be letting you know how you can help.

Well, I suppose this is a good start to blogging again. So until the next one, which could be tomorrow for all I know, cheers!