Horns and Headlamps: Cleaning Cambodia’s Recyclable Trash It is not an unusual sight to see narrow beams of light scanning the streets around markets every evening in Phnom Penh. The beams of light move from one pile of trash to another, occasionally stopping to see if there is any plastic, aluminum or recyclable waste.
From Disability to Visibility Art plays a central role in raising awareness of social inequalities and injustices and can be used to advocate for disenfranchised people and communities where power structures suppress dissent or activism.
Sketching a Pride Future Cambodians from the LGBTQIA+ community face stigmatization and discrimination, and do not have access to the legal protections they are entitled to under universal human rights which are endorsed by the Cambodian government.
Let’s Talk About Sexual and Reproductive Health Talking about sex, pregnancy, abortions or menstrual health is rarely handled well in our homes or society and is often dealt with as an uncomfortable or stigmatized experience that everyone would rather ignore than deal with. In Cambodia, some of these moral and societal norms come from traditional diktats like chbap srey which sets out a code of conduct for women and explicitly shames their sexual activity.
Confronting Prejudice with Honest Conversations Cheng Sambath sits to the left of Hun Heim and Lim Borin, who is hosting the radio show. The Kampong Cham resident is talking to them about coming out as gay to their parents. He talks about how the experience nearly ended his parent’s marriage and ruptured his relationship with his family.
Damned If You Migrate, Damned If You Don’t Chhang Kheang first went to Thailand in 2008. The migrant worker who lives in Kampong Cham province moved to the neighboring country to work as an undocumented construction worker, earning around $5 a day. This was a meager salary, but it was just enough to support her family in Cambodia, including a young son and daughter, she had to leave with the child’s grandmother.
Debating Issues Out in the Open Vy Chhailim and Hok Pich sit under a tree at the Institute of Technology of Cambodia in Phnom Penh. The two are sipping drinks near a university cafe, as other students discuss their assignments and homework.
Rhythms Of Resilience: Fighting For Indigenous Identities The Cambodian state has failed to put in place concrete legal protections for Indigenous groups in the country and instead wiped out their mention in laws and regulations around environmental governance and land management.
Filled In and Pushed Out For the last three years, residents in northern Phnom Penh have seen a steady stream of construction trucks ferrying rubble into the waters of Boeung Tamok lake. After each truckload is dumped into the water and the cloud of dust settles, the lake they have lived next to for decades slowly disappears.
The Boulevard Of Broken Dreams Kruy Phal sits at a small store on a dusty road right next to a massive condominium development in southern Phnom Penh, selling snacks, groceries and bright colored ice cream popsicles. Village residents stop at her store, buy a pink or purple or bean filled popsicle, not far from the boulevard that dissects the fast-disappearing Boeung Tompun lake.
