On a typical school day, Him Chichang, a grade 7 student, enjoys his breakfast, grabs his school bag and goes to wait for his ride to school. The 16-year-old from Chamkar Luong commune’s Samdech Ta village of Preah Sihanouk province’s Kampong Seila district is not waiting for a school bus, but for a truck passing by on its way from Phnom Penh to the coastal province. This is how he makes his way to Hun Sen High School, by hitchhiking. “My friends and I wait in a group of up to 10 people and wait for a truck to drop.…
Author: Raksmey Hong
Namg Kinine used to be a successful retailer and wholesaler of plastic plates, cutlery and cups, one pleased to see his business grow. But he had a change of heart after seeing plastic rubbish dumped almost everywhere he went when travelling the country – even at ecotourism sites. Seeing that some people did not respect the environment, Kinine, based in Siem Reap town, started to rethink his business model. Adhering to the “If you want to change the world, start with yourself” quote attributed to Mahatma Gandhi, Kinine decided to end his business selling plastic products – which had been…
With a shrill piercing whistle and constant shouted instructions to motorists and pedestrians alike, Ry Kouk controls one of Phnom Penh’s busiest intersections. He and his light wand are fixtures of streets 271 and 506. People crossing street 271 near the Boeung Tompun traffic lights all recognise his contributions to easing congestion in front of the bakery where he is employed as a guard. Chan Cheata, who often passes by the intersection, used to be startled by his barked instructions, but says he does a great job. “The first time he lifted his traffic wand and commanded me to stop…
Larry Strange has spent almost 20 years collecting works from well-known local artists before exhibiting his collection as “Ti Prasap: The Larry Strange Cambodia Collection” at Sa Sa Art Projects along with the second edition of the collection catalogue. Larry, who was executive director of the Cambodia Development Resource Institute for 10 years between 2003 and 2014, has lived in the Kingdom since 2003 and collected Khmer art since 2004. He has since then worked as a policy analyst at Cambodian law firm Sok Xing & Hwang and currently is also board chairman at “Teach For Cambodia” – a partner…
Three Japanese core organisers and six international designers – from India, Thailand, the Philippines and Japan – have teamed up with four local creatives from Phnom Penh in looking for answers at the Sambor Prei Kuk archaeological site in Kampong Thom province. The Door to Asia (DTA) project is a ‘designers in residence programme’ where designers from Asian countries gather in a community for a period of time to create “communication design” for local companies, using the power of creativity to contribute to society. The team first went to the area around Sambor Prei Kuk in early of July, meeting…
After more than 10 years as a migrant construction worker, Buy Roeun became interested in raising rats for meat. He had seen grilled rats for sale as street food in his hometown of Phnom Sampov, in Battambang province, but the 34-year-old did not intend to compete with the vendors of wild rats. “I saw that the way rats are raised commercially in Thailand produces hygienic delicious meat and had the idea of doing the same,” he said. Since migrating to Thailand to work as a construction worker in 2005, Roeun had enjoyed the rat meat of Thailand. He reasoned that…
A photo collection by legendary war photographer by Tim Page from the Vietnam War during 1960s and 1970s, and Cambodia between 1990s and 2014, will be exhibited at Meta House. Page – a frequent contributor in the early days of The Post – passed away on August 24 at the age of 78. Meta House is inviting audiences for a pop-up photo exhibition from Friday, September 2 to Sunday, September 4. The centre had other exhibitions already scheduled, but when founder Nico Mesterharm learned of Page’s death, Meta House decided to commemorate his life and achievements with the three-day show.…
Among booths showcasing technological items from 98 groups of students at the Serei Saophoan town fair under the theme “Together for Better Future Business”, a 14-year-old boy’s model rice harvester received a lot of appreciation from the public. He was widely praised for the way he had constructed it entirely from discarded scrap material. Grade 8 student Lim Vannarith – from Prey Russey village, Sangkat Preah Ponlea, Serei Saophoan town – used hard paper, foam, radio, a remote controlled toy car and some skewers to make the harvester, at a cost of around $10. “I used discarded items like cardboard…
After seeing the amount of sawdust that was thrown away as waste at his brother’s manufacturing plant, Kuoch Seng Thai decided there must be a use for the overlooked material. With the idea of encouraging the use of recycled products – and not cutting down more trees – the 37-year-old man found a way to turn valueless waste into valuable statues. The pieces are in the same style as traditional Khmer works which are made from copper, sandstone or hardwood. Seng Thai, owner of Reakossa Arts in Siem Reap, told The Post: “from the beginning to the end of the…
Vanna Yet’s two children have been studying primary school at the Together for Children and the Elderly Organisation (TCEO), but her eldest son now continuing his secondary education at a public school at Grade 8. She hopes to soon send her youngest daughter to enrol in first grade at TCEO, while her second child is already in Grade 3. She will then have more time to make a living selling soft drinks and snacks in front of a factory. The 42-year-old was diagnosed with cervical cancer and had to bring up her children alone as her husband left after learning…