Wait, I'm Done Already?

"The Edge... there is no honest way to explain it because the only people who really know where it is are the ones who have gone over." - Hunter S. Thompson


This was an incredibly short trip by my standards. Just barely one week in Cambodia, as I dovetailed this travel plan with a trip to India for my regular work. I can now say that 10 days in Cambodia is the absolute minimum to effectively coordinate projects and teach classes. Deanna will do a tremendous job to wrap up a few projects and loose ends, but I'm sorry I won't be able to see those things through personally. 


I'll write a summary post soon, but I have a few other items to figure out for this year's effort. Plus, I'm already back at work from our Bangalore office and busy as ever.

I Found this Church Through Google

After service at Khnar Tmei today, we turned around to find many people chatting with a Barang (foreigner) who was sitting in the back. Francois introduced himself to us as a new, temporary resident in Siem Reap. He’s going to do some projects on water and sanitation through a French NGO.

“This church was a little hard to find because the roads do not have names. I was looking for a church like the one I go to at home, and I found this one on Google Earth.”

That struck me, as I was the one who marked the site on Google Maps. If you focus in on Siem Reap and do a simple search for “United Methodist” you’ll find it. I copied the search I just did in the article image.

I love these types of reminders. This is a personal lesson for me that sometimes you plant a seed and it takes a very long time to germinate. 

Hooray for Paperwork!

After rubbing elbows with foreign heads of state and distinguished business people last night, I got back to reality my regular job here in Cambodia. Deanna and I are going through the remaining elements of filing the IRS Form 1023 to apply for 501(c)(3) status. This is a large and detailed form that requires a serious commitment. I suppose it makes sense that they would want to know an awful lot about what we are up to. After all, we’re applying to the government to NOT pay taxes.

This will be my final evening here in Siem Reap before heading on to India. I need to figure out a nice place to go for dinner and then get my bags packed and ready. For now I’ll drudge through forms while sipping on a world-class mango shake at the Blue Pumpkin.

The 0.01%

I had high hopes for the US-ASEAN Business Forum, as the list of keynote guest speakers is quite impressive: Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra of Thailand, President Thein Sein of Myanmar, and Prime Minister Hun Sen of Cambodia. So far the conference sessions have been extremely high level with government ministers from a variety of Asian nations giving speeches and advice on doing business in ASEAN countries. The attendees are also a who's-who of business leaders, ambasadors, and other powerful individuals in the region. These aren't the 1%. These are the 0.01%. 


Networking and hobnobbing are not my favorite activity. Combine that with the caliber of the attendees and as a result I am mostly keeping quiet. Only a couple of introductions and chats with nothing massively substantial as the result. That's fine by me. I'm pretty sure I'm getting way more than I asked for with my $65 entry fee.


The tone of the meeting is clear: US companies are eager to enter into this region of Asia. Most speakers talk about the need for infrastrcture (e.g. roads, energy distribution, water management, etc.). Others mention the challenges of education in the most developing countries like Cambodia, and even the problem of corruption was uttered a couple of times. Corporate responsibility and being a good citizen in the local marketplace is on the agenda and even regarded once or twice, but not the focus.


My hope was that a few leaders would at least acknowledge the role of NGOs in supplementing the basic services that the government is unable to provide. That never happened, and I feel like there is a significant missed opportunity for companies to help nurture the very market they want to partner with. This is especially true with the excitement around the upcoming sanction reversals for Myanmar and the business conference there tomorrow. NGOs maintain a foothold in that country today. Imagine the possibilities if a fortune 500 company invested in the country and used an NGO as the fast-track for establishing the market and addressing the initial challenges. From their perspective, it would be a great way to improve and return on investment and shorten the time to profitability. From the NGO's perspective it would accelerate the humanitarian impact and literally save lives.


A Corporate-NGO partnership isn't new. I can google it and get results. I'm just dumbfounded that in a conference with so many extremely intelligent people that none of them have put these together as an effective strategy the day before they are going to fly to quite possibly the most improverished nation in the ASEAN group.

One Donation Complete

The Angkor Hospital for Children was extremely grateful for the donation of suture provided by Global Links. They shared with me some of the logistical challenges they face like simply finding enough room for their inventory and how it can be especially difficult to source items with an expiration date.


For example, they have a hard time getting something as simple as lubricating jelly. Not the specialized stuff used to do ultrasonic procedures, just plain old lubricating jelly. The tiny packets expire after a year or so, and you need to buy them in huge bulk orders. They simply won't use that much of it, so most will go bad and they will end up wasting most of their investment in it.


Take a look at the wonderful letter they provided, and consider donating to a group like Gobal Links.

Correlation versus Causation

It seems like every year I come to Cambodia the rains take a break. Apparently they have torrential downpours just before and after my itinerary. Not that I'm hoping for flooding or anything, but the rains tend to cool things off in a country that doesn't voraciously use air conditioning. I mentioned this to Prem today. 


"Oh, many people say that if someone visits and the rains don't come it's bad luck." 


Not surprised, I responded "It figures. We never get rain in Texas, and as soon as I leave they have tremendous storms. When I get to Cambodia, no rain."


Prem then went on to share an interesting story. "I heard that the King will check the weather before he plans a trip. He will make sure to go if they know it will rain around that time. That way all the people think that he helps to make the rain come."


Ah! Gotta love the old Causation versus Correlation problem. I'm sure my presence has absolutely nothing to do with the weather patterns of Southeast Asia... but Prem also mentioned that it was raining heavily the other night at his house a few kilometers away. We didn't get much of anything here at the hotel. 


Perhaps the rain really is afraid of me...

Teaching the Teachers

Reflection can be a powerful tool. It can also be somewhat humbling and frightening at the same time. I’ve had to do a lot of it as I think about the approach I take to teaching classes. After all, I’m teaching others on what I do and critically thinking about my process. So far I haven’t had any “Oh… I’ve been doing that all wrong” moments but I definitely feel like I could make some improvements. The class has a big emphasis on planning and preparation to make sure these new teachers understand their material and feel confident about their first lesson.

On the mosquito nets front, I’m running into a little bit of resistance in the process but nothing unexpected. I have a few more emails to trade and then hopefully the wheels will start turning. I expected this to be a bit tricky, and it’s living up to expectations.

One random tidbit: the roads continue to improve. Mony and I were driving back from Khnar Tmei on a stretch of road that has not been improved. This is the way all roads used to be, even the one going from Siem Reap to Phnom Penh. “Before the good road,” Mony said waxing nostalgic, “It took two days to get to Phnom Penh. Also, a lot of robbers.” That’s not the case anymore. I also asked about the road to Anlong Veng, a town far to the north near the temple of Preah Vihear. It took us a full day to drive there a few years ago and most of the road was bad.

“Oh yes, good road all the way. Even to Preah Vihear! They make the road all the way to the temple at the top of the mountain”

“So, do you still need to hire a 4-wheel drive to get to the top?” I asked.

“Well… 4 wheel drive is still good idea, but a Camry…” he said while patting the top of the dashboard, “can also make it. It depend on the driver, if Brave or not Brave. Ha ha ha ha!”

Ah, I’m glad to see some things don’t change!

Taking Initiative

A big part of this effort to help Cambodian people involves finding potential opportunities. You simply can’t be perfect doing this, and a lot of it is discovery. Beyond that you have to be willing to strike out in new and unusual directions simply because you might find something there.

One good example is my class at Khnar Tmei this year. I know I can’t stay in the village year-round and teach computer classes. But with the unusual gender gap of boys without jobs, I sensed an opportunity. They have the training and experience I’ve given them over the years plus the ability to build on that knowledge. After all, they figured out how to get Internet access through their mobile phone (and I confirmed through another source that it’s a whopping $3 per MONTH for plenty of data). So now I’m teaching kids how to be teachers. Man, I wish I had paid attention better in class. I was never a great student and the prospect of teaching kids how to teach is daunting for me. But this is Cambodia, and there’s a great need for leaders and teachers. I’m not going to let my own reservations stop me from seizing this opportunity.

Another example caught my eye on the news. Oh, what a pleasure it is to get news here. I can choose from Deutsche Welle out of Germany, BBC, Al-Jazerra (which is easily BBC quality), News Asia from Australia, or CNN International (which is far from the regular CNN). Most of these ran stories on the current ASEAN summit with Hillary Clinton attending. I then heard that she was coming to Siem Reap and thought there might be more to that story. After a bit of Googling, I found the “COMMITMENT TO CONNECTIVITY | US - ASEAN Business Forum” happening this Friday, where she’s a keynote speaker. There are quite a few good sessions happening and I’m betting I can gain a few more connections from the event: http://www.regonline.com/builder/site/tab2.aspx?EventID=1112855. Again I took the initiative and found out that registration is a whopping $65. Are you kidding me?!? It looks like I need to check the dress code because I'm booked.

Whenever you run into a problem, don’t shy away from it. You might just find yourself discovering new and unusual ways to solve it. Or… you could end up at a business forum in southeast Asia with a wide variety of foreign dignitaries and the US Secretary of State.

Theft at the School

I was honestly surprised it took this long. In the 8 years I've been visiting Cambodia, this is the first time I ran into a situation where a PC was stolen. The Kessararam primary school had a break-in about two weeks ago. The thieves took the money box and a computer. They estimate there was about $250 in the box. That's close to the value of the PC too, so a net loss of $500. I could tell the staff were devastated and they were truly concerned that I might be mad at them. I was disappointed of course, but the PC donation is not a one time thing. The whole reason I come back and check on the equipment is to ensure long-term and reliable access to computers. I was actually more worried about the cash. That's money used to help the poorest students in the school to afford tuition.


The staff already had construction workers adding metal bars to the windows and doors to reinforce them. Apparently this was not the first robbery, but it was the most expensive loss. Tomorrow I'll pick up another PC, and I just happen to have a donation from the United Methodist Women at the Hutto Discovery UMC that is pretty close to the cash value they lost. Now I need to do a little research on video surveillance and alarm systems. If I can find a reasonably priced solution we might help prevent future problems.


I asked if they considered putting up a reward poster for information. I think I might have slightly crossed a cultural boundary there. They weren't horrified, but I got a feeling that they were surprised by that strategy. Mony (my driver today) said "Perhaps that is something they do in your country... but not here". Message received! 


Last, here's a call to the few readers of this blog for a way you can help. I'm looking for resources on how to teach people to be teachers. Something like an "Introduction to Teaching" or a "Teachers Handbook" would be good. It should cover the basics of creating a lesson plan, using different teaching methods, and effectively keeping students engaged. That's been surprisingly hard to find online. Feel free to email me when you find something: Sam buildingcambodia.org.

Day 1 - Fact Finding

The first day in country is both the easiest and hardest at the same time. I don't have any classes set up or big projects in the works yet, I'm tired from the travel, and I just want to look around and see what has changed. This is the easy part: getting back in the swing of things. The hard part is planning and coordination. To make the trip effective, I need to gather information and make the trip as useful as possible in the short time. Combine this with the nagging feeling of just wanting to take a nap.


Here are some of the big changes:

• Night markets are popping up all over. I think the local people finally figured out a way to break into the tourist pocketbook. Many visitors stay with their tour group, so local business hasn't benefited like it could. A resurgent "pub street" helped bring them in and night markets cater to the temple visitors looking for a night on the town.
• The economy is reasonably good, but there's an unexpected gender gap appearing. Women have a much easier time finding jobs than men. This turns the traditional family structure upside down, but seems to be acceptable for the men I've talked to. In a town dominated by the hotel and hospitality sectors, the companies want to hire women.
• The kids in the village of Khnar Tmei found a way to get Internet access. This is the same church where I had to help fund a rewiring of their electric because it was such disrepair. As you can see by the picture, it's through their cell phone. They even found a way to pick what wireless provider has the best data rate so they don't use all their money. The end result, they claim about $1 expense for a week's worth of teenager-level consumption. That's amazing!

Tomorrow will be the start of classes at Khnar Tmei for a couple of students I've had over the years. This time I'll help them learn to be teachers for the younger kids in the village. We'll put that craftiness to work!

Woah... that was the North Pole

Flying from Chicago to Seoul had an added benefit this trip. I was able to glimpse out at the North Pole in the distance. At least I thought it was the North Pole. That's what the map said. In my sleep deprived state I could have been looking at anything.


In the last couple of days there have been news stories about some type of affliction in Cambodia that is lethal to children under 7. About 65 kids have died in the last couple months from something undetermined. I know what the state of the hospital facilities look like, so diagnosing the cause is going to be especially hard for the people there. I didn't need another reminder that this part of the world is still in desperate need of infrastructure and support. Lets hope this mosquito net project is successful so we can expand on it!

Less than 12 hours to go

Let the mad dash begin! This is one of those moments where a checklist is a nice thing to have, but I normally only put the really important stuff on there. Passport, visas, etc...check. I'm definitely not going to forget about those true necessities. But do I have my sunglasses? Where is that one suitcase? 


Amid the chaos the kids are going through their normal nighttime routine. This mostly involves complaining about not wanting to take a bath or the injustice of not playing on the computer for 5 more minutes. Ah, First World problems. It ranks up there with the inhumanity of suffering through a 14 hour flight in a middle seat. 


Fear not, I was able to get an aisle at the last minute. The people around me won't have to endure my whining.

Think Big

I had a great conversation yesterday with Greg Mayer, a colleague at VMware. He's moving to Cambodia at the end of the month to spend a year supporting nonprofits and NGOs with his expertise in finance and accounting. It's inspiring to hear from people donating a significant amount of time and effort to making the country better. I'm also thrilled to hear that the company is supporting him in this adventure by letting him work remotely from Phnom Penh. 

On the mosquito nets front, I have confirmation on a minimum of 750 units to be shipped. I'll send out the check today! Thank you to the United Methodist Church in Hutto for covering the costs. 

Research is Often Better Local

Do you find it's still easier to drive to a store and poke around the merchandise or just pick up the phone and call someone? This feeling is amplified for me when the destination is on the other side of the globe. Finding a flight from Siem Reap to Phnom Penh isn't hard, but researching import duties is another thing. Sure, there are a few government websites explaining the basics, but those aren't detailed and I'm betting the experience on the ground will be much different.


This is also the lull before the travel that can be worse than sitting on the plane for 2 days. For example, on my list of to-dos is "Unclog the shower drain". Not exactly a trilling task.

Cambodia 2012!

Five Days. 


I'm only 5 days away from leaving for Cambodia. I normally have ample time for preparation and coordinating projects, but this year my career shifted to a new company. The new job is fantastic, but leaves little free time when combined with three active and great kids. 


Amid the chaos, I was able to arrange a couple exciting projects:

• Global Links provided another shipment of operating room suture for the Angkor Hospital for Children
• The Disease Control Technologies company, manufacturer of the Royal Sentry Mosquito Net, kindly donated hundreds of mosquito nets for shipment to Cambodia

In addition, we will move the Building Cambodia, Inc. administrative process forward to gain 501(c)(3) recognition. That's a lot for just over one week in the country.

Expect the daily updates to begin from here on out! And yes, my itinerary is correct. I will stop in Bangalore this year to do some work with colleagues in the India branch.