What if we told you that you could help 52 at-risk Cambodian youth break the cycle of poverty and build meaningful futures? George Wright pays a visit to an innovative new project\u2014spearheaded by Friends-International and The Intrepid Foundation<\/a>\u2014that aims to do just that.<\/strong><\/p>\n This article was originally published on Adventure.com<\/a>. <\/em><\/p>\n In 2006, Ouch Sopheak found himself sleeping rough on the streets of Phnom Penh. He was 14 years old.<\/p>\n Orphaned after his mother and father had passed away when he was young, Ouch briefly moved back to the notorious\u00a0Stung Meanchey dumpsite<\/a>\u2014a landfill that people literally lived on\u2014in the Cambodian capital of Phnom Penh, where he was born. Despite lodging with relatives, he was soon forced to leave as the family couldn\u2019t afford to provide for him.<\/p>\n Fast forward to 2018, and I meet Ouch, now 25, in the leafy grounds of Phnom Penh\u2019s Romdeng restaurant. Not too long ago, he spent a stint living homeless just a stone\u2019s throw from here. \u201cWhen I left home, I stayed on the streets for two or three days, I was just walking around,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n Sadly, Ouch\u2019s story isn\u2019t uncommon in Cambodia. Child protection issues in the country are rife, with an estimated 4,086 homeless children under the age of 18 across the country, and even more living in areas and circumstances that make it impossible for outreach workers to find them,\u00a0according to a 2017 report<\/a>. The mean age of these children was a little under eight years old. Another report estimates\u00a0around 35,000 children\u00a0live in residential care.<\/p>\n But for Ouch, things are different now. At a loss for what to do after spending days foraging for food, he was struck by some luck that would change the course of his life forever. \u201cI met someone who told me there was an organization that would be able to help me,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n This \u201csomeone\u201d\u2014a perfect stranger to Ouch\u2014 sent the boy to\u00a0Mith Samlanh<\/a>\u00a0(which means \u2018Close Friends\u2019 in Khmer), a project started by\u00a0Friends-In<\/a>ternational<\/a>\u00a0in Cambodia. It seeks to improve the lives of street-living and working children through vocational training at two of its social enterprise restaurants,\u00a0Romdeng<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0Friends the Restaurant<\/a>.<\/p>\n Ouch enrolled and soon learned the basics of food hygiene and preparation, and was later taught how to run front-of-house. Today, 12 years after finding himself on the streets, he\u2019s the assistant manager at\u00a0Romdeng<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cIt was unbelievable, I got to do things I only dreamed about,\u201d beams Ouch. \u201cOn top of helping the restaurant and helping the children, I can show them my experience, what I\u2019ve been through, and the things I\u2019ve learned.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n With aromatic smells emanating from the kitchen to the left of us, Ouch, who speaks with a quiet confidence, is most animated when discussing food\u2014particularly how he perfected some of Cambodia\u2019s best-loved dishes. His favorite? Fish amok, a fragrant, creamy curry steam-cooked in a banana leaf.<\/p>\n Upon graduating from the program, Ouch began teaching other youngsters who came through Mith Samlanh, many of whom had been sleeping rough, just as he had. From his time in the streets to teaching at Mith Samlanh, Ouch has come a long way. \u201cIt was unbelievable, I got to do things I only dreamed about,\u201d he beams. \u201cOn top of helping the restaurant and helping the children, I can show them my experience, what I\u2019ve been through, and the things I\u2019ve learned.\u201d<\/p>\n Still, Ouch is realistic, and he has no qualms explaining to the children that things aren\u2019t always going to be easy. \u201cI tell them that life is hard, life is tough,\u201d he says sagely. \u201cI explain to them how to get by on their own and learn to be more patient because I was once there\u2014having nothing, not being able to speak English\u2014but now I\u2019m here, and they can do it too.\u201d<\/p>\n Christine Ege, a project coordinator at Friends-International, arrives at\u00a0Friends the Restaurant<\/a>\u00a0as dozens of chefs and waiters prep for Tuesday lunch. Some of the youngsters here were once sleeping rough on the surrounding streets, just like Ouch.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s for people who want to work in the hospitality industry but might not have the skills or know where to start,\u201d explains Christine about the philosophy behind Mith Samlanh, as the hum of pneumatic drills rattle in the background. \u201cThe goal is to help people develop skills and an income, and then help place them in stable employment.\u201d<\/p>\n While pneumatic drills are a familiar racket in Phnom Penh, these particular drills are working towards a very specific goal: They\u2019re helping to build the next project by Friends-International Cambodia.<\/p>\n The Futures Factory Project<\/a>, as it will be known, will aim to provide a safe, welcoming environment in which to mentor, train and upskill at-risk youth in a range of areas, with a view to helping them find meaningful employment. It\u2019s Mith Samlanh, 2.0.<\/p>\n \u201cWe want at-risk young Cambodians to have the opportunity to earn a living, to dramatically change their living standards, and for travelers to be able to visit, eat, drink and have a really meaningful experience.\u201d<\/p>\n Robyn Nixon<\/cite><\/p><\/blockquote>\n The \u2018factory\u2019, which is situated next to Friends the Restaurant, is still a building site on the day I visit. But come January 2019, it will be bustling with young Cambodians\u2014who\u2019ll be referred to the project by Friends-International\u2014testing out new ideas, learning new things, and gaining the confidence they need to take on the world of work.<\/p>\n Part of the Futures Factory Project will be\u00a0supported by The Intrepid Foundation<\/a>\u2014the charitable arm of adventure travel company, Intrepid\u2014by way of a $100,000 grant. The foundation has supported Friends-International Cambodia since 2002 and donors have contributed some $200,000 to help fund initiatives, like Mith Samlanh, along the way.<\/p>\n Last year, those donors helped turn 47 young Cambodians into cooks, motorbike mechanics and beauticians. In 2019, The Intrepid Foundation and Friends-International want to double that figure.<\/p>\n With a focus on cooking training and cocktail experiences, the Futures Factory Project will also welcome tourists to come along and eat food prepared by trainees, learn more about the issues facing young Cambodians, and gain a unique insight into a working social enterprise. <\/p>\n \u201cThe Futures Factory Project will help 52 at-risk young Cambodians find employment in the hospitality sector over the next two years,\u201d says Robyn Nixon, general manager of The Intrepid Foundation. \u201cWe want them to have the opportunity to earn a living, to dramatically change their living standards, and for travelers to be able to visit, eat, drink and have a really meaningful experience.\u201d<\/p>\n For travelers visiting Cambodia, food and drink experiences won\u2019t get much more local, or authentic, than those on offer at the Futures Factory Project. It will afford visitors unique opportunities to sample cocktails made from fresh, local ingredients, and \u201cenjoy a range of incredible Cambodian dishes,\u201d says Nixon.<\/p>\n Back at Romdeng, Ouch explains how he will be involved in the Futures Factory Project as part of the \u2018Cooking Experience\u2019 program, which will teach both local kids and travelers how to cook traditional Cambodian fare. \u201cWe called it \u2018Cooking Experience\u2019 rather than \u2018Cooking Class\u2019,\u201d he says. \u201cWith cooking classes, you only come and cook, but we want visitors to understand our local markets and the source of Cambodian food.\u201d<\/p>\n Looking to the future, Ouch says he wants to one day open his own caf\u00e9 to sell cakes and pastries. And after working himself up from the streets of Phnom Penh in little over a decade, he has no reason to doubt himself. <\/p>\n \u201cWithout meeting the person who introduced me to Mith Samlanh, I don\u2019t even know what would have happened to me,\u201d he ponders. \u201cI really can\u2019t imagine. I would still probably have been living my life like that.\u201d <\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/06\/Friends-International-Cambodia-Intrepid-Foundation-2.jpg\")
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