How a family trip to Cambodia inspired a new generation of leaders

As a CEO myself, I know firsthand how life can throw challenges at you. When our 14-year-old daughter, Steph, was denied a life-changing school trip to Cambodia to volunteer with disadvantaged rural families, we decided to embrace the opportunity and travelled to Cambodia as a family. Volunteering to teach English at a rural school in Siem Reap province, those two weeks changed the course of our lives, and the lives of thousands of rural Cambodian students and their families.

Making a life by what we give, not what we get 

We returned to volunteer in Cambodia several more times and in 2011 founded the Cambodia Rural Students Trust NGO (CRST), with the vision of educating future leaders.

CRST is a unique Non-Government Organisation (NGO) because it’s entirely led and managed by our students. Through formal education, extensive mentoring and the opportunities to gain hands-on practical skills, the students of CRST also lead and manage projects in areas as diverse as women’s empowerment, energy poverty, social inequity and environmental degradation, reaching thousands of beneficiaries annually.

Leadership is the opportunity to help others empower themselves 

We mentor our students that leadership is a set of responsibilities that anyone can learn, practise and own. At the core of genuine leadership are key concepts including vision, passion, compassion and commitment.

Barang is the son of subsistence farmers who survived the Khmer Rouge regime and the civil war in Cambodia, but never had the opportunity to complete their education. His older brother dropped out of school to help support the family, while Barang and his younger sister were sent to live with an aunt, in one of Siem Reap’s slum communities. He rode his old bicycle around town after school to collect plastic bottles and cans for recycling, to earn a meagre income to pay for his study supplies; each time he wanted to give-up, his father’s words rang in his head ‘Do you want to spend your life walking behind a ploughing cow? Please stay at school.’

Barang joined CRST in 2016 when he was in grade 10 and his life completely changed when we enrolled him at the best private high school in town. He graduated high school near the top of his class and commenced his bachelor degree in business and economics. While pursuing his degree, Barang received extensive mentoring and was provided opportunities to hold key roles in the student-led organisation, including the NGO’s Finance Manager, Senior Leadership Team member and the NGO’s Assistant Manager. He was mentored to develop life skills and professional business skills before graduating, so he was able to hit the ground running when he entered the “real-world”. He graduated with honours in 2022.

Where you start is not relevant; the steps you take will determine your journey 

Barang is now working with the United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization and his responsibilities include budgeting and financial accountability, procurement, logistics and contracts. As a team member of the UN, he is proud to be an International Civil Servant, serving world communities and being part of the solution to world-recognized challenges.

In 2024, still with the support of CRST, Barang graduated with his MBA from Paragon International University, one of Cambodia’s best universities. “I want to share something with you”, he told me recently, “In my family, for generations, no one has ever graduated from high school. Today, I stand here as the first person in my family’s history not only to have graduated from high school, but also to have earned bachelor and master degrees. CRST has changed my life, my family’s life and my community. I’m now so proud to be contributing back to Cambodia and to humanity.”

Everyone is someone; believe in them and support them until they believe in themselves and support themselves 

CRST is based on the three pillars of Education, Empowerment and Inspiration and we teach our students that as Cambodia’s future leaders, it’s their responsibility to use their education and extensive mentoring to uplift themselves and their communities. Our students embrace the challenge of transitioning from the rice fields to world-leading organisations, from fishing boats to boardrooms, and from restaurant jobs to representing government ministries. Their inspirational journeys empower them and their families from poverty to middle class in eight years, as they contribute to developing their nation.

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