Steung Meanchey, a district of Phnom Penh, is a former garbage dump and home to thousands of the worlds most impoverished children and families. Cambodian Children's Fund (CCF) has supported the area for ten years by providing education, healthcare, food and nutrition, housing and valuable community services. We are now focused on raising funds to restore the community with productive green spaces/gardens providing food, education, empowerment and beauty amidst otherwise harsh living conditions.
Extreme poverty often goes hand-in-hand with other severe problems, and that is the case for Steung Meanchey's thousands of impoverished families. They live in squalor and suffer from malnutrition, chronic disease and lingering trauma resulting from the Pol Pot genocide. Many are afflicted by alcohol and drug abuse and domestic violence, and they have minimal access to basic human services. Their living conditions are harsh and their prospects are bleak: their quality-of-life is substandard.
The CCF Community Garden Project will create green spaces within CCF communities, satellite schools and live-in facilities--promoting healthy eating, self-sufficiency, "hands on" educational opportunities and enhancing day to day living environments for thousands of people. Community gardens will also provide a cost effective food source: families tending the gardens will consume the produce and the excess will be shared, or sold to provide a small self-sustainable income.
Quality-of-life for some of the world's most impoverished people will be greatly improved. Community gardens and green spaces in Steung Meanchey will increase CCF students' and community members' understanding and respect for fresh produce and a healthy diet; provide improved living spaces and environments at CCF facilities and around the Steung Meanchey community; and provide a sense of community spirit via garden work and tangible rewards.
