First impressions of JWOC

Standing in the visa line in Siem Reap after arriving in a swathe of sunshine and tourism, I knew Cambodia was going to be very different from my previous country of residence, Bangladesh. Having traveled through Cambodia before, I knew a little about the country’s history and culture; and as the nostalgia pulsed through my veins in the immigration queue and my passport was being stamped, I was very much ready to make Siem Reap my home and take on a new challenge.

I was excited.

Let me provide some context: Siem Reap is a town built upon tourism. The temple complex of Angkor Wat draws in visitors from around the world to come and view its spectacle. This is great for the local economy, bringing in what I imagine is millions of dollars, which in turn should have a positive impact on the socio-economic development of those living in and around it. However, given that Cambodia is a developing country, we know that is not always the case.

Those who have visited Siem Reap know that as well as the five-star hotels and resorts, there is still visible poverty and inequality amongst many Cambodians who are looking to benefit from a portion of the millions available.

This is where Journeys Within Our Community (JWOC) comes in, providing a range of services and programs in and around Siem Reap, to make sure local residents can improve their quality of life. Through innovative programs based in the heart of the community (Scholarships, Free Classes and Community Support), JWOC has managed to create a rapport and understanding within the community beyond any traditional NGO.

Knowing this, I was still quite nervous on my first day (as most of us are); however, after walking into the community center for the first time, all my nervousness quickly subsided. Students were playing tag. What could be more natural? Phew!

This initial experience perfectly sums up JWOC and the aura that exists here – the enthusiasm and professionalism of the scholarship students and staff we have is exemplary and clear to see by all involved. I was lucky enough to arrive in Cambodia just in time to ride with the students on the 30 km “Race 4 Change” Angkor Bike Ride and to then celebrate their achievements at the graduation party. I have since experienced their fieldwork in villages, their classroom teaching and witnessed JWOC’s ability to transfer such enthusiasm and work ethos into the programs.

You may walk into JWOC with a frown, but nobody walks out with one!

From the first day at JWOC up until now I have found myself engaged in every aspect of an exciting and vibrant organization filled with youth enthusiasm and spirit; and, with the 10th anniversary of the organization coming up next year, a celebratory mood.

As the Communications and Fundraising manager, I have the responsibility of highlighting and showcasing JWOC in the best way possible, both outside and inside our walls. And as far as I can tell, JWOC is already doing this for me!

So as the nostalgia in my veins runs out, I find it being replaced with optimism and anticipation for the coming months.

My experience at the Cambodia Science and Engineering Festival by Nesa

Nesa Khoun is our Child development coordinator and librarian, she is also a Science teacher at JWOC.

Did you know that almost everything around us is the result of Science? People live with science everyday but they just never notice about what science is. Through this I have had a great chance to go to Phnom Penh to join the Festival about Science and Engineering. It was great because this was the first time for Cambodia to hold this big event and there were around thousand people joining. It was held for three days from the 12th to the 14th of March 2015.  I was so lucky that I was also one of those people who was not only watching but also showing about the kind of science material to everyone. And now I would love to share some feelings and describe about who I have met and what I did.

            The place where the event held was in Royal University Phnom Penh. It was a big and famous university and not so far from the hotel where we stayed. It was suppose to take just 15 minutes to arrive there but because the traffic was so busy it took a bit longer. When I talked about this, it reminded me about the first morning of the event. Because we thought that we just spent around fifteen minutes to go to the event so we left the hotel at 8:30am as the event would start at 9am. Unfortunately, the traffic was so bad. The roads were so crowded and busy. Do you know what we did? We decided to walk to the festival. I loved it so much; this was the first highlight of the day. It was great as we arrived there not too late.

            At the event there were many people. I was so glad because when we arrived and were preparing the experiments at the booth many people came and asked about what we were doing. There were 5 of us who worked in shifts on the booth. We were divided into two groups and we rotated every hour and a half. This was a great idea because we could have time to walk around to get to know people and see what they were doing. I thought all the other projects were so interesting. Some of the other booths were demonstrating about air pollution and others showed about how to make electricity from lemons, how to make the rocket fly, how to make a bouncy ball and so on. One booth in particular caught my interest. They were from VSO. They made science books by combining experiments from grade 7 to grade 9 and moreover there was a great teacher at the booth to show about science experiment. He showed us about an illusion with candles and the difference between strong acids and weak acids.

At our booth we had three projects to show. First, it was about the Lego Kits activity, second about how to see the difference between animal cells and plant cells through the microscope and third about the density of water. What we did was great because there were many people interested in Lego kits and the microscope. Most of them have never seen it before. I was glad because we showed them new things and let them to try the new things that they have never known.

What is more, to make participants more interested they had invited high ranking officers to come and open the festival. And to create some fun they had some competition games and invited a famous singer to sing in the event. Her name is Laura Mam. There was a show of breaking dance as well. I really like it. Both dancers danced so well with the action of the robot.  

            Finally, I would love to say that this was a great opportunity for me to learn something new. It is also called Science as Science is the way of learning something new around us and it is very important for each life. Furthermore, it helps me more in teaching science at JWOC by giving me new and good ideas in teaching science. 

10 Years of Journeys Within

To celebrate 10 years of Journeys Within Tour Company, Andrea Ross talks about an incredible journey. A journey that not only changed her life but has changed the lives of thousands of members of our community.  

The truth is that our 10 year anniversary was last year…but we were busy and I just couldn’t quite get around to celebrating it, I think it was because deep down I wanted to wait and really complete 10 years! It wasn’t okay to say we’d gotten to the 10th year, in typical Journeys Within fashion we had to go above and beyond and excel in that 10th year too!! To highlight just that, in the last week I’ve received emails from guests describing their recent trips as “epic”, “once-in-a-lifetime” and “life-changing”. Our tenth year was truly the icing on our anniversary cake!

When Brandon and I started Journeys Within Tour Company 10/11 years ago in Cambodia neither of us realized where it would go and the lives it would change. When I talk about exceptional experiences I’m not just talking about our guests…I’m talking about the Journeys Within team as well. I feel so lucky to have a team that truly loves what they do and I think we are able to really appreciate how exceptional Southeast Asia is. Because we truly value it we’re able to create these experiences for guests that just go above the norm and create unforgettable trips. On a personal level, the last 10 years has been an exceptional experience for me!

When I realized that I shouldn’t just let our anniversary fade into the Angkor Wat sunset I looked online to see what people did for their 10-year-anniversary. Turns out, people have parties…they throw big events and they have a very good time. I thought about doing this, as I do like a good party, but my team is spread across 6 countries and getting them all together seemed unlikely. I will be taking the kids to Southeast Asia in February and in each country I’ll celebrate with my Journeys Within Family, but I needed something bigger, something that defined Journeys Within. I didn’t have to look far.

Shortly after founding Journeys Within Tour Company we founded Journeys Within Our Community (JWOC), a non-profit that has a mission of empowering local communities through health and education and inspiring change. When we founded JWOC we again had no idea of the impact it would have. Today JWOC has given access to clean water to thousands of villagers, we’ve provided education for hundreds of students at our school in Siem Reap, we’ve given out microloans to those living below the poverty line and we’ve sent over 200 students to university. And when I say JWOC has done this, I mean WE have done this — it turns out that the most exceptional experiences are not necessarily helicopter rides and private pampering (though those are great too!), but actually the experiences you take home with you are the ones where you make a difference in someone else’s life. When our guests saw the needs in the countries they were visiting they wanted to make a difference and they have! Our donors are the travelers — people that not only want to see and understand these countries, but also make a positive impact on the people living here. The idea of Active Philanthropy through travel has made measurable impacts in the communities that we work in. Our teams both at Journeys Within Tour Company and at JWOC have made these contributions count, every penny of them! In return our guests have not only seen the highlights of Southeast Asia, but they’ve made a difference in the lives of the local people that inspire us to travel. The experience has gone beyond Angkor Wat and Wat Phou and the Grand Palace, and into the villages and communities.

This to me is what the last 10 years has been about. Making travel bigger than just going somewhere new. So to celebrate 10 years of exceptional experiences Journeys Within is donating $10,000 dollars to JWOC. This donation will go towards the projects we founded and believe in and will help JWOC continue to change lives. This donation adds onto the thousands of dollars given throughout the course of the year by our guests who visit our schools and see our projects, as well as the donations that come in from our amazing travelers after they come home and want to continue making a difference!

I am so proud that what we founded 10 years ago has become something so powerful. I am so thankful to have a team that strives to give our guests the best experience possible every single day and I’m so excited to see what will happen in the next 10 years. On the phone today, I was speaking with a guest about his trip and he couldn’t say enough nice things, finally he said, “for a small company with so much heart, you really have the service to back it up.” And that, well that was all I needed.

A year in Pictures

It has been such an incredible year at Journeys Within Our Community (JWOC) and we would like to share some of our most beautiful photographs with you. So much happens at JWOC in one year and we have done our best to capture the smiles and hard work that happens in the community.

Happy Holidays from everyone here at JWOC

The beauty behind buzzwords

Alexandra Plummer, the Managing Director of JWOC explains the buzzwords that the sector uses through JWOC's current projects.


I can talk about JWOC for hours; from the unprecedented commitment of our staff and scholarship students and the positive change we make in the communities we serve to the awe-inspiring support we receive from our donors. This got me thinking about the language I use to talk about JWOC to friends, family, staff and potential donors. I must admit that more often than not I find myself adopting “NGOspeak” – words and acronyms that are familiar to those who work in my field. The fast moving development world is inundated by “buzz” words. These are not to be entirely dismissed; they play an important role in framing an organization’s processes and are essentially used as a summary of their means for implementation. Beyond that, they can also act as key components in securing funds. But for those not living and breathing development work, these words can leave you a little high and dry. Words like empowerment, capacity-building, resilience, governance, civil society can be ambiguous, meaning different things depending on where you stand.

Below I have highlighted what some of these terms mean to me in relation to the work we do at JWOC. Hopefully looking through my lens will give you a better understanding of what JWOC does and why.

1. Capacity Building.

Simply put, I would say that Capacity Building is an investment. It is the investment in activities that can enable an organization to not just reach its aim but sustain itself over time. For this reason I would say it is an integral part of JWOC’s philosophy. Our 5 programs exist to strengthen; they make our staff, scholarship students, the local community and even our supporters and collaborators stronger and more able to face challenges. Projects like our new and exciting Technology Refurbishment expand what is possible for those involved. Learning how to better use technology in a learning environment equips staff and students with the tools to keep up in a technologically driven world. It may be a simple task for Information Technology tools to be delivered to the field, but it takes skills to use them to their full potential - a capacity that must be built from the ground up. Team for Tech and JWOC’s collaboration with the generous support of The Rotary Club of Sacramento helps build these skills to turn unemployed youth into future professionals in Cambodia. (Read more about Team4Tech here)

2. Resilience

The training that JWOC’s Community, Liaison and Assistance program runs is a prime example of resilience in practice. Recently JWOC ran training on practical health and hygiene to reduce health risks during the floods, which are a yearly occurrence. The knowledge that the floods come each year isn’t enough to secure prevention measures. In the squatters villages surrounding JWOC the root causes of flooding cannot be alleviated -- the village has poor irrigation systems, and uneven land. Since villagers do not own the rights to build on the land, the root-cause solutions will be a long time in coming. .Because of this, the chance of a sustainable solution to the flooding is slim.

Resilience means preparing as much as possible to come up against these odds. Working with what we have and what we cannot change, we build on what we can and reduce the risks to those who are vulnerable as much as possible.

3. Self reliance

At least once a week you will hear me highlight the problems that come with giving handouts. Handouts relieve problems temporarily, and are sometimes tempting when faced with dire situations (or necessary in an emergency), but it in the long run it creates dependency on others who are in a position of power.

We don't want to contribute to dependency driven behavior; instead we aim to enable communities to take responsibilities for their own future. How do you motivate a low educated community with poor health standards to improve their living situation? It takes perseverance and a lot of time to alter behavior. JWOC believes that by building strong relationships with local communities, by linking them to access to resources, and by offering training and facilitation, that over time these communities can become self-reliant. To us this means building ability to make informed decisions without external influence.

4. Empowerment

JWOC’s Microfinance initiative (MFI) is a prime example of empowerment in action. JWOC’s MFI increases women’s access to credit to invest in businesses that they own and operate themselves. JWOC’s borrowers have excellent repayment records, in spite of the daily hardships they face -- JWOC has a near 100% repayment rate. However, empowerment is not met by access to credit alone. JWOC operates a group loan system which enables women a space to share new ideas amongst other female participants; it also enables women to be the decision makers. JWOC’s borrowers also receive training on how to manage a budget which challenges existing social norms by empowering women in different ways.

I urge you to take the time to explore an organization's practice behind the trendy language and discover the beauty behind the buzz words. To find out more about all our programs please visit www.journeyswithinourcommunity.org

Microfinance - Training our Scholarship students

I am Sovann, the Microfinance Program Manager at JWOC, going to write about what is Microfinance at JWOC and its importance. So what is Microfinance?

“Microfinance” is the financial services for poor and low-income clients offered by different types of service providers in Cambodia. Moreover, JWOC’s Microfinance program was born to help small entrepreneurs access financial services and improve the income from their small businesses especially those unable to access loans from other institutions in Cambodia. As a part of this program we also offer courses to borrowers so they can gain knowledge of business plans, water filters, hygiene training and budget training.
It also provides potential knowledge to scholarship students for their future career because they all have to work closely with local community, this includes all types of borrowers. They also get training about all aspects of Microfinance: Loan assessment and credit valuation, bad debt solving and advertising techniques before they start working with JWOC MF program. They also get ongoing training from the MF Program Manager. Here are some students who are working in MF sector in Siem Reap.

Mengty, JWOC loan officer leader, is studying in year three in Finance and banking at BBU. Now he is working for YCP microfinance as an accountant. He got training in how to use E-Trust System which is similar to the system which is used by his company.

Heang, JWOC loan officer, is a third year student at BBU in Siem Reap. He is working for Piset organization as credit officer. He attended the training which was conducted by Sovann, MF manager from JWOC. From this cause it helped him to get a job as a credit officer. It also makes him easier to work with the community and borrowers. He knows how to do loan assessment, how to do advertising and solving the problems that he faces. 

Visoth, JWOC loan officer, is fourth year student in the field of IT at BBU in Siem Reap. But he is working as credit officer at AMK. Because he got the training from JWOC, he can work in the different field from his university major.

Therefore, Microfinance program at JWOC is very important for all JWOC scholarship students. It helps to improve the students career which fits to the field they are studying at school.

I would like to say thank you for spending time reading this blog. I am looking forward to writing more about something else next time.