What is Areng and where is it? How to reach there? Is it beautiful like everyone said?

Will the next hydroelectric dam construct there? A home to many wildlife species?

A home of land leech too?

 

All these doubts were clear by “The collective young leadership camping for natural resource protection” from 21^st– 25^th September 2018 which was organized by Cambodia Youth Network (CYN). It was so impressive on how this camp had organized by several points. First is its uniqueness. It brings youth to a prone developmental area “Areng” where it is generally hard to reach and pay less attention from the mass of Cambodian people. This kind of educational camping to Areng has never been organized before. Second is deep connection. It connects youth to local people “Chong Ethnic Minority” living there through generations and also connects participants to the natural resources in Areng. Third, is inclusion. The learning theme was designed for the inclusive participation from youth to natural resources protection in diverse educational schemes such as organizing community, raising awareness from the potential natural resources, advocating on transparent EIA assessment, and jointly promoting Areng area.

The detail of my impression toward the beauty of Areng, Chong minority group, taken up knowledges from camping and perspective toward Areng development are in the below texts!

Are you excited hearing my journey to Areng Valley?

So, let’s start!!!

The beauty of Areng

It was around 10pm when our group arrived Chumnob village, Thmar Bong district, Koh Kong province. Along the way reaching there, we transferred from bus to tractors because of the muddy, narrow and slippery road condition. Travelling under the moon light, I felt so fresh surrounding by tall trees, hearing bird singing, seeing brightening moon above head, and dropping of rain over my skin. Though it was dark, I was sensually aware that I arrived the paradise on earth, Areng Valley.

In the next morning before starting the session, I woke up early just to witness my last night sense of paradise being called.

 

Wow, indeed stunning!

At 6am, it was less green because white fog covered the horizontal view. Till 7am, it was the perfect blending of white fog, golden sun, and green mountain. What’s a magic scenery?

 

 

So natural and lively!

I slowly closed my eyes and felt that “this is so peaceful, and my soul is well-connected with my surrounding”.

Within five days in Areng, I am so speechless on how this beauty supposed to describe as equal to my sight.

Let’s imagine this,

You rest in tent on the top of the mountain and in the deep forest, hearing the waterfall flowing and bird signing, the view at night lighting up by moonlight, in the morning, the cloud and sun just there in front of you when you open your tent, and the cool wind tenderly passed you!

How is this comparing to the stressful city life?

Refreshing?

Isn’t a place you keep wishing on your social media?

 

 

 

 

 

Areng People

More than nature, I fall in love with people. They are united, generous, helpful and so pure. They cooked and accompanied us during camping within their warm hospitalities. It is even more than five-star hotel because they put their hearts as the special recipes. Areng, covers more than 30,000 hectares of land but there are approximately 1500 families only living there. Their livelihood depends on catching fishes, growing crops, selling groceries, feeding animals, planting rice, collecting resin, and other forest-dependent activities.

 

 

 

 

Knowledges from camping

My experience at Areng is mind blowing and unforgettable. It comprises of people to people and people to nature relations. I’ve brought back friendship among participants and good memories with Chong people there. Surprisingly, we could establish a harmonized relation between participants as strangers to local people. I felt so easy talking to them and this was so different on how conversation could ever made with other ethnic groups. Second, I’ve embraced my soul with a responsibility and a sense to protect mother nature. After coming back, my heart and brain is locked with a responsibility to protect Areng valley in all means I could possibly do. Third is about bring back knowledge after camping. I have learned about the components of EIA and other relevant stakeholders’ roles, organizing community, and applying designing thinking skills to figure out the in-depth problems of other’s people. These knowledges are significant for my further careers on how to engage community at grassroot level.

 

 

 

My perspective toward Areng Community Development

I personally do not want to see how people and nature in Areng will potentially destroyed and lost their forest-dependent livelihood by corrupted assessments, and shortsighted decision making. The impact assessment should be responsive and transparent in answering both advantages and disadvantages of this areas before any initiative takes place. The hydroelectric dam building is quested to reassess with all the relevant consequences of deforestation, wildlife extinction, immigration and negative impact to local lives. The inconvenient fact is, this natural resource is non-renewable. Following general developing trend, energy is a core of growing industries in town. However, this development itself has a choice to select how the energy should be extracted for instance, less impacted area or choose alternative method in extracting the energy. This is how sustainable development should be done in practice with the compromising of current available resource and the future.

I intend to see this area developed into eco-tourism places because nature itself is very potential and beneficial. Community based development is encouraged to cut down the immigration number of local people, and create the harmonized profits earn from growing community business with the natural resource conservation. Since 2014, the number of tourism is increasing however, this number could be exceeded base on many factors. First, are the remaining resources at hand such as deep forest, accessible trekking, hiking, river, beautiful waterfalls, and home to many species animals etc. These are the most attractive tourist sites. Second are the need of small capitals to develop. This area is potential for tourist sites development and organizing for entertainment purposes such as zip lines installment, home stay, wildlife zoos, etc. Less costs but gain more revenues for entire Areng community. This is what we want to see from the responsive community development.

Once again, thank CYN for making this amazing camp happen and hope this will continue for following year!

Thank you 😊