Help fund Siem Reap's first Urban Library

I am looking to raise £5,000 pounds (~$6,800) to furnish Siem Reap's first urban library.

This cost includes 600 study guides, 525 books + a selection of great board games.

The PLF Story : “School is the Answer”

Our family (the Staffords) first met Ponheary Ly in July of 2007. Ponheary is a genocide survivor. Her efforts to reverse the devastating effects of the Pol Pot regime started small; recovery for Ponheary started 15 years ago with the support of one child to attend school and learn to read and write. But her vision was unwavering. With half of Cambodia’s population under the age of 21 & only 16% of rural children graduating from high school, Ponheary saw a powerful opportunity to drive change. Today, the PLF has sponsored over 2,800 students in almost 10 schools through rural Cambodia.

COVID-19 brought this monumental progress to a halt. In mid-2020, over 2 million students nationwide were unable to study with many schools shut down completely and limited access to Internet or materials. In the last 19 months, Cambodian students missed 17 months of school, with many returning to the fields instead to eke out a subsistence living. Not all hope, however, was lost. Through a herculean effort, the PLF established an e-learning program in early 2021. Several makeshift hubs were set up to broadcast classes, study guides were printed, study groups were formed & slowly a new normal settled in...

School doors are now slated to re-open in January. And while a return to the classroom is of course a welcome prospect, the thought of retiring e-learning feels wrong. The initiative has been incredibly formative, with students growing ever-comfortable & confident in self-directed learning & developing a level of digital literacy well beyond PLF’s expectations (remember — most don’t own phones, let alone have access to the internet!). The solution? In 2022, the PLF will be opening a Learning Center in Siem Reap. The space, serving over 300 students, will include a gigantic workshop space, a computer lab & a lending library.

The Ask: Help Me Fund This Lending Library!

The library will be the first urban offering of its kind — there are currently no libraries at these students’ schools and no public libraries in town. Apart from offering a selection of educational books, the library will also serve as the beating heart of the center: here, students will be able to sit/read together, connect with career counselors, sign up for workshops & engage in extracurricular activities (Book Club, Chess Club & Turing Tumble Club to name a few). In short, it will be life-changing for these students.

The smallest donation truly goes the longest way. We believe the next critical step to educate this nation goes far beyond just school, students need to be given the tools & resources outside the classroom to solidify their learning, build stronger digital fluency, feel inspired to collaborate & co-create with their peers & stay engaged in their studies, their career & beyond.

Thank you in advance for your support.