After research over the summer of 2008 by Michael Horton, ConCERT was launched officially in Siem Reap on the 12th November 2008, World Responsible Tourism Day.  From the start, he was lucky to be helped by many people, and with continued support from volunteers and friends, our work has grown and developed and now includes the following main areas:

We are a general point of information

The aim is to help people make informed choices about how to offer their support.  Our staff are pleased to share their Cambodian experiences with visitors and provide information about the wider issues in Cambodia.  They can give tips on how to provide the maximum amount of benefit from getting involved.  They can also give advice on some of the things it’s best not to do.

We raise awareness of local needs

Would be supporters are interested in a wide range of humanitarian topics. We have worked with a range of local projects over the years that cover many sectors including: education, agricultural development, vocational training, building, support for vulnerable people, health and hygiene, water supplies, environmental & biodiversity protection & education, recycling.
Every project is different and requires different types of help.

We help local businesses to connect with the community

Local businesses use ConCERT in different ways.  We talk to their customers who wish to help, we help them develop activities for customers, we answer general queries about projects/volunteering etc.  Click here for further information

We run a volunteer placement service to provide volunteers for projects in and around Siem Reap

We work with several overseas partners who run programmes for volunteers wishing to come to Cambodia.  We also have some people who apply to ConCERT directly.  Click here for details on our volunteer service

We run child protection workshops for volunteers coming to work with children

These also act as a very effective introduction to Cambodia they include cultural considerations, discussions on some of the situations people will encounter in and around Siem Reap, and a brief overview of Cambodia’s recent history.  Click here for details

We give talks to visiting groups and individuals on a range of topics about Cambodia

These are tailored to the individual group and can cover a wide range of topics such as history, culture, education, health services, volunteering, etc.

We run Treak Community Centre, our own project

This is a school and community centre about 4 kilometres from Siem Reap town

What we don’t do

We are not an NGO policeman:  We don’t control any project except Treak Community Centre

We don’t comment on any other projects either positively or negatively

We don’t pass on information given to us in confidence

We don’t tell Cambodian people what to do