Female Martial Arts Teachers

The Problem

Extreme Poverty, Huge Financial Responsibilities, Few Choices, Sexual Trauma, and Violence.

The Damage

Trauma, Broken Spirits, Total Dis-empowerment, Social Ostracism, and Lifelong Poverty.

The Solution

Safety, Comfort, Choices, Community, Empowerment, Enjoyment, Embodiment, and Employment.

Cambodian culture expects daughters to support their families. Imagine your young daughter with the responsibility to provide for your family's financial needs. Young women bravely shoulder the burden of family debts, medical bills and younger siblings' education in a society devastated by war and poverty. Many choose sex work or are forced into it. Either way, they will routinely endure violent clients, police abuse, and gang rape. In Cambodia, virginity defines a woman's primary value so when a woman leaves this work, she faces tremendous discrimination and greatly diminished chances to earn a living or marry and raise a family of her own.

Along the river in the quiet town of Kampot, Cambodia lies an oasis known as the Banteay Srey Project. It is a refuge for young women recovering from sexual trauma. At the project, they can cultivate a renewed sense of self and are also taught job and entrepreneurial skills, giving them better life-chances. We believe these young women deserve a better future; you can help us give them the support and skills that they need to achieve this better life.

A Safe Place for Cambodian Woman to Heal and Grow in a Nurturing Environment, and to Build a New Life The Banteay Srey Project is a women's vocational training centre, which operates a shelter as well as an on-site, women-only training spa in Kampot. Young women who choose to come to the centre are contacted through outreach work Banteay Srey Project personally conducts in towns and provinces surrounding Kampot.

Healing & Skills for a Better Life At the Banteay Srey Project, the trainees receive:

• Life skills instruction,
• Age-appropriate spa skills and business training,
• Exercises to strengthen personal boundaries and empowerment,
• Somatic therapy to help heal the severe physical dissociation caused by sexual trauma,
• Instruction in dance, yoga and meditation,
• English language lessons and computer training.

The initial training lasts two to four months, and the young women are then ready to work in the vocational spa. The spa operates as a business, which allows the girls to earn a training wage while gaining valuable job skills.

The women are supported to transition from the centre when they are ready. The Project provides financial backing and mentoring for small business collectives. Groups of trainees who have successfully completed the Project's program are encouraged to open their own businesses under the Banteay Srey Project's name and reputation.

Volunteering

We are looking for teachers of massage, yoga, dance, spa skills, martial arts, art therapy, first aid or other similar activities and skills. When evaluating what expertise you have to offer to the Banteay Srey Project, please keep in mind that the girls and women have come from extremely disadvantaged backgrounds and most of them will have at most a very low English proficiency. Activities such as counseling, even with a translator, will not be possible. Due to the girls' and women's background, the centre and spa are a women-only facility, and all staff and volunteers are female.

Volunteers typically commit a minimum of one month in Kampot to work at the project, plus whatever time is desired for personal exploration and recreation in Cambodia. Travel expenses to and from Cambodia are the responsibility of the volunteer; typically round-trip airline fares from North America are $1500. We recommend that volunteers plan to spend an initial period of at least one additional week upon their arrival in Phnom Penh, Cambodia to overcome jet lag, acclimate to the Cambodian climate and to visit must-see Cambodian tourist destinations such as Angkor.

Onsite accommodation and all meals at the project in Kampot are provided. Volunteer housing is a rustic Khmer-style private bungalow, separate from the main house. It consists of a room with double bed, mattress, mosquito net, bedside table and shelves, and bathroom with toilet and shower (though without hot water.) Linen and towels are provided. There is no air conditioning, only fans, in the bungalows and in the main house. You should expect typical daily temperatures in the 30sC/90sF with high humidity.

Both buildings have electricity and high speed wireless Internet. However, although the electricity and Internet services are extremely good for Cambodia, they are not always reliable. Drops in the Internet are common, as are power cuts which can last anywhere from a few minutes to a few hours.

Meals will be typical Khmer dishes, and vegetarian and vegan diets can be accommodated. However, due to the small size of our kitchen and the daily pressure of feeding up to a dozen people, it will not be possible for volunteers to cook separate meals for themselves.

Cambodia is a tropical country and apart from our pet cat you will also most likely encounter lizards, geckos, frogs, the odd snake, all manner of insects, including spiders, ants and, of course, mosquitoes.

Volunteers will receive two consecutive days off per week, not necessarily at weekends, and are encouraged to spend time away from the centre to relax and have fun. Expenses on days off are not covered, and we estimate that you will require at least $50 dollars per week for your off-site activities.

To volunteer and work at the Banteay Srey Project you need to be independent, self motivated and open to learning. An ability to accept that one's preconceptions and beliefs can be wrong is extremely important, as are empathy, compassion and a non-judgmental nature.

Working in Cambodia is often frustrating and challenging. Our girls and women come from terribly difficult circumstances. We can only promise that you'll be challenged everyday, have an opportunity to grow, and know you've made a life-changing contribution during your time at the Banteay Srey Project.