A promise made
in a rice field.
What began with a conversation in a rice field outside Siem Reap became a long-term commitment to education, opportunity and community development in Cambodia. Over the years, that commitment has brought together communities, educators, businesses and supporters to build practical learning opportunities and create pathways that have changed many lives.
I feel deep gratitude every time I see a child discover their own potential. When their growth sparks new possibilities for their families and communities, it completes a perfect circle, reminding me why this work matters.
Jamie ChristophersonFounder, EDGE WorldwideFrom Phum Ou, Across Cambodia
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A promise made in a rice field.
EDGE Worldwide’s story in Cambodia grew from direct partnership with communities, educators and schools, and from a shared belief in what education could make possible.
Early relationships built a deeper understanding of the educational challenges facing many families, and of the ambition and capability already present locally.
A defining moment came when Jamie Christopherson, supporting another school where Sarath Proeun taught, heard Sarath describe his ambition to create better educational opportunities for children in his own community at Phum Ou, outside Siem Reap.
That conversation in a rice field began a long-standing commitment to education, opportunity and community development in Cambodia.
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Phum Ou Community School
From a rice field to a centre of learning.
The vision for Phum Ou quickly moved into action.
Teaching began with around 25 students in converted cow sheds while a purpose-built school was planned.
Jamie and EDGE Worldwide built international support, secured funding and brought together the relationships needed to make the school possible, working closely with Sarath, community leaders, families, educators, local schools and nearby monasteries.
Together this enabled EDGE to design, fund, construct and develop the Phum Ou Community School & Vocational Training Centre from the ground up.
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Growth at Phum Ou
Phum Ou developed into one of EDGE Worldwide’s most significant educational initiatives.
At its peak around 250 learners took part at one time, while conservatively more than 500–600 children, plus adults and monks, accessed education and training over the life of the project.
Beyond English classes it provided cross-curricular language learning that complemented local schooling, plus literacy, library and book-borrowing access, digital and IT skills, and vocational training.
It created local teaching jobs, supported teachers through training and mentoring, guided students, developed curriculum, and engaged with schools, monasteries, temples, families and village leaders.
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Corporate Social Responsibility in Action
The development of Phum Ou was made possible through significant Corporate Social Responsibility partnerships with organisations including XL Catlin and Lendlease. Their support was primarily financial, with additional staff engagement, volunteering and professional input.
EDGE remained responsible for managing and delivering the work locally. These relationships demonstrated how corporate support could translate directly into meaningful educational opportunity.
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Leadership and Thinking Evolve: Hilde Marie joins as Executive Director
As EDGE’s work developed, so did its leadership and understanding of education.
Hilde Marie Kvaløsæter became involved while Phum Ou was operating, contributing to its operations and later taking a formal leadership role.
Her experience in pedagogy, mentoring, pastoral care, positive psychology and human development broadened EDGE’s work beyond educational access, strengthening its focus on wellbeing, personal development and individual capability.
Today Jamie Christopherson and Hilde Marie Kvaløsæter serve together as Executive Directors, with Jamie remaining the organisation’s founder.
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Creating Pathways Beyond the Classroom
EDGE’s work increasingly showed that access to education is influenced by much more than what happens inside a classroom.
Our support has included individual educational advancement programs, mentoring and university scholarships for promising students.
It has also meant responding to practical barriers to attendance.
EDGE has donated bicycles to students who faced difficulty travelling to school, and supported repairs to roads affected by seasonal flooding where access had become difficult or impossible.
Sometimes strengthening education means providing teaching. Sometimes it means making sure a student can physically reach the classroom.
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Keeping Students in Education
Economic pressure remains a major barrier for some families.
EDGE has supported families in financial difficulty where young people might otherwise have been withdrawn from school in their teenage years to contribute to agricultural work or household income.
Our aim is to help create conditions in which young people stay engaged with education while families navigate those pressures. This work has also contributed to a broader change we have witnessed: stronger community understanding of the long-term value of education.
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Strengthening Teachers and Local Capability
Teachers remain central to meaningful educational progress.
EDGE has provided regular professional development, mentoring and practical support for educators, helping strengthen teaching practice, confidence and professional capability.
One of the most significant outcomes has been seeing former students progress through their own education and later return as teachers themselves.
Students becoming educators within their own communities represents something particularly important to EDGE: education creating opportunity that is then shared with others.
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Kep Gardens and Southern Cambodia
EDGE Worldwide has developed an ongoing relationship with Kep Gardens, an established Cambodian community education organisation.
Our involvement has included financial and practical support, educational development and broader assistance according to needs identified with those closest to the work.
EDGE continues to work with key stakeholders to strengthen the quality of education and explore opportunities for pastoral care, student wellbeing and community support.
This relationship reflects an important part of EDGE’s philosophy:
Meaningful impact does not always require creating something new. There is considerable value in recognising strong local work and helping it become stronger.
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From Phum Ou, Across Cambodia
The work that began in one community has developed into a much broader understanding of how EDGE Worldwide can contribute.
Today our work spans education, mentoring, teacher development, scholarships, student wellbeing, educational access, community support and collaboration with established organisations.
The form of that support can change according to the situation.
Our purpose remains constant: creating opportunities for people and communities to grow through education, and to feel the empowerment it brings.
What impact looks like in people’s lives.
Across EDGE Worldwide’s work, we have seen:
- students develop English, literacy and digital skills
- hundreds of young people progress into further education and employment
- former students have become teachers
- teachers strengthen their professional capability
- students remain in education despite significant financial pressures
- local people gain employment through educational programs
- community members develop vocational and professional skills
- families become more engaged with education
- individuals access opportunities that may otherwise have been unavailable to them
- stronger local capability develops within communities
These outcomes matter because they represent more than participation in a program. They represent people gaining greater choice over what comes next.
Experience continues to shape how we work.
Relationships matter.
Meaningful work begins with trust and genuine connection with the people involved.
Education creates possibility.
Its value extends beyond academic achievement into confidence, employment, independence and future opportunity.
Local capability matters.
The strongest work strengthens people and communities to continue progressing beyond EDGE’s direct involvement.
Practical barriers matter.
Sometimes creating educational opportunity means building a school. At other times it means training a teacher, funding a scholarship, providing a bicycle, repairing a road or helping a family keep their child in education.
Learning never stops.
More than fifteen years of work in Cambodia has given EDGE substantial experience, but it has also reinforced the importance of continuing to listen, evaluate and adapt.
Working alongside others goes further.
Recognising strong local work and helping it become stronger often achieves more than starting something new.
Our legacy informs what comes next.
EDGE Worldwide’s future will not be defined by a single program or model.
We will continue working with schools, educators, community organisations and individuals; supporting educational pathways; strengthening teachers and local capability; addressing barriers to education; and developing opportunities that respond to the realities of the communities involved.
Our experience is also informing the development of the Education & Pastoral Care Hub initiative.
The concept explores how a flexible space located within a community or educational setting could bring together language and digital learning, teacher development, mentoring, pastoral care, community activities and, where appropriate, access for visiting health professionals.
The Hub initiative represents one important direction for EDGE, bringing together many of the lessons and areas of support that have developed throughout our history, while remaining flexible enough to respond to local needs.
From Phum Ou to the work continuing across Cambodia today, one principle remains at the centre of EDGE Worldwide:
Education for Growth, Empowerment and Opportunity.
Learn About the Hub Initiative