Environment Cartoon for Cambodia

Fellow Peace Corps Volunteers here in Cambodia just finished this video in Khmer about reducing waste and improving the environment in Cambodia. Please share it around!

Garbage is a problem in Cambodia. A major problem — according to Peace Corps Cambodia surveys taken by a group of Kampong Cham and Takeo students.

These students highlighted a widespread and highly visible epidemic. Poor waste management means vast amounts of refuse — from plastic bags to syringes — contaminate the streets and countryside of Cambodia.

Enter Savin the magical water buffalo! This witty, two-horned, eco-conscious character teaches us that the way to a healthy world is through the three Rs: reducing, reusing and recycling. These three practices preserve our streets, countryside and waterways. Savin also teaches us to bury, not burn, our trash.

Savin was born in an educational cartoon created by Peace Corps Cambodia Volunteers. He made his debut at the first annual Kampot River Cleanup, and has since appeared at countless health fairs and environmental health workshops throughout Cambodia.

Battambang’s Phare Ponleu Selpak (Phare) recently gave Savin new life. In collaboration with an eclectic group of Cambodian youth recruited by Peace Corps Cambodia Volunteers, Phare’s 1000 Hands Visual Arts Studio turned Savin into the star of an animated musical adventure. Phare provides free arts training to disadvantaged youth, and 1000 Hands is staffed by current and former Phare students.

In the short educational health film, Savin meets four young eco-warriors on a soccer field clouded by smoke from a trash fire. Savin promptly blows out the fire and takes the four youth on an educational ride of their lives — over rivers and villages, through fruit stands and classrooms and into the hearts of viewers everywhere.

“Just three words: reduce, recycle, reuse. That is the message for everyone — not only for Cambodia, but for the world,” says Chariyasambath Chhen. Sambath, 20, choreographed the film’s dancing. “We all represent individual drops; together we can fill a glass and make a change.”