Teaching in the Developing World

> Do they harvest palm trees there for palm oil?

You know, the biggest barrier here is ignorance. People do not lack resources as much as ingenuity, motivation, and knowledge to process their resources.

The problem is due to may reasons, with past wars and conflict being only one. Present day greed and corruption is a major barrier holding the people back. The greed and corruption is a holdover and direct result of past wars.

My solution to the problem is to seek out and work with the progressive youths, and then to transform their minds. It is not so very difficult to do. As I teach my students: "Cambodia is not a poor country, rather they use their resources poorly."

It's not like we're dealing with a desert land, or an over populated nation. The land yeilds great natural bounty and the population is small enough to be easily managed. If their recent past history were written a bit differently, Cambodia had the potential to be a rich and prosperous nation today.

> dump the wood in rivers or something
> creates a major environmental problem.

Concerning uses of palm tree wood, of which there are many hwere, oil is likely the major by product. The fact is, there is room for development in almost every aspect of economy and production here. It simply takes commitment, focus, and leadership. Start up capital can also help.

This society is only recently beginning to figuring out what "pollution" is all about. Honestly, for the most part, the people are as innocent children who have recently escaped from a war zone. They are elated to be free, but still quite disoriented and bewildered.

What they need most of all are good teachers who will show them how to think right, and tap into their hidden talents and resources.