https://andyballmedia.com/tear-sheet daily 0.75 2024-08-23 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1724392585755-L76F58A3U97M43DUVDG0/23th+August+2024+-+Communities+fight+back+against+Phnom+Penh%E2%80%99s+vanishing+lakes+-+Hard+Stories.jpeg Tearsheets https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1693458073877-2F93CUB9CPCISX56ISO4/Fried+Noodle+Poet+Cambodia+South+China+Morning+Post+.jpg Tearsheets https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1693458080329-A3V9J3QF1OMNJA1L5ERY/Cambodia+poet+South+China+Morning+Post.jpg Tearsheets https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1691466201860-B4FRKG4DR04C297ZRNUQ/11th+July+2023+Forests+in+the+furance+Cambodia%27s+garment+sector+is+fueled+by+illegal+logging+-+Mongabay.png Tearsheets https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1686562664565-XBLL7YR4JL3CHXJK6QZ9/South+China+Morning+Post+hydropower+dams+in+Cambodia.png Tearsheets https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1686562655585-YCJU5QAA55LRQDM06Y12/South+China+Morning+Post+hydropower+dams+in+Cambodia+Stung+Treng.png Tearsheets https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1673835504110-IU5SOSJT34HS2J8ML9RB/13th%2BJanuary%2B2023%2BUpstream%2Bdams%2Bare%2Bdrowning%2BCambodia%25E2%2580%2599s%2Bprotected%2Bflooded%2Bforest%2B-%2BThe%2BThird%2BPole.jpg Tearsheets https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1673835448025-4C23FQ00BGXOX0Z3TZKU/14th+December+2022+In+the+Khmer+Rouge%27s+last+stronghold%2C+myths+from+the+Cambodian+genocide+still+reign+-+Coda+Story.png Tearsheets https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1628305767868-RWAWVCQ1GSCO862RFS5Q/New+York+Times+Theary+Leng+6th+August+2021.png Tearsheets https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1686562784111-PKNOPT9ND3GBEOA1OL2S/Theary+Seng+in+Cambodia+New+York+Times+International+sections.png Tearsheets https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1686562785368-42W9NHN35RWKLCS0NDFT/Theary+Seng+in+Cambodia+New+York+Times.png Tearsheets https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1664418349643-VXJTUAB8E0A5ZRP582EZ/A+woman+stands+at+a+riverbank+collapse+on+the+Mekong+river+in+Cambodia.png Tearsheets https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1673835434839-RJNSTY00AE7H4SPQIO0F/25th+October+2022+Fleets+of+Sand+Barges+Cross+Border+as+Exports+Quietly+Restarted+-+VOD.png Tearsheets https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1673835444308-LPU74N1IUGM49XIV6IG7/7th+October+2022+Cambodia%E2%80%99s+elites+swallow+up+Phnom+Penh%E2%80%99s+lakes%2C+leaving+the+poor+marooned+-+Mongabay+.png Tearsheets https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1653719583005-DPMEBJ6LBAXY774WPMVW/6th+April+2022+Behind+the+Scaffolding+-+New+Naratif.png Tearsheets https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1653719495883-O0NIXQFEZT65XRD8LXV7/26th+May+2022+Cement+Mine+Prey+Lang+Wildlife+Sanctuary+-+Mongabay.png Tearsheets https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1648365299088-5KAUITQOZ6LQ3V3J5JHU/27+March+2022+-+China+bananas+in+Cambodia+-+SCMP+.png Tearsheets https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1653719483326-OCQTA7LBXDS126WPWM9F/6th+April+2022+Behind+the+Scaffolding+-+VOD.png Tearsheets https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1637908317723-P4LBKYORYYKHLQAH8MPU/25th+November+2021+-+Nikkei+Asia+-+Unbowed+by+prison%2C+young+Cambodian+actvists+vow+to+fight+on.png Tearsheets https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1634200725225-YOXXNPYB62L2XZUOWU3N/Mongabay+Article+Koh+Kong.png Tearsheets https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1628306724714-0BQ68T77YFJBGTAWM5NQ/Human+Rights+Watch+6th+May+2021.png Tearsheets https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1627880181877-T92RK3L6RGZPVUJVDQYR/24+August+2020+Can+Cambodia+Eradicate+the+World%E2%80%99s+Most+Fatal+Disease_+-+New+Naratif.png Tearsheets https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1627880151793-F1B6P1UP1SPOH7NG1W0Z/29+July+2021+The+Interpreter+-+Bad+news+for+Vietnam%27s+Mekong+Delta+.jpg Tearsheets - The Interpreter https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1628318322973-9UH9G6YOF3K2JW1YGFX3/DPA+Andy+Ball.png Tearsheets https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1627880243849-96ZI65N35EH4VP9Z3F74/8th+Feb+2021+New+Naratif+Illegal+electrical+fishing.png Tearsheets https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1627880438290-GU7S0YDRCGNUVMR2PC63/IFEX+-+Lockdown+PP+6th+May+2021.png Tearsheets https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1627880306574-VOHEC6T9AJOAVCZYCCNU/8th+June+HRW+-+Cambodia+Lockdowns+Hit+Low-Income+Families+Hard.png Tearsheets https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1627880384756-JO0PYA4A783W26GKUBPA/Khun+Sea%2C+Canopy+VOD%2C+17+June+2021+-+Sands%2C+Others+Gain+in+Gov%E2%80%99t+Land+and+Water+Grants.png Tearsheets https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1664418374646-PCE4AMMLE9HGOSZLFBZ9/Forest+is+clear+cut+at+Phnom+Tamao+Forest+in+Phnom+Penh+Cambodia.png Tearsheets https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1627880352811-I7YAG2PM32ESOP5XU6CO/iRozHlas+Cambodia+Coronavirus+13+May+2021.png Tearsheets https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1628306757557-MWQJDVGTF69BS1WFQOAB/Amnesty+International+-+COVID-19+-+30th+April.png Tearsheets https://andyballmedia.com/ngo daily 0.75 2024-08-12 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1664257165554-G6NLUFMG21NMAK97A9G1/A+community+member+in+Koh+Kong+Province%2C+Cambodia%2C+goes+through+photographs+from+a+land+dispute+with+a+tycoon.jpg NGOs - Make it stand out Koh Kong Province (Cambodia). Teng Koa, 61, shows photos of the communities' protests against the companies involved in the sugar cane plantations. He points to a photo of a community member whose foot was injured by a Government Military Police. Teng Koa was actively involved in leading protests of the community who protested on more than 50 occasions. The photographer, Ann Enn, was an active community member in the protests. His body was found in a sack on the side of a road in Koh Kong in 2006, aged 30 at the time of his death. It's suspected that he was murdered by someone working for one of the companies involved in the sugar cane plantations. © Andy Ball/Panos Pictures/Global Witness https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/5d7928f3-a975-472f-9f5d-5ca439aba8c9/UN+Women+in+Laos.jpg NGOs - Make it stand out Yor Village, Beng District, Oudomxay (Lao PDR). Ms. Yawai, a farmer and widow with 3 children, collects water from the village’s well. She spent much of her time alone at her house during the pandemic, struggling to afford even necessities, as a result of the economic fall out.© Andy Ball/UN Women https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1664261371738-HMCF3Y9UL5MWEBQVHQC5/Aerial+view+of+the+Peam+Krasop+Mangroves+in+Koh+Kong+Province+Cambodia.jpg NGOs - Make it stand out Koh Kong Province (Cambodia). A fisher casts their net at Peam Krasop Wildlife Sanctuary, thought to contain some of Southeast Asia’s best preserved mangrove forests . © Andy Ball/FFI https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1664256524141-PHVX45L60TNUE53YYXF1/Garment+factory+workers+arrive+for+work+in+the+morning+in+Phnom+Penh+Cambodia.jpg NGOs - Make it stand out Phnom Penh (Cambodia). Garment factory workers arrive for work during the pandemic. © Andy Ball/CNV Internationaal https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1664257633675-8PW7ZWYMF0TGB20O6Z3W/Haisham+Rasheed+scans+pregnant+manta+ray+Maldives.jpg NGOs - Make it stand out Laamu Atoll (Maldives). A researcher scans a pregnant reef manta ray in the Maldives using an underwater ultrasound scanner connected to an iPhone. The research was carried out as part of efforts to obtain the world’s first ever underwater ultrasound scans of wild reef manta rays. © Andy Ball/IMV Imaging/Manta Trust/University of Cambridge/Six Senses Laamu https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1664260040991-6WKTS6A4C3S21904UTIE/Portrait+of+a+community+member+who+used+to+work+on+the+sugar+cane+plantations+in+Koh+Kong+Province+Cambodia.jpg NGOs - Make it stand out Koh Kong Province (Cambodia). Chea Pheap, 29, at her sister's house in Chi Kor Loeu Commune, Koh Kong Province. She is now a mother of four but previously worked on the sugar cane fields for 2 to 3 years at the age of 14. She worked in the sugar cane fields for 6 to 7 days a week resulting in her missing school. “I wanted to go to school but because I worked in the fields I couldn’t. Now it’s too late”. © Andy Ball/Panos Pictures/Global Witness https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1664253480550-81WXM8XMNYY16OBGHW3U/Garment+workers+in+Phnom+Penh%2C+Cambodia%2C+trial+an+app+for+the+minimum+wage+negotiations.jpg NGOs - Make it stand out Phnom Penh (Cambodia). Som Chandy, Union President at the Coalition for Cambodia Apparel Worker Democratic Union (C.CAWDU), teachers fellow garment workers how to use a phone application developed by the Union that more effectively surveys workers to negotiate for a higher living wage. © Andy Ball/CNV Internationaal https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1664261481661-GJDP7GWFCT9CQCEC6UFD/Crab+fishers+at+night+at+Koh+Rong+in+Cambodia.jpg NGOs - Make it stand out Koh Rong (Cambodia). Crab fishers deploy their nets off-shore from the Kong Rong Archipelago. © Andy Ball/FFI https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1664260315694-5CZOFIY9SNQ0PO9NZM4V/Community+member+cutting+sugarcane+in+Koh+Kong+Province+Cambodia.jpg NGOs - Make it stand out Koh Kong Province (Cambodia). Et Chhai, 36, works on her sugar cane plantation on her 1.5 hectares of land in Chi Khor Loeu commune, Koh Kong Province, given to her as compensation by the Thai based sugar company KSL. Her family is the only one involved in the Tate & Lyle case that is growing sugar cane on their land. She lost 10 hectares of land as a result of the evictions by the Koh Kong sugar companies. "The company said they'd take our land, even if we didn't want to sell it. They came in the night and bulldozed it all". © Andy Ball/Panos Pictures/Global Witness https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1664256468488-1N0HJD9KYL5X4THO4BFP/Garment+factory+worker+cooks+food+in+her+accomodation+in+Phnom+Penh+Cambodia.jpg NGOs - Make it stand out Phnom Penh (Cambodia). Yen Srey Oun, a garment factory worker, prepares dinner in her worker's accomodation room. The pandemic has had devastating impacts on those working in Cambodia's garment factory. As factories were forced to close, workers were laid off or received significant cuts to their wages. Consequently, many workers were confined to their worker’s accommodation, struggling to afford basic amenities and unable send money to support their families back home. © Andy Ball/CNV Internationaal https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1664256626903-I6QHG540DSQ5Z9WJL8NH/Sarus+crane+birds+fly+at+the+Anlong+Pring+wetlands+site+in+Cambodia.jpg NGOs - Make it stand out Anlung Pring, Kampot Province (Cambodia). Endangered Sarus crane, the world’s tallest flying bird, at the Anlung Pring wetlands, an area identified as an Important Bird Area and a non-breeding site for the species. © Andy Ball/Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1664260759901-5ZYKMFMLEGEL5EPIQD7M/Anlung+Pring_Andy+Ball_March+2021-34.jpg NGOs - Make it stand out Anlung Pring, Kampot Province (Cambodia). Rangers patrol at the Anlung Pring wetlands, home to a population of non-breeding Endangered Siamese Cranes. © Andy Ball/Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust https://andyballmedia.com/behind-the-scaffolding daily 0.75 2024-08-01 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1651712934502-2PQQQCGMI16W8EGT80RL/Construction+Workers+Phnom+Penh_Andy+Ball-1.jpg Behind the Scaffolding Construction worker Dieb Phearum mixes cement at a construction site on the outskirts of Phnom Penh in Kambol District. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1651712973819-GC09LQOIRILENRT6Y4EA/Construction+Workers+Phnom+Penh_Andy+Ball-13.jpg Behind the Scaffolding Construction worker Ma Srieng and his wife Som Theary eat dinner on the 3rd floor of a half-built 18th-floor condominium where they live in the heart of Phnom Penh. They live onsite with their 2-year-old son and Srieng’s cousin Dieb Phearum. Like many construction workers in Phnom Penh, they migrated from the provinces seeking work. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1651712935880-PG3SOHM4MKFEON1PP42S/Construction+Workers+Phnom+Penh_Andy+Ball-2.jpg Behind the Scaffolding Phnom Penh’s skyline has changed dramatically over the last decade as a result of a construction boom. Despite the fallout from the pandemic, the construction sector still attracted an investment of $10.3 billion in the first 11 months of 2021. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1651712939040-GBE1H9D9YIDRFIAUURTL/Construction+Workers+Phnom+Penh_Andy+Ball-3.jpg Behind the Scaffolding A family living on the site at Bassac lane. An estimated 50 workers live on-site, some with their family, in makeshift shelters made from scaffolding and wood. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1651713001905-UQWN9NFDLO22AA57PC2U/Construction+Workers+Phnom+Penh_Andy+Ball-19.jpg Behind the Scaffolding Ma Srieng and his cousin Dieb Phearum play with Srieng’s son before starting work. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1651712941116-G23YB6U6YU4BPR0MM926/Construction+Workers+Phnom+Penh_Andy+Ball-4.jpg Behind the Scaffolding Srieng lays concrete on the outside of the 18-floor condominium as rubble falls from the floors above him. Like the other workers living onsite, as a sub-contractor, he has to find his own personal protection equipment (PPE) and he generally works seven days a week, only taking time off when he’s physically too tired to work. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1651712944238-GGUAHANPRCKUJC0U0WJL/Construction+Workers+Phnom+Penh_Andy+Ball-5.jpg Behind the Scaffolding Theary buys food at the local market with her son. As of January 2022, she was six months pregnant and unable to work on the site with her husband as a result, instead staying onsite during the day and looking after her son. An estimated 30-33 percent of construction workers in Phnom Penh are female. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1651712993498-YDX9SYRFSHXCY4WPD8G3/Construction+Workers+Phnom+Penh_Andy+Ball-17.jpg Behind the Scaffolding Construction workers lay concrete on the 8th floor of the site at Bassac Lane. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1651712972070-L4BHQALR5WBFE063OA1P/Construction+Workers+Phnom+Penh_Andy+Ball-12.jpg Behind the Scaffolding Theary and Srieng’s 2-year-old son plays basketball with other construction workers also living on the site. Construction workers and their families spend almost all of their time on the site. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1651713003256-RZ581Q7RLK582SS5EZF6/Construction+Workers+Phnom+Penh_Andy+Ball-20.jpg Behind the Scaffolding A portrait of Phearum, Ma Srieng’s cousin, at the new construction site he moved to in Phnom Penh’s Kambol district. He quit his job at the Bassac Lane site after 10 days, stating they failed to pay him on time and that the work was too “heavy.” https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1651712963213-WRP6LL2TXTL5SFNRP6QD/Construction+Workers+Phnom+Penh_Andy+Ball-10.jpg Behind the Scaffolding Construction workers (from left to right) Sun Kim Yan, Sim Ry, Dieb Phearum, Phan Sochantra and Sim Rib eat lunch on a construction site in Kambol District, Phnom Penh. All come from the provinces, all except Phearum have debts to microfinance institutions and all of them have experienced not being paid on time whilst working in the construction industry. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1651712966674-VVLDSR54W39YWRC5DUEN/Construction+Workers+Phnom+Penh_Andy+Ball-11.jpg Behind the Scaffolding Phearum buys back a ring his mother gave him for $65 at a pawn shop. He pawned the ring for money to buy food after the site at Bassac Lane failed to pay him on time. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1651713011987-TTR4Y6CSPO4NOHTST9V3/Construction+Workers+Phnom+Penh_Andy+Ball-22.jpg Behind the Scaffolding After finishing work, Sun Kim Yan, Sim Ry, Dieb Phearum, Phan Sochantra, and Sim Rib play volleyball with other construction workers at a field in Kambol district. Sim Ry says they play volleyball to build “strength and solidarity” within the team and “consider themselves as one family”. Unlike those in the city center, workers living on the outskirts of the city can find green spaces to play volleyball. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1651712947665-39EKNPZGGDM00H6Y7KU9/Construction+Workers+Phnom+Penh_Andy+Ball-6.jpg Behind the Scaffolding Yann Thy, Secretary General of the Building and Wood Workers Trade Union Federation (BWTUC), at his office in Phnom Penh. BWTUC is the largest and most active Union in Cambodia advocating for construction workers’ rights. Thy narrowly avoided a serious injury while working with an angle grinder whilst constructing NagaWorld 1 casino. Afterwards, he was compelled to advocate for workers’ rights and so joined the union. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1651712996921-4K3GC33XB41W6NL9AYDD/Construction+Workers+Phnom+Penh_Andy+Ball-18.jpg Behind the Scaffolding A construction worker shovels concrete close to the edge of the 8th-floor of the condominium on Bassac Lane. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1651712952100-Q4O91PBX7SSDE50YQPU2/Construction+Workers+Phnom+Penh_Andy+Ball-7.jpg Behind the Scaffolding Srieng takes a smoke break with his son and other construction workers on the site. With no other option, his 2-year-old son spends most of his time on the site with his parents or other workers. Srieng also has a daughter from his first wife who lives with his parents in Kampong Chhnang Province, sending between $25 to $50 per month for her studies. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1651712959842-GJD6V9FDFGT26L5WO39Z/Construction+Workers+Phnom+Penh_Andy+Ball-9.jpg Behind the Scaffolding An underaged worker shovels gravel on the outside of the Bassac Lane construction site https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1651712983809-26XAJXROA4DVYE6KCQ60/Construction+Workers+Phnom+Penh_Andy+Ball-16.jpg Behind the Scaffolding A construction worker plays on his phone after work on the Bassac Lane site. Workers on the site rarely venture outside because they can’t afford it. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1651712975401-GQ77L69ZD367ZA4WI82N/Construction+Workers+Phnom+Penh_Andy+Ball-14.jpg Behind the Scaffolding Theary uses the construction elevator to go and shower on the ground floor. At seven months pregnant she’s unable to comfortably use the stairs, instead opting to use the elevator intended to carry construction workers and materials up and down the condominium. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1651712956087-15NMTISMW89WJMAC86VW/Construction+Workers+Phnom+Penh_Andy+Ball-8.jpg Behind the Scaffolding Yann Thy, secretary-general of BWTUC, shows a picture of a building collapse in Kep Province that killed 36 construction workers living onsite on January 3, 2020. Prior to that, two collapses in Sihanoukville and Siem Reap killed 28 and three workers, respectively, in 2019. Despite it being banned, large numbers of construction workers in Phnom Penh still live onsite. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1651713006279-L7XBEI38OSQL535V6J9W/Construction+Workers+Phnom+Penh_Andy+Ball-21.jpg Behind the Scaffolding Theary watches a video on a phone with their 2-year-old son before going to bed at their onsite accommodation. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1651712981188-XJOU8202J44NTFBZPQ5K/Construction+Workers+Phnom+Penh_Andy+Ball-15.jpg Behind the Scaffolding Srieng and Theary spend time with their son at the park in front of Phnom Penh’s Royal Palace. They go off the site to enjoy themselves as a family about once a month, when they can afford it, normally around payday. https://andyballmedia.com/lost-lands daily 0.75 2024-08-01 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1654584492037-2BSHYY71FGK2J18AWBN4/RGS+Exhibition_Andy+Ball-UoS-1.jpg Lost lands Hak Bopha, a grocery and gravel seller, stands for a portrait behind her house, which was partly destroyed by a riverbank collapse on the banks of the Mekong river. A few hundred metres away, dozens of barges pump sand at Rokar Koang Commune, one of the most heavily mined sections of the river in Cambodia. Bopha says the bigger riverbank collapses are a major threat to her livelihood and only started to occur about four years ago when sand mining began in the area. (Andy Ball/University of Southampton) https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1654584493427-FT4T5ZIIDFG8T4AHVUP7/RGS+Exhibition_Andy+Ball-UoS-2.jpg Lost lands Cambodia’s construction boom has seen gated communities, satellite cities and high-rise condominiums dramatically alter the city’s skyline in recent years, with real estate developers pricing out low-income communities while marketing to the elite of Cambodian society. In the first 11 months of 2021 alone, Cambodia’s construction sector attracted $10.3 billion in investment. The construction boom has led to a rush for sand, a key ingredient in the production of concrete. (Andy Ball/University of Southampton) https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1654584497074-TZNA1AFAV8SJOTWIOHRD/RGS+Exhibition_Andy+Ball-UoS-3.jpg Lost lands Sand mining barges extract sand from the Mekong, a river that supports the livelihoods of an estimated 60 million people in the region. Research from the team reveals that in 2020 alone, an estimated 59 million metric tonnes of sand was mined from the Mekong in Cambodia, around four times the officially reported figure from the previous year. Cambodia extracts more sand than any other country along the Mekong and at 16 times the natural rate of replenishment. (Andy Ball/University of Southampton) https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1654584497058-DKB58VXM4ZFRXXFLGV12/RGS+Exhibition_Andy+Ball-UoS-4.jpg Lost lands Construction workers take a ferry after finishing work at Koh Pich, or Diamond Island, Cambodia’s first artificial island built on the Mekong. The reclamation project required vast quantities of sand, along with a huge workforce, to create the island and the skyscrapers that dominate it. (Andy Ball/University of Southampton) https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1654584501048-M6VIK0350GT6JJA1DB7N/RGS+Exhibition_Andy+Ball-UoS-5.jpg Lost lands A fisher, who requested anonymity due to fear of retribution from authorities and the well-connected sand mining companies operating in the area, catches snails in the Mekong as sand mining barges work in the background. Before the barges arrived, he used to catch fish like many others in Rokar Koang Commune. However, four years after the sand mining started, catching fish became difficult resulting in many fishers shifting to catching snails or finding work on-land, mostly in construction. Now the sand mining is also affecting the abundance of shellfish too. (Andy Ball/University of Southampton) https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1654584501798-MY8DY5XXF9E1RC8FRVMR/RGS+Exhibition_Andy+Ball-UoS-6.jpg Lost lands Sand mining barges extract sand in Rokar Koang Commune. Along with being one of the most heavily mined stretches of the Mekong in Cambodia, it was also the site of two riverbank collapses in 2021. The mined sand is shipped to the capital Phnom Penh to be used in construction, reclamation and the filling in of the city’s wetlands. River sand is in high demand in the construction industry due to its angular properties which gives concrete optimum strength. In contrast, despite its abundance, desert sand is rounded and smooth and is not suitable for concrete production. (Andy Ball/University of Southampton) https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1654584503844-LGJUQE6MK9SVO9JSYBIC/RGS+Exhibition_Andy+Ball-UoS-7.jpg Lost lands A photo taken by a local on 23 November, 2021, shows a crack that appeared on the main road that passes through Rokar Koang. Although the banks of the Mekong erode naturally and at varying rates driven by the monsoon flood pulse, other research shows that sand mining activity lowers the riverbed and leads to increases in riverbank instability. (Andy Ball/University of Southampton) https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1654584505717-LJFN7N55WET43MMJU5WE/RGS+Exhibition_Andy+Ball-UoS-8.jpg Lost lands In Chhai Heng, a remorque driver, stands for a portrait at his house next to one of two river bank collapses that happened in 2021 along the same road in Rokar Koang. In the distance, sand barges deliver sand to the capital Phnom Penh. Like many others living in village, when he first moved to live on the riverbank his land extended 50 metres in front of his house. Heng said the riverbank has gradually eroded since the 1990s but when sand mining began in the area, the loss of land accelerated. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1654584512610-BRD2R6XHSOWHXFN339P8/RGS+Exhibition_Andy+Ball-UoS-9.jpg Lost lands Workers fill bags with sand pumped from the Mekong to protect a very recent riverbank collapse in Boeung Leu village, Kandal Province, from further erosion. Eight families were impacted by the collapse, with four already relocated to the main road in the village. Dozens of families in the village have previously had to relocate as a result of collapses over the last few years. (Andy Ball/University of Southampton) https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1654584515268-4Q9N0IWUD2XH7GLVCAGQ/RGS+Exhibition_Andy+Ball-UoS-10.jpg Lost lands Sand pumped from the Mekong is used to fill in Boeung Tompun, Phnom Penh’s largest wetlands, to make way for a new satellite city. Since the early 2000s, 60% of Phnom Penh’s lakes and 40% of its wetlands have been completely filled in, replaced by major developments including satellite cities, shopping malls and private luxury residences. (Andy Ball/University of Southampton) https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1654584517255-E1EDU44MBMMA6SE9W6XB/RGS+Exhibition_Andy+Ball-UoS-11.jpg Lost lands Middlemen load their bikes with water mimosa, a crop that commonly grows on the wetlands, before selling it at one of the city’s bustling markets. Water mimosa, along with a number of other semi-aquatic plants, commonly grows in the wetlands, supporting the livelihoods of many families and helping to filter the constant stream of sewage water from Phnom Penh’s canals. More than 1,000 families live and depend on the Boeung Tompun wetlands for housing, farming and fishing. (Andy Ball/University of Southampton) https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1654584521502-BBNHUQ4H19HCGGERVZ8L/RGS+Exhibition_Andy+Ball-UoS-12.jpg Lost lands A man exercises at a park in Borey Peng Huoth, one of Phnom Penh’s largest gated communities. Sand pumped from the Mekong and Bassac rivers was used to fill in the Sen Sok and Boeung Reach Sei wetlands, as well as the Boeung Chhouk lake. Last year, sand was also used for the expansion of the borey to fill in farmland that had been used by 241 families since the 1980s, leading to a land dispute between the communities and the company. (Andy Ball/University of Southampton) https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1654584521867-BL9018X0E51VS45D1WWM/RGS+Exhibition_Andy+Ball-UoS-13.jpg Lost lands Tayang Sam, a construction worker from Cambodia’s remote Ratanakiri Province, casts his net on sand pumped from the Mekong into the wetlands. Sam has spent the last four years as a bricklayer, constructing a house owned by a member of the wealthy Cambodian elite in a reclaimed part of the wetlands. Four years ago he could catch between 50 and 60 kilograms of fish each day, but now he says there’s “nothing to catch”. (Andy Ball/University of Southampton) https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1654584525809-Z0S3YMERHQNI4FU9P140/RGS+Exhibition_Andy+Ball-UoS-14.jpg Lost lands Diet Savon harvests water mimosa, a popular vegetable that commonly grows on the wetlands. Savon has built her life on the wetlands for 20 years but recently has witnessed many of her neighbours leave as it is gradually filled in for a mega development project, preventing them from farming and fishing. (Andy Ball/University of Southampton) https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1654584525912-03XVCIAAC3WG3QRFOKGO/RGS+Exhibition_Andy+Ball-UoS-15.jpg Lost lands Houses rumoured to belong to Cambodia’s elite are built on a filled in section of the Boeung Tumpun. The wetlands store 70% of the rain and wastewater from Phnom Penh, helping to prevent the city from flooding during the wet season. Numerous species of animals and plants, including endangered fish species, have also been recorded in the lakes and wetlands around Phnom Penh. (Andy Ball/University of Southampton) https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1654584532709-WL1Y6M69KU48V4OXY9UF/RGS+Exhibition_Andy+Ball-UoS-16.jpg Lost lands Children play in puddles at a sand deposit site on the outskirts of Phnom Penh. In the background a Buddhist temple sits in front of Koh Norea, a new reclamation project on the Mekong. (Andy Ball/University of Southampton) https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1654584529952-R5ZDICXDFMKOPXA1DHJ6/RGS+Exhibition_Andy+Ball-UoS-17.jpg Lost lands Om Vi (right) and Chip Srey Vas pull up their nets as a sand dredger drives past. They are one of 600,000 Cham people in Cambodia, an ethnic minority considered descendents of the Champa kingdom, who rely on the Mekong River for its fisheries. In 1996, Vi could catch up to 200 kilograms of fish a day, but from 2000 onwards, this was reduced to just 10 kilograms a day. Climate change and upstream dams have heavily impacted the Mekong’s fisheries. In recent years, they’ve also had to face another impact; intense traffic of sand mining barges that often leave their nets damaged. (Andy Ball/University of Southampton) https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1654584532472-O7F0BR2ANZ7S2YFSTKQZ/RGS+Exhibition_Andy+Ball-UoS-18.jpg Lost lands An aerial view of Koh Norea, Phnom Penh’s second artificial island on the Mekong. The mega development, which is yet to publicly produce an Environmental Impact Assessment, has raised concerns among environmentalists and researchers due to the vast quantities of sand required and the as-yet-unknown long-term impacts on the Mekong River’s ecosystem. (Andy Ball/University of Southampton) https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1654584536035-WBARW9L4CHUMXMZ70K7C/RGS+Exhibition_Andy+Ball-UoS-19.jpg Lost lands The houses of morning glory and mimosa farmers near a filled in section of the Boeung Tompun wetlands at dusk. As a result of the filling in of much of Phnom Penh’s lakes and wetlands, evictions have become commonplace. Most notably, the filling in of the Boeung Kak lake which saw more than 4,000 families evicted by 2013 to make way for a satellite city, following years of violent land grabs and arrests of prominent community members and activists. (Andy Ball/University of Southampton) https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1654584536362-02TUWWN7MCJ15L6UCHYZ/RGS+Exhibition_Andy+Ball-UoS-20.jpg Lost lands Sand mining workers look on as a fisher casts his net into a temporary lake created by one of Phnom Penh’s latest major land reclamations along the Mekong river. As the city continues to grow, so too does the thirst for sand, leading to an uncertain future for the Mekong River and those who rely on it. (Andy Ball/University of Southampton) https://andyballmedia.com/about-me daily 0.75 2026-04-03 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/46ca66c7-4a6a-400e-98ec-6caa9a23cd39/Andy+Ball+Director+and+Cinematographer+based+in+Cambodia.jpg About https://andyballmedia.com/contact-me daily 0.75 2025-09-11 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/5f0360f9-8644-4db9-a37c-3c341fe0ed69/Andy+Ball+Cinematographer+and+Director.jpeg Contact - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://andyballmedia.com/forests-in-the-furnace daily 0.75 2024-08-12 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1723434360866-14Y2JT1TQYFIIL6HCGZL/Garment+Deforestation_Mongabay_Andy+Ball_Story+1_2.jpg Forests in the Furnace: A man rides on the top of a van transporting wood on the road that connects the Cardamom Mountains to Kampong Speu. The timber will be sold to garment factories that incinerate the wood to generate steam. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1723435052319-XI83YHSGPVBT1HNGZEGQ/Garment+Deforestation_Mongabay_Andy+Ball_Story+1_14-min.jpg Forests in the Furnace: The timber depot at Goldfame Star Enterprises that covers 2.25 hectares. Security guards told reports that trucks come every night. The Hong-Kong based Goldfame Group which has operated in Cambodia since 1996 and now boasts nine factories, as well as ownership of 1 million square meters of land across Cambodia. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1723434335096-S2AF560G8NLHWN2FTD0H/Garment+Deforestation_Mongabay_Andy+Ball_Story+1_10.jpg Forests in the Furnace: Garment factory workers ride in the back of a truck on their way to work. As of 2022, Cambodia’s garment sector employed 650,000 workers of which an estimated 80% were women, most of whom migrated domestically from the provinces in search of work. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1723434375054-JJKJB57GOODV2E9SRUO4/Garment+Deforestation_Mongabay_Andy+Ball_Story+1_4.jpg Forests in the Furnace: Saroeun* cuts dead logs in the Central Cardamoms National Park. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1723434929524-I253DVTIC7RP5DYP0PNL/Garment+Deforestation_Mongabay_Andy+Ball_Story+3-5-min.jpg Forests in the Furnace: A fire burns over a forest within the 9,059 hectare Chinese-owned Great Field Economic Land Concession. Illegal logging both inside and outside the Great Field and the adjoining Yellow Field Economic Land Concesions has been well documented. The deforestation associated with the concessions has left local loggers with no option but to go deeper into the forests to supply the garment industry. It's unsure whether the forest fire intentional or an accident. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1723434357336-TC89A1HP3150TL39DHJV/Garment+Deforestation_Mongabay_Andy+Ball_Story+1_6.jpg Forests in the Furnace: Saroeun carries timber out of the Central Cardamoms National Park to load up onto his koy-yun before selling it to a network of traders who will supply firewood to garment factories across Cambodia. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1723434338917-705B7DR11HCOMNLVYLAN/Garment+Deforestation_Mongabay_Andy+Ball_Story+2_4.jpg Forests in the Furnace: An aerial view over the Central Cardamoms National Park, one of several Protected Areas that constitute the Cardamom Mountains, an evergreen forest situated on the Thai-Cambodia border. In November 2021, construction began on the nearby 150-megawatt Stung Tatai Leu hydropower dam. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1723434374174-N29W2EZNBMTKVEXLLAZL/Garment+Deforestation_Mongabay_Andy+Ball_Story+1_7.jpg Forests in the Furnace: Logs cut from the Central Cardamoms National Park are transported by koy-yun to the nearby Kteh village. Logs from Kteh village are then sold to middlemen who transport the timber to one of hundreds of garment factories that incinerate the wood to generate steam. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1723434257337-QT2RMHO2VIEGIJBR10YQ/Garment+Deforestation_Mongabay_Andy+Ball_Story+1_8.jpg Forests in the Furnace: A middleman loads logs into the back of his truck. The logs will likely end up being sold to a network of middlemen into Chbar Mon that sell the wood onto garment factories in Kampong Speu and Phnom Penh. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1723434265878-468SJPQI2RAHE3KQOKHZ/Garment+Deforestation_Mongabay_Andy+Ball_Story+2_2.jpg Forests in the Furnace: A cluster of garment factories in Kampong Speu Province, a hotspot for factories that cluster along National Road 4 that connects Phnom Penh to Sihanoukville. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1723434924681-M2KO0VDKXJ4MSKSB271E/Garment+Deforestation_Mongabay_Andy+Ball_Story+2_7-min.jpg Forests in the Furnace: A middleman unloads logs from the Cardamoms that will be sold to garment factories in Kampong Speu and Phnom Penh. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1723434357257-FYEDFP7UZCAMLNDEIWPT/Garment+Deforestation_Mongabay_Andy+Ball_Story+1_5.jpg Forests in the Furnace: Wood is loaded into two large trucks at a timber depot before being delivered to factories in the Phnom Penh area. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1723434379295-4AEZK8XQUQVATF5ZMY3A/Garment+Deforestation_Mongabay_Andy+Ball_Story+2_5.jpg Forests in the Furnace: A customer looks through the selection of clothes at H&M’s flagship store in the Aeon 1 shopping mall, Phnom Penh. Four factories supplying to the Swedish conglomerate fashion brand were reported to be burning forest wood in a 2021 study by researchers at Royal Holloway, University of London. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1723434332708-4Y14OBW2YZVBYTP7C2LU/Garment+Deforestation_Mongabay_Andy+Ball_Story+1_13.jpg Forests in the Furnace: A woman sits in a van loaded with logs inside Hui Yuan Garment, a TAFTAC member garment factory, that sits on National Road 4. In October 2022, reporters tracked timber from a depot in Chbar Mon to the factory. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5c244e8be2ccd101ba5f3b79/1723434931841-HKL7RGHFGCAPJQMUBU2X/Garment+Deforestation_Mongabay_Andy+Ball_Story+3-12-min.jpg Forests in the Furnace: Wood is transported at night by truck on National Road 4 that connects Phnom Penh to Sihanoukville. The road is a key road connecting the timber depots in Chbar Mon to factories in Phnom Penh and Kampong Speu. https://andyballmedia.com/film-tv daily 1.0 2025-07-16