or 100,000? What if you chose to add the measure of Humanitarian Impact to your EBITA and ROI? What we give, not what we get In 2009, our 14-year-old daughter, Steph, was denied a life-changing school trip to Cambodia to volunteer with disadvantaged rural families. We decided to embrace the opportunity and travelled to Cambodia as a family, volunteering to teach English at a rural school in Siem Reap province. Those two weeks changed the course of our lives, and the lives of thousands of rural Cambodian students and their families. Our students were all the children of survivors of the Khmer Rouge regime and the ensuing civil war – while their parents were illiterate, they understood the value and importance of education. We returned to volunteer in Cambodia several more times and in 2011 founded the Cambodia Rural Students Trust (CRST), with the vision of educating future leaders. CRST is a unique Non-Government Organisation (NGO) because it’s entirely led and managed by our students. With formal education, extensive mentoring and opportunities to gain hands-on practical skills, the students of CRST lead and manage projects in areas as diverse as women’s empowerment, energy poverty, social inequity and environmental degradation, reaching thousands of beneficiaries annually. Use your gifts to fill the gaps Each of our students holds multiple roles across the organisation and our six educational social enterprises, enabling them to gain valuable hands-on experience in a variety of fields, including general management, finance, communications and operations. Each position has a job description, job procedures, KPIs and reporting and evaluation processes. We set up CRST with basic business principles in mind: Ask them what they want Go get it Give it to them Our students also attend regular NGO business classes with visiting international business mentors, covering topics including writing business plans, financial literacy, effective communication and developing mental health resilience. We all have ‘response ability’ While CRST is based on the three pillars of Education, Empowerment and Inspiration, we teach our team that they all have the ‘response ability’ to use their education to help themselves and their communities. We teach our students that their education and mentorship opportunities are not just for their own benefit, but also a powerful way to uplift others. By empowering themselves, they inspire younger generations, creating a far-reaching ripple effect. This collective effort raises the tide for countless rural students, building a legacy of hope and opportunity, transforming lives and shaping a brighter future for all. The impact we are creating is far and wide, as our university students become inspirational role models for over 20,000 rural students in Cambodia every year, leading and managing our educational social enterprise projects. The Project B: Bicycles for Education team distributes and repairs over 1000 bicycles for rural students each year, supporting their continued schooling.  Project G: Empowering girls will this year educate over 7000 rural students about the reproductive system and distribute more than 5000 beautiful and reusable menstruation kits to rural high school girls. Project L: Light for Education team is distributing over 3000 SolarBuddy study lights and study-material kits annually to remote students living in energy poverty. Project T: Trees for Life is planting over 5000 trees, supporting a greener and healthier environment. Project W: WASH for Education team is managing the installation of biosand water filtration systems, toilets and incinerators at more than 20 disadvantaged rural schools this year, affecting thousands of students and community members. Many of our projects are co-funded by corporate partners, enabling them and their team members to actively join us in creating sustainable impact. We love collaborations – they create more meaningful impact, and often reach further, faster. They allow us to use someone else’s gift to fill our gaps. The ripple effect The journey of the Cambodia Rural Students Trust is the inspirational story of rural youths in Cambodia who empower themselves and their families to move from poverty to middle class in eight years. It’s the story of humanity converging on our commonality, not our differences, as we inspire the next generation of future leaders to lead with vision, passion, compassion and commitment. Our students are given a hand up, not a handout. They are mentored to develop life-skills and professional business skills before graduating, so they are able to hit the ground running when they enter the ‘real-world’. They accept the challenge to transition from the rice fields to world-leading organisations, from fishing boats to boardrooms, and from restaurant jobs to representing government ministries. The impact of the Cambodia Rural Students Trust NGO and our educated students is forever woven into the fabric of Cambodia’s development. Get the show on the road Leading to create a positive impact on others is one of the most rewarding experiences anyone can have. While many in society may wait for governments or other organisations to do numerous things, we as business leaders, can already do so much to help our global communities. It doesn’t matter where you begin; the key is to take that first step. Engage your family, your team, and your business partners. Ask them what you can accomplish together to create a legacy of impact, hope, and inspiration.