This is a 2030 visioning blog written by young people to share their vision of the future. With +700million youth in Asia-Pacific, our future is in their hands!

Aug 7, 2016

For the Future of ALL

By Laitheam Eang

Liatheam (above) has worked for nearly two decades for women and young people

Growing up, founder and CEO of ‘Saving for Learning,’ Laitheam Eang, was not your typical young person. Like many great entrepreneurs before her, Laitheam had a vision for the future, but not only herself, but for the whole of the world.

Standing on stage at the prestigious 2030 TED Prize award ceremony, Laitheam says, “When we launched Saving for Learning, we set out to make a difference. However, we had no idea the impact it would have on Cambodia and the entire planet.”

Saving for Learning is a non-profit designed to support and empower unprivileged women so that they may achieve their dreams. The programme trains female artisans, young and old, to use sustainable design methods and modern marketing techniques to sell their products to local and international distributers.

Laitheam’s initiative, as well as other programmes and interventions, continue to empower the underserved and the most vulnerable people, particularly women, by protecting traditional livelihoods through the promotion of social entrepreneurship. To date, Saving for Learning has trained over 50,000 women in Cambodia and more than 100,000 women throughout the Asia-Pacific region.

The road wasn’t always easy for Saving for Learning she explains, “Taking on poverty and fighting for gender equality seemed like an unclimbable mountain. But like the mountaineers, we set our sights on the short climbs. On small victories.”

Liatheam (above) is a life long advocate for progressive change.

In 2011, the World Bank reported that two out of every 10 Cambodians were living under the poverty line. Today, almost 20 years later, thanks to efforts like Laitheam’s, poverty has been nearly eliminated.

Cambodia has home country of Cambodia has come a long way since the early 2000’s. In the fifteen years since the adoption of the Sustainable Development Goals, Cambodia have given hope to many, particularly young people and women.

“The past 15 years was just the beginning. Together, we will continue to work to improve our world,” concluded Laitheam.

(There are more than 700 million young people in Asia and the Pacific. Every single young person has a dream and a vision for 2030. What’s yours? Send us a message with your future perfect!)