TCO works closely with the Cambodian Government to ensure their work efforts are prioritising the villages most in need. Their focus is to bring a permanent supply of fresh water to as many Cambodia families as possible using very simple bio sand water filters and drilling wells. Once the village´s most basic need is met, TF work with them on developing agriculture projects that the villlages can then continue themselves to raise their standard of living and become self sufficient. There are a number of benefits for those who chose to volunteer with the Trailblazer Foundation that you may not find elsewhere:

• Flexible time requirements; volunteers are requested to commit to a minimum of just 2 weeks to the projects if that´s all the time they have available, while many other organizations require 1-3 months.
  
  
• Location, location, location; the Trailblazer office and gardens are just a 15 minute walk from Siem Reap town centre, so volunteers can stay in central hostels and easily get to the offices. Not to mention the 8th wonder of the world Angkor temples that are just a tuk tuk ride away.
  
  
Minimal costs; unlike some other charities, TF do not require any money for volunteers to work there and 100% of any donations people choose to give, go towards the Foundation´s work efforts. There are nearby comfortable hostels that charge as little as $5 a night for a 2 week+ stay and you can pick up a delicious dinner in town for $2!


• Contribution without disruption; many charities are focused around working with children. Whilst this is a popular choice for volunteers, unless they are willing to give a significant amount of time, it can be more disruptive to the children than good. Whilst Trailblazers has links to local schools and orphanages, the majority focus on helping with the projects for village self sustainability. This brings huge benefits to the communities in the most positive possible way.



The time donated by the volunteers is largely spent in the 3 areas: water filters, wells and agriculture. While it´s not the most glamorous work, it is important work, without which Trailblazers could not provide the fresh water and agriculture opportunities to the villages in need. One thing volunteers agree on is that they can really understand how their time is directly benefitting Cambodia communities from day 1 and many stay at the centre for longer than they had planned. Due to the nature of project needs and the process of coordinating volunteers for such activities, TF and TCO have established the following guidelines,