Meaningful work? This is what the volunteers called “bamboos” come to seek out, who commit to working with our weavers for 1 to 2 years.

Since 2001 and the creation of Soieries, VSI (International Solidarity Volunteering) volunteers have come every one to two years to put their skills to the benefit of our committed brand.

This article is an opportunity to retrace the history of Soieries du Mékong and these young “bamboos”, who come to give one to two years of their life for our beautiful project, as well as their daily life among the artisans, in the village of Banteay Chhmar.

Bamboo volunteers: what are they?

Since 1989, more than 1000 volunteers have embarked on the “Bambou” adventure thanks to Children of the Mekong.

The Bambous Enfants du Mékong are young people, aged 20 to 35, students or on a professional break, who commit to a humanitarian mission – under a VSI contract – of one or two years in the service of the actions of Enfants du Mékong in South-East Asia.

“A bamboo bends but does not break”: this is the motto of the Enfants du Mékong volunteers, who are thus called Bamboos! 

In 1995, while he was a bamboo worker for Enfants du Mékong, Philippe de Pougnadoresse met Neak Krou and his family in Banteay Chhmar.

She tells him that before the Khmer Rouge genocide, the women of this northern region mastered the art of silk weaving. The transmission of this know-how hangs by a thread, because Neak Krou is the only one to still master each of the stages of weaving.

At the same time, he realizes that the situation of the families of this village, and in particular that of the women, is very precarious, to the point that many of them are forced to leave their homes for disreputable services in the casinos of the Thai border...

From the fusion of these two observations, an incredible and daring idea was born: to relaunch this exceptional art of silk weaving to allow these women to find meaning in their lives, stay in their village and build a future for their family.

Since its creation, Soieries du Mékong has trained around a hundred weavers. These women see their art protected and their status as artisans recognized.

Working in Cambodia: The mission at the heart of Banteay Chhmar

Since 2001 and in the same way as Enfants du Mékong, Soieries du Mékong has been recruiting Bambous volunteers to join the Khmer teams in Banteay Chhmar in Cambodia, and thus participate in the development of the brand.

According to their appetites and desires, our bamboo works for: 

- the sourcing of materials, 

- R&D, 

- the production processes, 

- product development, 

- the social impact of the project, 

- business development in Asia

…There is always more to do to keep this beautiful project alive and growing.

Being Bambou for Soieries du Mékong means living in total immersion in the heart of the village of Banteay Chhmar and its inhabitants, soaking up the Khmer culture and its smiles.

In Banteay Chhmar, the Mekong Silk Workshops come to life at 7:30 in the morning.

The weavers arrive by motorbike or bicycle from the village which is located around the impressive central temple of Banteay Chhmar.

The different teams: dyeing, preparing the looms, weaving, finishing...start their day before meeting in the morning for a typical Khmer breakfast: chicken rice or water lily soup.

When we need to discuss things between teams, we meet for a meeting together around the table outside or in front of the production monitoring board.

Regularly, a member of the quality or production team visits the weavers who weave at home to provide them with yarn and discuss technical points.

Portraits, stories and memories of bamboo: for 20 years, THANK YOU!

Mekong silks: more than 20 years of history... That's at least as many bamboos and memories!

As an example, Guillaume tells you...

To find all the information on: The Bambous Children of the Mekong

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