Voicing the empowerment of women in Cambodia I just finished my UNV contract with UN Women Cambodia - the agency which has given me an incredible amount of knowledge and great experiences over the last 12 months. As a communications officer for UN Women Cambodia, I have been involved in communicating UN Women´s various thematic programmes to stakeholders ranging from governmental entities and policy makers to youth in universities and women living in more rural areas. One of my greatest experiences with UN Women Cambodia was during last year´s 16 Days Campaign to End Violence Against Women, where UN Women together with Ministry of Women´s Affairs arranged a huge running race in Siem Reap. Thousands of young people turned up to stand up against violence and support the UN Women-led advocacy. To be able to witness so much heartfelt engagement around one of UN Women´s corner stone in our work in Cambodia was truly amazing.
positive feedback and love from all corners of the world. Through our local partner we managed to convey all the heartfelt messages and wishes to the couple, who were thrilled with all the positive feedback they got. It was an amazing experience for me being able to see how communications on gender equality can empower women on the ground. Being a UN Volunteer in Cambodia, and at the UN Women office here has truly been an amazing experience, both because of the level of autonomy, trust and encouragement given from my host-agency, and also based on the level of support received from the UNV field unit. I will always remember this year together with all the experiences, hard work, challenges and wonderful people I met on the road.
Sometimes when we are really lucky are we able to close the circle with our advocacy and communications efforts, and can inform the beneficiaries on the positive effects their stories have had on the rest of the world. This happened during PRIDE in 2016 when I went to visit an LGBT exhibition held in Takeo province. Here I met the most amazing lesbian couple, who had to struggle throughout their life, fighting for their love and standing strong against discrimination. Their story (with their consent) was widely shared on social media platforms, and within the next 24 hours the couple received so much
Mariken Bruusgaard Harbitz (Phnom Penh, April 2016)