Training on “TRAUMA INFORMED CARE AND SELF-CARE” for Indigenous Youths in Rattanakiri Province, Cambodia
On 16 November 2023, the Raoul Wallenberg Institute, Phnom Penh Office, in cooperation with the Conserve Indigenous Peoples Languages Organisation (CIPL), conducted a training on “Trauma Informed Care and Self-care” for indigenous youths living across the Rattanakiri Province, the farthest northeast part of Cambodia. It’s part of a small grant project, “Responsive Youth to Survivors of Tortures during the Khmer Rouge for Healing and Community Conflict Prevention,” funded by the United States Institute of Peace (USIP).
This training aimed to incorporate trauma-informed care and self-care into the interviewing process to create a safe and supportive environment for trauma survivors while ensuring that interviewers maintain their well-being and professionalism in their challenging work. Participants will apply methodologies imparted by trainers from the Transcultural Psychological Organization (TPO). TPO has extensive experience collaborating with Khmer Rouge survivors involved in the Khmer Rouge tribunal and has undertaken initiatives throughout Cambodia. The training equips participants to facilitate intergenerational dialogues with elderly individuals who lived through the Khmer Rouge regime, delving into their life stories and experiences during the Democratic of Kampuchea government.
The participants—18 vibrant youths from diverse indigenous communities in Rattanakiri Province—were equipped with invaluable techniques. These tools, provided by TPO, will empower them to conduct intergenerational dialogues. Their mission is to engage with their older family members who lived through the Khmer Rouge regime, unraveling life stories and sharing experiences during the Democratic of Kampuchea government period. These stories will then be turned into short videos to be screened at the end of the project.
