On poverty and community empowerment

Poverty is not just defined by lack of money and security. It can be a state that people or groups of people are put in when they don’t have an opportunity to explore themselves, their potential and their future in the same manner that another group of people does.

So people can be defined as or feel poor when they don’t have the same opportunities as other groups that define themselves or they defined as privileged.  

I guess poverty is really felt and prominent when people can make comparisons with others. This can be caused by societal disparities and inherent contrast. Poverty and particularly feeling poor might be dangerous because it can prevent action,  limit creativity and innovation in communities. It can stop communities from supporting themselves, and lead them to rely on external support.

A community that can support itself and its members is empowered and is less likely to be antagonised by the ‘privileged’. And it might even be able to protect itself from the risk of and impacts of resource poverty. It may also be more succesful in creating opportunities for itself and its members. It can give its members the power and strength to avoid comparisons and dare. To take advantage of opportunities and assistance in a different manner. Assistance can come in monetary form but also importantly can be help with changing attitude. I think it is important to avoid creating dependent communities, to avoid supporting needy and ‘begging’ attitudes. In my view it is important to hand out  knowledge as well as help the cultivation of essential skills (particularly skills that can be transferred to members of communities we assist).

Poverty is hard for me to define. My parents both came from  poor but loving and happy families: I don’t attach the stigma that others do to ‘poverty’. They did suffer at times (particularly my father’s family) and for this reason they made sure that me and my brother were not deprived of basic commodities and education in life. I don’t think poverty is always synonymous with deprivation, despair and unhappiness. I want poverty that endangers the well being, health and safety of children and people eliminated. However, some of those that we would define poor seemed to have a better ‘quality of life’ in terms of family, connections and community engagement.  

The project and people I worked with are dignified and honourable. They support each other.  So the community support system is clearly effective. There were other groups of Cambodian people in  urban areas of Siem Reap who seemed to be in living in a much poorer and deprived state (facing immediate health risks and famine).

I have no conclusions or statements on poverty just thoughts to share. I have a lot to think about.