ODC, a Cambodian NGO, presented in the fifth edition of the Paris Peace Forum 2022
Last three years, Mr. Thy Try, Executive Director/Editor-in-Chief of Open Development Cambodia, was selected to attend the Paris Peace Forum 2019 on 12–13 November. He was impressed by how the Forum brought together many participants and high-level experts from all over the world. He learned new knowledge and skills from the projects on display and following the discussions at the Forum.
This year, the fifth Paris Peace Forum focused on riding out the multicrisis and preventing a destructive world polarization that would jeopardize the collective efforts on many critical challenges for humanity. The 2022 event called for solutions tackling the issues under 12 themes at the core of the fifth edition, while one of the main themes is protecting the rights of indigenous people. The fifth edition was attended by 32 heads of state and government and leaders of international organizations. Seventy project teams displayed their proposed solutions, and there were 80 panels and roundtables and more than 4,800 participants.
Learning from previous participation, ODC applied for a solution concerning the rights of indigenous people. Fortunately, the ODC project, “Open Data for Indigenous and Ethnic Minority,” was selected to be one of 60 showcase projects and initiatives for the Space for Solutions at the 5th edition of the Paris Peace Forum, from 11 to 12 November 2022 at the Palais Brongniart in Paris.
Standing at booth number 30 among the 70 projects showcased, ODC’s project is the only project in ASEAN that was selected to be displayed in the Forum, which triggers much interest in how we received this opportunity.
During the two-day event, the ODC team welcomed visitors from various institutions raking, from international organizations to the private sector and academic institutions visiting ODC’s presentation booth. They are interested in the open data concept and indigenous people in Cambodia. After listening to our presentation, they appreciated ODC’s efforts to disclose data on indigenous people and its approach to providing data literacy training to IPs, which complements data availability and usage. Furthermore, some participants requested ODC team to share our data contributing to their research and projects, and some showed interest in future collaboration.
Moreover, ODC was honored and delighted that His Excellency Ket Sophann, Ambassador of Cambodia to France, visited the ODC presentation booth. His Excellency talked with the ODC team and expressed his interest in the ODC project, which was selected to be presented in today’s international event.
Besides displaying ODC’s project in the Forum, Mr. Try was invited to be a speaker in a panel discussion under the theme “Learning from indigenous human rights solutions.” In the discussion, he emphasized the roles of digital literacy and technology in promoting and protecting indigenous people’s culture and natural resources. Moreover, he encouraged to have the participation of IPs in the development of digital policy and regulations.
In addition to gaining an opportunity for ODC to present our project, ODC also provided another opportunity to IP community. ODC funded two enthusiastic young representatives of indigenous people to present and tell their stories to make their voices heard on the global stage. Moreover, they have a chance to explore and learn from other projects, build networks, and attend panels and roundtables in the Forum. Ms. Rochom Munny and Mr. Romam Blen are members of the Cambodia ICT and Digital Forum (CamIDF) and former participants at the Cambodia ICT Camp 2022.
