Annual Report 2011/12

Contents

Introduction 6

Little Dreamers 8

Awards 10

Publications 10

Events 16

Supporting Organisations 19

Project Review 20

Overview 22

Project A: School Construction, Thon Mun Village 24

Project B: Toilet Construction, Kh’na Rong Village 28

Photo Discovery Project 31

Financial Report 32

Acknowledgements 35

IntroductionProject Little Dream is a registered charity in Hong Kong, founded by 15 university students in December 2008 (Registration & Number: Certificate of Incorporation 1343559, Tax-Exempt Charity Ref. No.: 91/10714). We aim to promote quality education for children living in developing countries, through providing resources for hardware construction and manpower. Also, we aim to increase our volunteers’ awareness of poverty on a global scale, providing the opportunity of exposing themselves to a different cultural context.

Three service trips were organised in the past three years, with over 150 volunteers taking part, three village schools have been constructed. These opened up the doors of studying English to 530 Cambodian children.

Target Beneficiaries - since 2009Khmer CommunitiesApart from construction work, which includes building village schools and refurbishment of the New Futures Orphanage, our work also involves English teaching and Art projects. They were initiated by pre-trips in summer and the careful planning before our trip before Christmas arrives.

VolunteersOne of the goals that Project Little Dream aspires to achieve is to increase our volunteers’ awareness of global poverty and provide them with a hands-on experience working in Cambodia. We promoted our recruitment via Facebook and emails. Volunteers recruited had highly diversed and international backgrounds.

students benefit from our newly-built schools530students have been taught in our English classes380children benefit from our bathroom- buildingprojects

360

volunteers were recruited to participate in our projects127

days working and experiencing life under the Cambodian sun

89

Department of

Public RelationsDirector of PR Gabriel Pak

(East Asian Studies, University of Cambridge)

PR Officers Hidy Chan(Medicine, University of Hong Kong)

Crystal Cheng(Cheltenham Ladies’ College)

Luke Lee(Medicine, University of Hong Kong)

Director of Design Alex Lau(Design, Hong Kong Polytechnic University)

Designer Connie Pun(Design, Hong Kong Polytechnic University)

Marketing and SalesDirector of Marketing and Sales John Mak

(University of Edinburgh)

Marketing and Sales OfficersDavid Leo

(Finance, London School of Economics)

Ivy Wong (Psychology, Chinese University of Hong Kong)

Veronica Yung(Accounting and Finance, Durham University)

The founding committee of Project Little Dream consists of 15 students from 10 universities around the world.Apart from the executive committee, Project Little Dream is further divided into 4 departments with different responsibilities.

Chairperson James Mak(Architectural Association School of Architecture)

Vice Chairperson Denise So(Medicine, University of Hong Kong)

Executive Directors Joyce Mak(Management, Imperial College London)

Jenny Siu(Engineering and Business, University College London)

Executive Secretary Sheena Wong (Philosophy, Politics and Economics, University of Oxford)

Treasurer Tommy Wong(Accounting and Finance, Durham University)

Little Dreamers

Human ResourcesDirector of HR Clara Chung

(Urban Planning, Columbia University)

Recruitment Officers Stephanie Kwok (Medicine, Chinese University of Hong Kong)

Mabel Fung(International Relations, Brown University)

Events Officer Jacqueline Cheung(Product Design, Hong Kong Polytechnic University)

Project Officer Joyce Ming(Medicine, University of New England)

Research and DevelopmentDirector of R&D Francis Wong

(Architectural Studies, Chinese University of Hong Kong)

R&D Officers (Architecture)Alison Cheng

(Architectural Studies, Chinese University of Hong Kong)

Anthony Chu(Architectural Studies, University of Hong Kong)

Nelson Huen(Architectural Studies, Chinese University of Hong Kong)

R&D Officer (Education) Gladys Chan(Psychology and East Asian Studies, New York University)

R&D Officers (Health Care) John Law(Physiological Sciences, University of Oxford)

Rebecca Leo (Biomedical Sciences, Imperial College London)

Minnie Yung (Medicine, Chinese University of Hong Kong)

PublicationsIn the past three years, we have gained a fair amount of media coverage regarding our projects, including features in a university newsletter, a magazine blog and a print magazine. This has effectively enabled us to reach a wider audience. These can be found in the “Press” section of our website.

Press: http://www.littledream.org/news-press.php

AwardsProject Little Dream was awarded the Perspective Magazine “40 under 40” 2012 for Architecture. This is an award for recognising the design talents of people who are under the age of 40. It was awarded to us as a recognition for our collaboration with local NGOs to build three village schools in Takeo, Cambodia, providing education for over 500 children.

HKU Dialogue - Issue 2 [2nd January 2011]

South China Morning Post Young Post [11th March 2011]

Perspective Magazine Blog [5th March 2012]

Perspective Magazine Blog [27th April 2012]

Perspective Magazine [May 2012]

EventsOpen Day 2011 - 31st July 2011The Open Day is an annual event that aims to share our work and introduce upcoming projects. Open Day 2011 was held on 31st July 2011 at Think. Café in Causeway Bay.

The main objective of Open Day 2011 was to recruit new volunteers for Project 2011. Four stations were set up in the venue to promote different aspects of Project Little Dream.

1. Volunteers’ SharingStaff and previous volunteers introduced past experiences in Cambodia, shared stories and answered questions of potential new faces.

2. Village School ModelsModels of our previous schools were on display. The Research and Development team members were on hand to discuss the development of designs and on site implementations.

3. Participatory PhotographyPhotographs by Khmer children and volunteers displayed in the exhibition “Perspectives of Seeing: Participatory Photography in Takeo, Cambodia” were set up.

4. K-cement BagsThe first batch of bags created from recycled cement bags used in our construction in Cambodia were available for sale.

CU /HKU Exhibition - 24-26 October/14-19 November 2011Exhibition materials introducing our previous construction projects in Prey Run and Kh’na Rong villages were set up in public areas of both universities. Staff members were stationed around the exhibition areas to introduce passerbys to our organisation and projects, and to encourage them to join us on our trips.

Like last year, an art installation was planned for the third village school to be built in Thon Mun village. Passersby were asked to spell some words using plastic alphabet letters as a symbol of blessing and well wishes to the Khmer children. The words spelt would be brought to Cambodia, strung together and hung from the ceiling of the newly built school.

Warwick HKPASS sharing - 10th March 2012Hong Kong Public Affairs and Social Service Society (HKPASS) from University of Warwick, invited some little dreamers to share their experience with the members of their society. A picture story of the latest work construction work in Takeo was presented along with short presentations about the organisation and sharing from each little dreamer. A question and answer session in the end allowed any questions to be addressed for those who are interested.

Supporting OrganisationsLSECSThe Chinese Societies of LSE, UCL, IC and KCL got together and organised a talent show on 13th March 2012 as a fundraising event for Project Little Dream.

MOSAICMOSAIC, an a cappella group from the University of Hong Kong, hosted their annual music concert “iMosaic” on the 2nd and 3rd of March 2012. Profits from the event were all donated to Project Little Dream.

Cambodia 2011 - Project Review

Service Trip OverviewHaving conducted several survey trips in summer 2011, situation of project sites were carefully assessed, logistical details were finalised and materials for construction were ordered. It was decided that Project 2011 would be divided into two periods of 11-days.

Volunteer RecruitmentAfter several survey trips made by staff members, the manpower required was decided and the recruitment process was launched and promoted through Open Day 2011, our official website and our Facebook page. We received a record-high number of applications, and 34 volunteers were chosen from a pool of 74 applicants. The volunteers were mostly undergraduate students (from schools in Hong Kong, UK, USA, Australia and New Zealand), and their ages ranged from 16 to 35 years.

Hong Kong, 94%

Singapore, 6%

Where are our volunteers from?

Hong Kong

Singapore

Hong Kong, 62% UK, 18%

USA, 9%

Australia, 6% New Zealand, 6%

Where are our students studying or employed?

Hong Kong

UK

USA

Australia

New Zealand

Project A - School Construction, Thon Mun VillageThon Mun Village, with a large population of 500 households, was chosen to be the location of our third village school. Located 11 km from the West of Provincial Takeo Town, this school was estimated to serve 250 children.

DesignThe village school is a place free for everyone to use. To reflect this, it was designed in such as a way that there are no solid walls separating the inside from the outside. Instead, the walls consist of bamboo columns, creating a permeable envelope for the classrooms and the library.

Between the two classrooms, a space is reserved for a pathway down to the lake. With the best view of the area, this is also the gathering point of the classrooms and is flanked by the mini library. The school children sit along the wooden platform, playing, reading and practising their newly-learnt language skills with their friends.

SustainabilityTo promote sustainability in rural Cambodia, we also designed the building to be energy-efficient. The following design features were implemented:

1. Double roofA gap between the roofs separates the heat absorbed from the upper roof, making the rooms cooler below.

2. Raised wooden platformThis also creates a gap between the ground and the floor, avoiding the direct transfer of heat absorbed from the ground

3. Light-coloured Bamboo wallSpace between the bamboo columns allows full ventilation, the west-to-east wind bringing fresh cool air into the rooms. At the same time, it also allows a controlled amount of sunlight to illuminate the rooms with natural lighting.

4. Local MaterialsThe main building materials used are wood and bamboo from the local market, with decreased dependence.

ConstructionConstruction took place over 22 days, from 17 Dec 2011 to 7 Jan 2012. Before the service trip in December 2011, staff members also made survey trips to assess the site, source materials and modify the school design.

60 volunteers from Hong Kong were assisted by 10 local workers. The workers provided expertise, guidance, and managed the most demanding tasks; our volunteers and staff provided manpower and a lot of sweat!

Logistics included planning transportation and preparing lunch boxes for all volunteers, who were divided into small teams under staff members. This allowed better organization, safety and efficient work.

All materials were personally inspected and selected by the architectural team, then individually treated by our volunteers. This included sanding wood, running a ‘bamboo spa’ - washing and smoothing 3000 pieces of bamboo!

A Day in the Life of a VolunteerEvery morning, our volunteers would take a 50-minute Tuk-Tuk ride to Thon Mun village, and spend the day engaged in construction work in the company of a few local builders and the village children. Volunteers took part in various building-related works daily, from laying the foundation to mixing concrete, from washing the bamboo to hammering nails, from sanding wood to placing an art installation. The day’s work would end at sunset.

In the evening, activities such as photo sharings and movie nights took place, which allowed volunteers to share their thoughts and to encourage discussion on issues such as non-governmental organizations, Cambodian history and service work, to name but a few.

Project B - Toilet Construction, Kh’na Rong VillagePurposeThis project took place in Kh’na Rong Village, where we built our second village school last year. The school serves around 60-70 students, and with no toilets nearby, it posed a serious potential hygiene problem to the area. To optimize the learning environment, we decided to build 2 toilet cubicles beside the school. Children were also taught basic sanitation principles as part of the school’s curriculum.

Water Harvesting SystemIn the toilet built in Prey Run Village during Project 2011, water needed to be carried from outside sources to the water storage basin within the cubicles for flushing of toilets. In order to remove this labour-intensive procedure from the daily maintenance required, and also to encourage children to wash their hands, the design of the toilet for Kh’na Rong village was modified.

A water harvesting system was built to allow the automatic collection and redirection of rainwater to two storage basins - one placed inside the cubicles for toilet flushing, the other placed outside the cubicles for hand washing. Four extra basins were placed outside the toilet to collect water overflown from the main storage basins, serving as extra water sources for the landlady

Similar to the toilet built in Prey Run Village, a locally made septic tank was used to store waste. However, a better sewage system was used to allow easier removal of water left on the ground from hand washing and toilet cleaning.

Refurbishment of SchoolIn addition to the construction of the toilet, to combat existing problems, we refurbished and improved the school structure, most significantly the footing of some of the wooden pillars and termite varnishing.

Volunteer InvolvementLocal technicians and builders were hired to supervise and assist the construction of the toilet, especially when technical expertise was required.

Construction took place over 22 days. As there were quite a lot of demanding details involved in the installation of toilets, volunteers mainly provided raw labour in completing tasks such as shaving wood, carrying sand for cement, ploughing fields to collect soil and transporting the soil to the toilet construction area to flatten the land. After the construction was completed, our volunteers also designed and painted the walls of the toilet, together with local children.

Photo Discovery ProjectFollowing the success of last year’s photography project “Perspectives of Seeing: Participatory Photography in Takeo, Cambodia”, we continued to promote sharing through photography. Every 2 days, volunteers were given a word to inspire their photo, which was taken during service hours. The words, such as “blue” and “freedom”, were intended to be open-ended, which prompted volunteers to think outside the box. Staff members lead discussions about issues such as non-governmental organizations’ role in poverty alleviation and the effects of Cambodia’s history on education. Volunteers were further encouraged to self-evaluate and reflect on the value of their involvement with charitable work.

Financial Report2012-2013 (Budget)

HKD HKD HKD HKD HKD HKD99,805.76 99,805.76 160,914.86

Note 1 10,000.00 8,041.84 10,000.00 Oxford fund-raising concert - - -

80,000.00 49,700.00 50,000.00

Note 2 - 20,000.00 40,000.00 Chief Sponsor of the Year Note 3 - - 370,000.00

Note 4 150,000.00 246,470.00 - Note 5 25,000.00 25,000.00 - Note 6 10,000.00 10,000.00 -

Mosaic Annual Concert Note 7 - - - LSE Chinese Society - one. Campaign Note 7 - - -

275,780.00 359,271.84 470,000.00 375,585.76 459,077.60 630,914.86

Note 816,000.00 24,443.91 -

Note 9 125,000.00 202,783.15 300,000.00 1,000.00 - -

Note 10 20,000.00 20,000.00 36,000.00 162,000.00 247,227.06 336,000.00

Note 11 3,709.00 5,028.50 10,000.00

Secretarial services 1,700.00 1,700.00 1,700.00 Filing annual return 1,250.00 1,250.00 1,250.00

Note 12 3,000.00 604.50 3,000.00

Survey trip Note 13 15,000.00 36,986.56 40,000.00

Note 14Bank service charge - 950.62 1,000.00 Office Equipment 3,000.00 3,633.00 10,000.00 Sundry expenses - 782.50 1,000.00

28,159.00 50,935.68 67,950.00 190,159.00 298,162.74 403,950.00

185,426.76 160,914.86 226,964.86

185,426.76 160,914.86 226,964.86

2011-2012 (Actual)

Gross (Budgeted) surplus of the year

(Budgeted) balance c/f

Publication/Printed mattersResearch & development

Other expenditure

(Budgeted) total expenditures of the year

Project B: Village Community Centre ConstructionProject C: Teaching & Art ProjectStaff Subsidy

General expenditure of the yearInformation dayProfessional services

(Budgeted) net working capital

(Budgeted) expenditure of the year

Costs of service trip - Cambodia 2011Project A: Toilets Construction

Subsidies fromOxford and Cambridge Society of Hong Kong - Scholarship Grant Awards 2011-2012

Shun Lung Yan Chak Foundation LimitedMake A Difference (MaD) Award 2011 - Merit Prize (Student Category)CUHK Convocation Outstanding Creativity Awards for the Humanities 2010/2011

Fund-raising eventsK-Cement products marketing and sales campaign

Individual donation

2011-2012 (Budget)

Balance b/f

(Budgeted) Income of the year

2012-2013 (Budget)HKD HKD HKD HKD HKD HKD

99,805.76 99,805.76 160,914.86

Note 1 10,000.00 8,041.84 10,000.00 Oxford fund-raising concert - - -

80,000.00 49,700.00 50,000.00

Note 2 - 20,000.00 40,000.00 Chief Sponsor of the Year Note 3 - - 370,000.00

Note 4 150,000.00 246,470.00 - Note 5 25,000.00 25,000.00 - Note 6 10,000.00 10,000.00 -

Mosaic Annual Concert Note 7 - - - LSE Chinese Society - one. Campaign Note 7 - - -

275,780.00 359,271.84 470,000.00 375,585.76 459,077.60 630,914.86

Note 816,000.00 24,443.91 -

Note 9 125,000.00 202,783.15 300,000.00 1,000.00 - -

Note 10 20,000.00 20,000.00 36,000.00 162,000.00 247,227.06 336,000.00

Note 11 3,709.00 5,028.50 10,000.00

Secretarial services 1,700.00 1,700.00 1,700.00 Filing annual return 1,250.00 1,250.00 1,250.00

Note 12 3,000.00 604.50 3,000.00

Survey trip Note 13 15,000.00 36,986.56 40,000.00

Note 14Bank service charge - 950.62 1,000.00 Office Equipment 3,000.00 3,633.00 10,000.00 Sundry expenses - 782.50 1,000.00

28,159.00 50,935.68 67,950.00 190,159.00 298,162.74 403,950.00

185,426.76 160,914.86 226,964.86

185,426.76 160,914.86 226,964.86

2011-2012 (Actual)

Gross (Budgeted) surplus of the year

(Budgeted) balance c/f

Publication/Printed mattersResearch & development

Other expenditure

(Budgeted) total expenditures of the year

Project B: Village Community Centre ConstructionProject C: Teaching & Art ProjectStaff Subsidy

General expenditure of the yearInformation dayProfessional services

(Budgeted) net working capital

(Budgeted) expenditure of the year

Costs of service trip - Cambodia 2011Project A: Toilets Construction

Subsidies fromOxford and Cambridge Society of Hong Kong - Scholarship Grant Awards 2011-2012

Shun Lung Yan Chak Foundation LimitedMake A Difference (MaD) Award 2011 - Merit Prize (Student Category)CUHK Convocation Outstanding Creativity Awards for the Humanities 2010/2011

Fund-raising eventsK-Cement products marketing and sales campaign

Individual donation

2011-2012 (Budget)

Balance b/f

(Budgeted) Income of the year

Notes

1. With the satisfactory results from 2010-11 K-cement campaign, we will continue and expand out marketing and sales campaign with the assistance of a group of 11 design students from The Hong Kong Polytechnic University supported by Dr. Y.K. Ching Memorial Scholarship for Service-Learning. The income projection is based on the increase in human capital and resources that will be invested in the project.

2. Two Oxford and Cambridge Society of Hong Kong - Scholarship Grant Awards 2011-12 was granted to our student representative from University of Oxford, who will be leading our healthcare research work with half ($20000) of the funding. Our student representative from University of Cambridge will be utilising the second half ($20000) of the funding in general expenditure of the year in support of the organisation’s administrative works.

3. We are actively looking for this year’s sponsor who would like to support our work in the upcoming service trip - Cambodia 2012, in the construction of Village Community Centre in Thnouh Village, Takeo, Cambodia. This specific funding will be dedicated to pre-trip survey, staff subsidy, and entire construction cost of the project. Please see below for expenditure breakdown and notes.

4. Shun Lung Yan Chak Foundation Limited was our main sponsor last year, dedicated to the entire project costs in Cambodia 2011.

5. MaD Award 2011 comprised of $25000-worth flight tickets from Cathay Pacific Airlines.6. The CUHK Award for the Humanities will be dedicated to our Research and Development

Department in architectural and healthcare research.7. Two generous student organisations would like to donate the profits from of their

fundraising campaign to Project Little Dream. 8. The budgeted costs of Cambodia 2012 is estimated based on the actual costs of Cambodia

2011. Since Thnouh Village Community Centre and School would require toilet facilities, the project costs includes both expenditure. The increase in expenditure is also accounted for the increase in scale of the village, hence, accommodating estimated 20% more students than Thon Mun Village centre completed in Cambodia 2011.

9. Similar to last year, we plan to construct a Community Centre in Thnouh Village, accommodating primary school classrooms, a theatre area and a library. This building will also serve the 20% more amount of students and villagers.

10. Part of the project expenses include the travel expenses of a minimum of 8 staff members which will facilitate the entire construction process in Takeo during Cambodia 2012. Their responsibilities include architectural and engineering supervision, volunteer logistics management and 2 full-time summer internship benefits. This subsidy will also cover expenses to staff volunteers who experience financial hardship in participating Cambodia 2012.

11. Information Day (Open Day) 2011 was held in Think. Cafe in Causeway Bay, participated by more than 100 visitors. With the support of design students from Hong Kong Polytechnic University, we are planning to hold a 3-day exhibition followed by an Open Day as a finale. Estimated number of visitor this year will double of that of last year.

12. Purpose-oriented leaflets will be printed for Volunteer Recruitment, Donation and K-cement products as well as general information leaflets of Project Little Dream.

13. Survey Trip held twice a year for 4 members to carry out in-depth site survey and material sourcing.

14. Other expenditure is budgeted for bank transfer services and logistics.

AcknowledgementsOn behalf of the Khmer children from Kh’na Rong Village, Thon Mun VIllage and New Futures Orphanage, and volunteers, we would like to express our heartfelt gratitude to the Shun Lung Yan Chak Foundation Limited who supported us in Project 2011. Without your support and participation,the school would not have been able to come to life. Looking ahead, we anticipate there will be more projects to come in villages of Takeo and soon reaching out to other parts of Southeast Asia.

We hope this report contains adequate information on Cambodia 2011. Should there be any queries, please do not hesitate to contact us. We would love to hear your comments, suggestions and questions, or to assist you in any way you require.

James Mak, Chairperson, james.mak@littledream.org+44 07760420620 / +852 9833 8005

Denise So, Vice-chairperson (HK), denise.so@littledream.org+852 6127 3888