To build capacity and raise awareness about women and developing affairs, DPA held two workshops on ‘Women and the Environment’ -- the first in Ratanakiri on December 15 and 16, 2009 and the second in Stung Treng on December 17 and 18.
   

 These workshops were attended by community members and community leaders, as well as 99 authorities including 44 women. The main purposes of the workshops were (1) to raise awareness in the community about mining and  its negative social and environmental impacts, particularly as these affect women; (2) to provide the opportunity to share concerns related to natural resources (land, forest, minerals, etc); (3) to strengthen solidarity and cooperation between community networks; and (4) to develop a community strategy to address the problem of social and environmental impacts from mining.
    
    Ms. Chrea Sandan, Gender and Development Officer at DPA and the facilitator of the workshop, said that “it is very important to raise our concerns for discussion because if we understand the problems at hand, we will be able to find appropriate way solutions that protect people’s livelihoods and standards of living.”
    The gender and development officer added that “It’s also a good chance for focal persons to reflect their role in natural resource protection”