An illustrated children’s book “Jorani and the Green Vegetable Bugs” has been published in Khmer language to teach children and teachers in rural areas about integrated pest management (IPM) in upland crops and the positive impacts on the environment and human health in Cambodia. The project involves introducing the Jorani Project to school directors and teachers; development of a teacher guide; implementation in schools; and celebration and public launch. Further books in the series are planned to teach the benefits of other sustainable land management practices. The project targets five primary schools in northwestern Cambodia in the district of Samlout in Battambang Province where the Maddox Jolie-Pitt Foundation (MJP), in collaboration with the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport (MoEYS) is working to strengthen primary education for all school-aged boys and girls. The potential to achieve the stated agricultural extension and primary education objectives will be evaluated after completion of the pilot project. Social network analysis will be used to test the effectiveness of the proposed learning environment model. Depending on the findings, a Life Skills framework for rural primary schools will presented to the MoEYS for endorsement and roll-out to primary schools in other Districts and Provinces in Cambodia.

In this study, we conducted a fact-finding investigation on the worship pattern and utilization of Da-shu gong (a long-lived sacred tree) in Taichung City, Taiwan in order to consider how tree worship places should be passed down to next generations in East Asia. The study revealed that most Da-shu gongs are enshrined with Tu-di gong (a land god) in their sites and that the number of Da-shu gongs per urban village represents not much difference by district although urban areas are likely to have fewer Da-shu gongs than suburbans. In most of the sites where Da-shu gong is worshiped with Tu-di gong, their local administration committee has been doing daily maintenance activities, with the range of utilization broadened, and non-daily activities, such as festivals and feasts, with the utilization more active. Da-shu gong standing in a park managed by Taichung City offers a broader range of utilization forms and the tree itself is given great care for growth. Moreover, the study suggests that Da-shu gong can contribute to local communities environmentally, socially and economically. If an administration committee is responsible for maintaining a place of tree worship and collaborates with local governments in doing so, the place of tree worship would be more secured, and we could enhance its value environmentally, socially and economically.