Pedal2Empower – donate a bike and change a life!
In the developed world we ride bicycles for pleasure. In the world's poorest countries, such as Cambodia, where other forms of transportation are unaffordable to the majority of people, the bicycle can be an important tool in building a better life.
Pedal2Empower’s aim is just that, to use the pedal power of bicycles to empower Cambodia’s poorest people. Many people in rural Cambodia live a subsistence lifestyle earning around a dollar a day, thus even the purchase of a simple bicycle is out of their reach.
Very often these people are poor through no fault of their own, and there are a myriad of reasons why they find themselves in the situation that they do. The vast majority of them dream about improving their living standards and for a better future for their children but do not have the capacity to make such a future come true as they are stuck in the cycle of poverty.
It may be difficult to understand how a basic bicycle can change a persons life, but it can in various different ways. For example a bike can: make the closest school more accessible thus raising education levels in the more remote areas; make essential tasks such as collecting water and gathering firewood for cooking more efficient; improve access to healthcare facilities; be used to transport goods to the nearest market thus improving the local economy; and not forgetting, especially for children, playing on a bike is fun!
Often people visiting Cambodia for the first time are surprised at how poor the country is, and after spending time here and experiencing that poverty they wish to help in some small but meaningful way but don’t know how. Pedal2Empower was established by a local travel company, Asia Adventures, and all its clients are given the opportunity to make a donation if they wish. For those who wish to be more involved visits to the local communities that Pedal2Empower is working with can be arranged, and for the adventurous special Pedal2Empower Cambodia Cycle Tours are arranged, where not only do you get to experience this wonderful country by perhaps the best possible mode of transport, but you get to spend time with the local people and personally handover your donated bike to the happy recipient!
To see a list and short biography of all the children that have received bikes so far please click here.
For any further information please do not hesitate to contact us at info@pedal2empower.org.