See, Lat, and their three children forage for fish and mushrooms as they try to hold on to their traditional values and way of life in the Areng Valley of Cambodia.
The people of Cambodia’s Areng Valley have lived on the same forested land for over six centuries—land that produces an abundance of food and is thought to be inhabited by spirits. In the act of foraging from the forest, one seeks permission before taking and never takes more than one needs. This code of respect and reciprocity ensures that “by taking less, one is promised more.”
After the traumatic rise and fall of the Khmer Rouge regime gave way to a market economy, local residents have become incentivized to cut down the forest. Now, many are moving into a way of life in which “by taking more, one is promised less.”
But some of the valley’s original inhabitants still hold a sacred relationship with the land. In this multimedia story, Filmmaker Kalyanee Mam follows See, Lat, and their three children as they forage for fish and mushrooms and attempt to hold on to their traditional way of life.[…]
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