Former Loggers and Poachers Help Guard Cambodia's Cardamom Mountains

Located a six-hour bus ride west of Phnom Penh, the Cardamom mountain range in Cambodia serves as one of the largest unfragmented rainforest corridors in mainland south-east Asia. The region is recognized as a sanctuary for rare and endangered wildlife and contains ancient burial grounds alongside historical sites dating back to the late 1980s. Alongside armed government rangers who enforce national park laws, deep-seated animist traditions contribute to forest protection by designating vast areas as untouchable.

Local communities such as Chi Phat have adapted their relationship with the environment in response to economic and environmental pressures. Founded in 2007 by the Wildlife Alliance, the Chi Phat ecotourism community operates affordable excursions and treks into the mountains, supported by an overnight base camp located by the Stung Preat river.

Many individuals participating in the ecotourism project previously worked as loggers, poachers, and hunters. Among them is a 60-year-old forest cook known as Mr Crab, who formerly drove trucks for commercial loggers transporting timber out of the region before shifting to conservation and promotion work.

Khmer spirituality and animism remain integrated into daily life in the area. Throughout the mountains, local guides point out sacred sites, such as a shrine situated on a stone along the Preak Piphot River dedicated to Lok Ta Esey Tmar Andet, which local belief holds protects the waterway.