CAMBODIA/INDIA. Soulcial Trust, the Siem Reap-based charity focusing on social and environmental issues, has attracted increased support from companies in the travel retail industry.
India’s Bommidala Group and Swiss research agency m1nd-set have renewed their support for the Trust’s wheelchair sports programmes. The UK-based Edrington Group and TFWA, via its TFWA CARE charity, are new sponsors.
Soulcial Trust, which was founded by Asia Pacific Travel Retail Association (APTRA) Executive Officer Michael Barrett, is supported by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). The charity is expanding its XLability adaptive sports programme in Cambodia and India where it aims to educate, engage, and empower disadvantaged communities people with disabilities.
The latest funding will go towards the development of adaptive sports and other related projects in the Soulcial Trust XLability disability awareness and empowerment programme. This includes an educational course, inclusive sports, an international wheelchair sports exchange, and employment support.
“Wheelchair basketball, one of Soulcial Trust’s long-term initiatives, facilitates the integration of people with disabilities into society,” Soulcial Trust said.
“It provides a platform where people with and without disabilities alike can socialise. With the support from the travel retail industry, players will also have the opportunity to partake in an upcoming international tournament held in Bali, Indonesia in July.”
In India, the Trust will launch indoor sports training, for both wheelchair basketball and rugby. “This will be a game-changer for the players who until now train outdoors and are not able to train for weeks at a time due to the intense heat and monsoon season,” Soulcial Trust added.
In addition to wheelchair basketball in Cambodia, Soulcial Trust has launched twice-weekly blind football training sessions with approximately 20 visually-impaired students, aged from eight to 15, at local NGO school Krousar Thmey. Soulcial Trust said students have developed their skills and confidence through the sessions, which are supported by a Khmer-speaking French football coach.
Soulcial Trust Programmes Director Julie Webb said: “The further we develop our disability programme, the more we realise how important the needs are for the disability community to be heard and for their challenges to be addressed. The tight links between social inclusion, employment and access to basic needs point out the necessity to work on all those aspects simultaneously to ensure a higher and more sustainable impact on the communities.”
Webb said the trust addresses issues brought about by social exclusion and prejudices.
“Soulcial Trust adopts a holistic and comprehensive approach, designing a wide range of connected projects. The disability programme also includes an education course for school children and an employment support project. These projects complement the development of adaptive sports, facilitating social inclusion through awareness and empowerment.”