This post is part of my Social Good Sunday series. It is a guest post from Alicia Rice who is living in Thailand working on a documentary film about the people living in the slum communities of Khon Kaen. This is a post about her work. 

A man from a slum community making baskets from recycled material. Photo credit: Author.

I came to Thailand as a study abroad student in 2008.  For four months, we learned about globalization and development projects in Northeastern Thailand, the poorest region of the area.  We read studies and got the chance to talk with government officials and company representatives. But the most important parts of our education were always getting the chance to talk with villagers.  We got the chance to sleep in the houses and get to know the people who’s houses were being threatened, or who’s farm was being taken away.

There was one moment in particular that really stood out to me.  As American students, we were often left with the question of what we could do, or more importantly, what we should do.

The more you learn about social justice work abroad, the more you learn the importance of people to be empowered and solve their issues themselves.  It left me feeling helpless and puzzled.