by Winston Chua
Pasadena Rotarian Pierre Mainguy graciously stopped by to speak with The Tribune after a successful talk with the Pasadena Rotary Club last week.
The Community First Initiatives CEO received a $25,000 grant from the service organization in order to help continue drilling water wells in the village where he works, a place known as San Sok, in rural Cambodia.
Mainguy, once a financial analyst in Downtown Los Angeles, made an impressive career choice for his life’s work in 2008, when he chose to create sustainable living solutions for Cambodians who did not have adequate access to clean or usable water.
The only available water sources there were often filled with runoff from animal pollution or contaminated with pesticides. Some would have to wake up early in the morning just to compete for usable water miles away, sometimes returning empty-handed losing out not only water but a day’s work.
But just why would someone with a great job choose the path less taken?
“I was given the opportunity to touch people’s lives,” Mainguy explained. “I was given the opportunity to improve people’s lives in a significant way.”
It has now been seven years of productive work in Cambodia for Mainguy, who recently celebrated his 30th birthday. He spends a substantial portion of his timein East Asia finding out what’s important to villagers, and what’s on their priority list. He believes the local San Sok community must take ownership of the well for his work to be a success.
To that end, villagers have donated their land to be used as a source of water for the entire community. He and his team (trained inpost-war reconstruction efforts) create bore holes with pumps to create wells that can be used by villagers who no longer have to travel far distances to bathetheir children or feed their crops.
“It’s not about the paycheck, but about impact,” the International Management Institute of Paris graduate added.
Mainguy told The Tribune that he has personally witnessed significant health improvements among the villagers since 2008. Better water and larger quantities ofusable water means fewer water-borne disease like dysentery or violent diarrhea. It also means better nutrition for children and the chance for properdevelopment at the cerebral level.
Mainguy was first introduced to Cambodia through Pasadena-based philanthropy consultant John Whaley, who at the time was the Chairman of the CambodiaChildren’s Fund. Whaley offered Mainguy something he would not be able to refuse, “a chance to save lives.”
Mainguy made a very bold decision to walk away from both a lucrative career and his financial mentor Nicholas Stonnington, whom he credits for part of hisdevelopment.
Mainguy initially envisioned a social enterprise work for the people of Sen Sok, but realized social advancement would be useless to them without good health.The plight of the people there made him pay attention to the ways in which he could improve health, leading him to begin his water work.
Mainguy, who moved with his father to Pasadena in the early 2000s, was raised in France and previously lived in Redwood City. Many local organizations are apart of his mission, including Cal State Los Angeles, Pasadena City College, Pasadena Rotary, Sierra Madre Rotary and Occidental College. Students andmembers of those organizations serve as interns or volunteers for Community First Initiatives.
“I come with the furniture,” Mainguy added, meaning he is in Cambodia for the long haul. He spends half the time each year in the far east nation and half in theUnited States, where he looks to raise money for current and upcoming projects.
Mainguy’s goal is to have the Sen Sok become a sustainable village, agriculturally and financially. He and his team are introducing aquaponics to the region tothat end, reinforcing crop-based agriculture using fish farming.
One of the needs of the region is rehabilitating soil in ways that are not harmful to the environment and/or growing crops without using the land’s soil.
To learn more about Community First Initiatives and Mainguy’s work, please visit cf-asia.org.
