About 65km north of the capital Phnom Penh, the NGO operates a unique campus on about 150 hectares with a bilingual school and kindergarten, the Farmhouse Resort, and numerous model agricultural and handicraft enterprises where the people of the region are trained and employed. The blueprint of a functioning rural community, where education and guidance to self-reliance pave the way out of the otherwise all-dominant poverty in rural Cambodia.

Growing up in the slums of Phnom Penh, the then twenty-year-old only came to the Smiling Gecko Campus by happy coincidence. Here she initially found employment as a kitchen assistant, but quickly attracted attention with her talent and unique sense of taste. Continuously encouraged and trained, she is now able to train young cooks at the Farmhouse Resort herself. And they can learn a lot from Mariya. For among her teachers are the three-star chefs Massimo Bottura, Frank Giovannini and Andreas Caminada. The latter is also the one who predicts a bright future for Mariya and her “New Khmer Cuisine.