Since 2015, a share of what we do has gone into homes and schools in rural Cambodia, and scholarships and financial literacy for Australian women.
In 2017, Emma and three friends founded Houses4Cambodia to expand their support of the Global Village Housing projects they had been backing since 2015.
Global Village Housing is the Australian social enterprise behind these homes. Its founder, Jason Thatcher, spent years living and travelling through rural Cambodia by motorbike before designing an environmentally, culturally and economically friendly home that can be built in a single day. At its heart, it is Australians employing and empowering Cambodians to help Cambodians.
Together they have funded homes for families in rural Cambodia and two school projects in Battambang province, supporting more than 500 children with classrooms, clean water and everyday essentials.
Houses4Cambodia founded. Emma and three friends launch the initiative to fund the GVH school project. A fundraising dinner raises over $30,000 to rebuild the Battambang school, turning a dirt shack into solid walls, a clean-water well, toilets and a playground.
The Tractor School is built. On newly cleared land: two new classrooms, teaching resources, a fresh-water well, toilets and a playground for the school children and their community.
The Kids Project. Sydney children raise over $12,000 at the Kids 4 Cambodia Bingo Night, hand-deliver bikes and school supplies across Battambang province, and fund two more GVH homes.
“We get just as much out of our involvement with GVH as they do, and can make a direct and lasting impact on these communities, changing the world for one family at a time.”
Emma Allen, Founder, API
Improving financial literacy is one of the clearest ways we can create lasting change. Emma is a contributing author in the Amazon best-selling anthologies Back Yourself and The Women Changing the World. Profits from Back Yourself fund scholarships for women through the Women's Business Collective.
Emma also co-hosts the Property Boss Mums podcast, sharing practical conversations about wealth, business and building financial confidence.
A share of what we earn, turned into homes, schools and everyday essentials for families in rural Cambodia since 2015.
16+
Homes across 3 provinces
500+
Children supported
$100k+
Contributed to the projects
Since 2015
With Global Village Housing
It's almost ten years since that first school. A new chapter may be on the horizon, with Emma and the original team exploring a return to Cambodia to fundraise and build again. We'll share more as the project takes shape.
A new book featuring a chapter from Emma on authentic leadership is due for release in late 2026. Sharing knowledge has always been part of Active Property Investing's philosophy, and this is another opportunity to pass on the lessons learned over more than a decade in property and business.
We'll share more as the release approaches.
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