Black Tears

Charcoal Extraction

In Cambodia, charcoal production is largely informal, with workers burning hardwood in earthen kilns for domestic use and local trade. In rural forests, men and women carry heavy logs, build kilns by hand, and tend smoldering fires for days, their hands blackened and blistered. Fragile charcoal is then extracted and hauled to markets, each piece reflecting grueling labor and human resilience. While it provides vital income, the process drives deforestation, remains unregulated, and imposes heavy ecological costs.