Good evening, everyone. It is great to see so many of you here tonight for the Wild for Life Concert! I can see the Night Market has been transformed here for this special event.

The U.S. Embassy is proud to support this concert, thanks to the hard work of the Ambassador’s Youth Council. Through their energy and creativity, my Youth Council has helped teach thousands how important it is to protect Cambodia’s precious wildlife and forests.

We all realize that Cambodia faces serious environmental challenges: hunting and selling wildlife, logging trees, and climate change are but a few. The U.S. Embassy is proud to partner with organizations like Wildlife Alliance to address these important issues.

I would like to thank Mr. John Willis and Ms. Amy Van Nice from Wildlife Alliance for your commitment to protecting Cambodia’s natural resources and for collaborating with the country’s greatest resource – its youth.

And of course, I can never say thank you enough to the members of my Youth Council. This concert is a result of your hard work and I am looking forward to continued success in the future.

This is a great opportunity for me to also encourage each of you to join the Young Southeast Asian Leaders Initiative, also known as YSEALI. YSEALI is President Obama’s signature program for youth leadership development and networking in Southeast Asia.

YSEALI is particularly strong in Cambodia, a sign of your dedication to ensuring a bright future for the country and the region. More than 1,800 Cambodians have already signed up to become YSEALI members. You can find more information on this on our Embassy Facebook page.

I know we have some fantastic music and comedy to look forward to tonight. Thanks to everyone for coming out tonight and enjoy the rest of the show!