Richard Hackman first extended stint outside of his native Canada was doing graduate research on soils and ecology in the Caribbean. Soon afterwards, in 1999, he began four years of community level volunteer work in Southeast Asia with the Canadian NGO CUSO. These placements gave him experience in northern Thailand working with indigenous Akha communities on agro-forestry, cultural promotion (language and ancestry trees) and environment, and in southern Laos as intern on an agriculture and forestry project supported by the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA). During this time, the value and spirit of volunteerism was absorbed and embraced.Fascinated with Laos, he continued to work there as the coordinator of the CIDA supported "Canada Fund for Local Initiatives". This small grants programme provided opportunities to travel throughout the country, learning about the lives, interests and needs of ethnic groups and rural people. This provided insight into the ethnic diversity of Laos and the potential for social change that community initiatives hold for indigenous people. The work illustrated the effectiveness of small-scale, flexible funding, especially when working with the newly emerging Lao civil society groups.In the last few years Richard has been working full-time with small NGOs, in central and southern Laos on a broad range of issues: land rights and tenure, legal advocacy, community forestry, REDD, agriculture, hydro-power and the Mekong River and indigenous cultures.