Many years of war have had a major impact on Cambodia's education system. During the Khmer Rouge regime, teachers and all other educated people were killed, schools were destroyed and books were burned. This has resulted in countless obstacles to the point of testing Cambodia's ability to provide young people with access to quality education. Lack of schools, exceptionally in slums like Phnom Penh, where large numbers of young children have little or no access to basic education. For these children, a lack of education can mean a life of poverty, limited opportunities and poor health. In these slums, poverty forces these children to drop out of school to support their families. Many families cannot afford the cost of transporting their children to school, so instead of letting them study, they make them work for low wages. To offset these inequalities in Phnom Penh, the NGO Attitude Center for Education (ACE) is working to implement free education programs for young people. ACE's main goal is to equip young people with the confidence and leadership skills needed to bring about positive change in Cambodia. ACE works to create a generation of leaders and supports young people to become effective role models in their communities. Strengths The Attitude Center for Education (ACE) is a local Cambodian grassroots organization working to serve hundreds of children in slum areas of Phnom Penh. They aspire to provide quality learning and access to quality education for disadvantaged youth. ACE works closely with the community, parents, volunteers and other local grassroots organizations such as Empowering Youth in Cambodia, Empowering Communities, New Future for Children and many more... middle of paper... created in the hope to inspire youth and teach them leadership skills so they can effect change in their state or community. Because education is the key to the future, ACE works to provide leadership training to disadvantaged youth in Phnom Penh with limited resources and with the hope of creating leaders of tomorrow. Mandela once stated: “Education is the most powerful weapon one can use to change the world, country or community” (2003). Education is a weapon that human beings should be armed with for the good of society as it allows each individual to use their acquired skills, talents and knowledge to innovate new technologies and form a better economy. It offers individuals the opportunity to create a better standard of living. First, it teaches people how to be “free.” It allows these individuals to use their intellect to interpret the universe.