volunteering . Archives - True Travellers Society

Wahoe Education India – Low Cost Volunteering

May 5, 2013 by Dave Leave a Comment

Hi everyone,

So I have finally snapped and decided to vent my frustration at the growing number of Gap and volunteer abroad agencies charging thousands of dollars for volunteer work.

I myself am a director of a small NGO and really need to find volunteer but it is literally impossible for me to advertise for volunteers and get the help we need because the market is flooded with these volunteer agencies.

So I’m here to bust the scam wide open and give you all an opportunity to find very low cost or free volunteer opportunities abroad, and hopefully find a few volunteers for my own projects in the process.

I know there has been some posts on here before related issues but hopefully I can offer you some alternatives.

THE PROBLEM:

Volunteer middle-man companies (They are sure as hell not NGO’s) profiting from Gap year travelers who are trying to do some good and have a meaningful experience. They are literally charging thousands of dollars for this, and where are the profits going? Into their own pockets with very little of the funds actually going to the grassroots projects themselves.

Essentially you are paying for the ‘Security factor’ . You have never been to say India before and you are nervous about going there, you want your safety to be guaranteed and someone to look after you so nothing goes wrong right? But seriously, should your have to pay $500 to be picked up at the airport? It does not have to be like this.

The other problem is that these company’s are all over Google so when you try and look for or advertise volunteer opportunities abroad, you are confronted by them all and struggle to find any affordable placement.

THE SOLUTION:

Stay away from these company’s and never pay big dollars to volunteer. Obviously this will be difficult for the the naive volunteer who knows not of affordable volunteer placements abroad, this will always keep them in business.

You can find that cheap placement if you look hard enough online. These kind of forums are a good way to find such opportunities. Dig deep and find the local NGO’s themselves and you can find great opportunities.

WHERE YOU CAN FIND CHEAP AND FREE OPPORTUNITIES

Workaway.info, HelpX.net, Idealist.org and volunteersouthamerica.net are the BEST places to find affordable volunteer opportunities online. Very low cost, some are even free. These sights should become known to all so these middle men gap year company’s can no longer exist, making it fair to both travelers and NGO’s.

So now a little plug for our own NGO on here. Our organisation is called ‘Wahoe Education’, we are and education and development organisation operating in the north of India. We have several projects across 4 Indian states which you can volunteer at. We run 2 schools in Delhi, women’s empowerment programs in Jaipur and Delhi, village empowerment programs in Himachal Pradesh and an education project in Nautanwa, on the border of Nepal and India. They are really great projects.

The price of volunteering with us is $7US per day in Delhi, including food and lodging. The price for volunteering in one of our projects outside of Delhi is $10US per day, including food and lodging in a home-stay style environment. There are no hidden fees or registration fees. For more information please visit our website http://www.wahoeeducation.org/ and download our comprehensive volunteer pack. You can also send us a direct email if you are interested at wahoe.education@gmail.com

To save more money (if you are a student travelling with a credit card) check out these great tips from Kanetix.ca.

Filed Under: Children, India Tagged With: cheap travel, low cost volunteering, volunteer abroad, volunteering .

Teach Abroad in Cameroon

March 15, 2013 by Joshua Chiamba Leave a Comment

Educating underprivileged children is key to development and ranks as a RUDEC priority. Local classroom populations frequently reach up to 150 students. As a result, many children lack the individual attention required to succeed. To address this crisis, RUDEC staffs local schools during the academic year with volunteer teachers to provide educational expertise and to alleviate the large, student-teacher ratios in under-resourced schools. RUDEC volunteers also facilitate free, after-school tutoring programs to supplement local students’ educational progress. During the holidays, volunteers operate summer school classes, which are highly attended by local children. In order to develop the professional skills of local educators, experienced volunteers also design and facilitate seminars on best educational practices.

Skills/Knowledge/Abilities
- Intermediate level of English
- Professional experience or degree in education beneficial but not required Knowledge in primary and secondary school subjects (including English and French).

Strong communication skills
- Hard working, flexible, creative, and able to adapt where resources are limited Ability to lead educational training seminars for local teachers desired.

Tasks
- Provide in-classroom support to local teachers
- Design and teach daily lessons for the RUDEC after-school or summer program.
- Develop teaching materials as needed
- Organize schedule for students’ attendance and monitor students’ progress Design and instruct seminars for local teachers on best educational practices.

www.rudec.org

Note: There are FEES associated with volunteering with this organization, but I can’t find out what the costs are.

Filed Under: Cameroon, Children, Teach English, Volunteer Tagged With: Africa, Cameroon, cheap, volunteering .

Volunteer opportunities in the Dominican Republic

February 21, 2013 by Supporting Guasa Leave a Comment

Supporting Guasa is a charity organisation which works to help alleviate poverty in the Dominican village of Ramón Santana, also known as Guasa (Wa-sah). All our work is based on the principle that education is the root to a better future.

We have several opportunities which you can read about on our website including year round English school based teaching, an English summer school as well as a girl’s project. These are described under the “project” tab on the website.

The organisation covers volunteer accomodation and food in a host family but all other costs are covered by the volunteer, including leisure costs.

We also have some online opportunities for those who would prefer not to travel.

We look forward to hearing from you!

Filed Under: Central America Tagged With: caribbean, Dominican Republic, island, teaching, volunteering ., women's project

An Inherent Risk of Danger

January 18, 2013 by MelissaHaynes Leave a Comment

In chapter one of Tim Ward’s great adventure book, Zombies on Kilimanjaro: A Father-Son Journey Above the Clouds while discussing AMS (Acute Mountain Sickness) and the dangers of climbing Kilimanjaro, Tim’s son says the following to his father:

“You know Dad, it seems it’s not a vacation with you unless there’s a chance we’ll die.”

When I read this I knew two things: one, this was going to be a great book and two, I don’t suffer from Vacation-Attention-Deficit-Disorder after all.

Now I love the tropical, pool perching, Tequila-Sunrise sipping vacation just as much as the next person. But within a couple of days I begin to feel the itch. The itch that no matter how many laps I do in the pristine pool or how many times I hike the same stretch of white sand beach, the itch gets worse. It can’t be scratched because I need adventure. I thrive on an inherent risk of danger.

Adventure, danger, thrills and adrenaline overloads – now that’s the cat’s MEEEEEOW. Can a vacation get any better? Yes, it can by adding meaning by volunteering. This pocket of tourism is the fastest growing – it’s called Voluntourism.

I can attest from my own experience that here is nothing as rewarding and enriching as giving of oneself – believe me! You will come home refreshed, energized and more alive than when you left – your life, as mine is, may be changed forever.

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Filed Under: Articles Tagged With: melissa haynes, volunteering ., voluntourism

New eBook about Volunteering in Africa

December 20, 2012 by Volunteer 4 Africa Leave a Comment

Volunteering should be a challenging and an immensely rewarding experience; beneficial to you the volunteer as well as to the community you get involved in. But there can be pitfalls in the shape of unscrupulous agencies that charge large fees to find you a placement, and even bogus projects that don’t exist. Volunteer For Africa aims to help you avoid these pitfalls and guide you through the process of finding a project that suits your interests, whether that involves human welfare, animal conservation or environmental action.

The author is an experienced volunteer with an extensive hands-on knowledge of grassroots volunteer organizations in Africa. The organizations in the eBook have been selected not only because they offer cheap, sometimes free, volunteering opportunities, but also because the projects are seen as meaningful and worthwhile. Many of these are smaller, local organizations that rarely receive international attention. The author’s support for these organizations helps them tap into an international pool of potential volunteers. It also maximizes the benefits for local communities by ensuring as much money as possible reaches the grassroots level of society.
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