Host families are asked to provide a bed (students can share a room with a sibling), meals, love and guidance (students have their own medical insurance and spending money). Families with and without children are encouraged to apply.
Your family may choose the student who will become your new "son" or "daughter". Some of our available students include:
• Michaela, from the Czech Republic, who enjoys table tennis and is a member of the Scenic Dance Club;
• Andres, who comes from a close-knit family in Ecuador, is an aspiring doctor and enjoys horseback riding;
• Iori, from Japan, who would like to get involved in school sports once in the US and is passionate about environmental issues.
• Ana, from the Georgia Republic, would like to work in the sciences when she grows up. She is eager to share her cultural heritage, especially Georgian cuisine, to her host family.
July 12 - July 27, 2008 August 2 - August 17, 2008
September 6 - September 21, 2008
Volunteer project: The capital city of the province with the same name, Ratchaburi, is an important town in the history of Thailand. It’s organised around the Mae Klong River and dozens of man-made channels, hosting the biggest floating market of the country: Damnoen Saduak. The district administration wants to sensitize the inhabitants of the sector about the environmental protection of this important historical, economical and tourist place and support the linguistic development of the population of this area.
The volunteers will be part of the environmental campaign of the Damnoen Saduak district administration in contributing to the cleaning of the Klongs (channels) around the old floating market, together with the locals. Additionally, they will hold English language courses and workshops for the main primary and secondary school of the zone.
Study theme: The volunteers will learn about the history of the city and historically relevant province. The life around the channels and floating market is very specific and interesting. Thai language lessons will also be given.
Special requirements: The volunteers shouldn’t be afraid to get dirty for the first part of the project but no specific requirements are asked. A decent level of English language and the will to teach it to kids is necessary. The volunteers need also to be motivated to discover Thai culture and to present the one of their country of origin.
Location: Ratchaburi Province, Centre of Thailand. Klong Ratchaburi province is in the centre of Thailand, stuck between Myanmar and the Gulf of Thailand, Ratchaburi city is about 100 km south-west of Bangkok, 50 km from the coast and 100 km from the Burmese border.
The project aims to implement an integral program for the life and work conditions of the kids and the young people at risk; to promote their development, protection, vigilance of the kids' rights and to contribute to the politics' social offers. If you are open minded and flexible, you will enjoy your experience.
The volunteer work will depend on the skills of the international volunteers, their interests, their specialties, but in general, here are the planned activities:
- To work with kids at the zone where they develop their work. To develop an education program to help youth.
- To develop workshops with the kids. To impulse the workshops training.
- Workshops with families. To implement workshops like handicraft, bakery, music, dance, and paint workshops.
Spare time activities and interaction with local people: In the workcamps a high interaction with the local population is encouraged, volunteers will share time, work and fun with the local youngsters of the communities and will learn about their way of living, their feelings, the way they see life and also will share with them in an intercultural exchange, very enriching for everybody involved, and also will discover some of the hidden places of Peru not known by tourists. These places are known only by the local people and every week the volunteers with the camp leader will organize spare time activities with the local youngsters.
In the workcamps it is possible to organize circles of conversation in Spanish with local youngsters, with the objective to help the international volunteers to learn Spanish and Quechua and also to share with the Peruvian youngsters your knowledge of English or your native language.
Camp language: Official language is English, but at least a basic knowledge of Spanish is recommended, as in Ayacucho most of the people in the community do not speak English.
Volunteer project: Situated on the west coast (Arabian Sea), lies this small touristic state of India. Goa was the former Portuguese colony in India, one of India's most cherished and prominent places for travelers since many years for its remarkable palm-fringed beaches; a travelers paradise. But Goa is also known to be a high-risk zone for HIV/AIDS and sexually transmitted diseases due to a high rate of sexual tourism. To tackle the problem of the rapid spread of these diseases, awareness program has been conducted all throughout the state for several years with a local group of specialists. This year again several volunteer workcamps will be conducted.
In the first week of the camp, the volunteers will be given a training on the topics HIV/AIDS, STDs, and counseling. Using the information that was given in the training, they will visit local schools and conduct lectures. Furthermore to reach out to the general public, the group of volunteers will create a Street Theatre Play that will be performed in public places. In 2005 the international volunteers, with their own creativity, efforts and motivation created a play that won the first prize in the state theatre competition.
Age requirements: Volunteers should be 18 and over
t. 604-628-7400 