How To Do Just About Everything
By eHow Travel Editor
Rate: (2 Ratings)
Volunteering abroad allows you to visit other countries while providing an unselfish service to others.
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Comments
ByHisGrace said
on 12/22/2006 We have a home in Stroud Ok for women 18 and older, who are pregnant or single mothers, coming out of/ experiencing situations of abuse, drugs, homelessness,etc. If anyone comes in contact with someone needing our services (whom you feel are ready to make some changes in their lifestyle) Please contact(or have them contact us) at Marantha Center (981)987-0777 or you can write us at Marantha Center P.O. Box 321 Stroud Ok 74079. Thank you for you time.
Anonymous said
on 11/30/2005 Your want to help is NOT enough for you to be able to volunteer abroad. The priority is to fill gaps in skills and experience, NOT to give you an outlet for your desire to help. Remember: it's much more beneficial to local people to hire local people to serve food, build houses, educate young people, etc., than to bring in an outside volunteer.
That isn't to say volunteers from abroad still aren't needed. To volunteer overseas, you need to have skills and experience that are critically needed in a particular region.
Skills that are looked for in potential international volunteers:
-- experience working in another language. For instance, not just that you took two years of high school Spanish, but that you have traveled extensively in Spanish-speaking countries, or that you use at least some Spanish in your job.
-- experience in training others in a particular area of expertise. For instance, teaching elderly people to use the Internet, teaching family members to care for a person with HIV/AIDS, teaching children about good sanitary practices or peaceful conflict resolution, teaching your entire department at work to use a new, complicated database program, teaching adults to read, etc.
-- experience working with people who are traditionally socially-excluded, such as immigrants, people with disabilities, etc. Or, other specific populations who may have special needs, such as women, children or the elderly.
-- experience in high stress, crisis situations, such as in a disaster or a conflict situation.
It's worth noting that any experience relating to educating people, particularly children, about HIV/AIDS, will be highly appreciated in potential volunteer candidates.
You can get the above experience locally, by:
-- taking language courses, working to be certified in that language by the official language body, such as DELE for Spanish, and creating opportunities to use your language skills
-- volunteering at local nonprofit organizations that serve high poverty areas, people with disabilities, youth, the elderly, abused women, women re-entering the workforce, etc.
-- taking emergency response courses through the American Red Cross
One final note: the longer-term commitment you can make to volunteering overseas (at least three months), the more likely you will be chosen as such a volunteer.