Tel. +44 (0)1273 600030 (UK)
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This trip:
We employ a local manager to co-ordinate all of the arrangements for your programme, which is based in a remote area that does not rely on tourism. As such, your actions can positively and directly influence the local economy, society and culture, whilst allowing you the opportunity to have close interactions with local people. By shopping at markets and seeking locally produced goods and services your presence will have a positive impact on the local economy.
In addition, funds are given to the school for the accommodation and food that they provide, and some of this goes to a caretaker who will maintain cleanliness in your accommodation and prepare typical Malaysian cuisine for you. You’ll live alongside teachers and pupils which will give you the opportunity for cultural interaction and integration into the community – there is no doubt that this will be a highlight of the experience. You will be briefed on customs and cultures before and on your arrival, affording you an understanding of Malay culture which will guide your interactions with local people.
Our company:
Our volunteers work directly with communities and in the majority of our countries, our staff force in-destination are locally employed workers. We are responsible for over 100 overseas staff in 20 different countries. We ensure that all new projects are researched fully, considering the local economic and cultural factors as well as the level of impact. We do not embark on any project that is not beneficial to the communities, institutes or volunteers.
Our UK office minimizes waste; our extranet site provides volunteers with documents and correspondence electronically. For each brochure that is downloaded instead of printed, we donate 50p to worthwhile tree planting projects. We recycle and staff have set up car-share schemes and encourage cycling. We strongly recommend volunteers to minimise emissions by ‘carbon neutralising’ their flights. We provide several websites which calculate the flight length; giving an estimate of how much it would cost to offset the CO2.
We set up our own Trust in 2004 and this funds research and rehabilitation plans for threatened animals, expansion and education programs relating to conservation and endangered species, as well as paying for education and necessary equipment for underprivileged children.
You taking part in this project enables us to continue to donate financial assistance as well as necessary goods, where it is needed around the world. Examples of donations include building new classrooms, providing school uniforms for poorer students, buying computers, sports equipment, playgrounds, toys, mattresses, classroom equipment and funding school trips and the building of libraries, and more. We also donate significantly to conservation research efforts and the purchasing of necessary conservation equipment. In the past, these donations have been made in all continents and in projects where we work, and some where we do not work.
Recent donations made include:
- Monthly donations to a variety of schools, orphanage and animal sanctuaries around the world to help with costs.
- Donations to a school in Zambia to sponsor the education of five children per year.
- Donation made to a school in Ghana to build new signs to advertise the school, buy a photocopier, buy reading books and pain some classrooms in need of repair.
- Donation of funds to build a toilet at one of the schools we work with in Cambodia – until now the children have had to go into neighbouring houses or in the bushes!
- Computer and Camera for a Street Kids project in South Africa.
- Ongoing monthly donations made to orphanage in Buenos Aires, Argentina, and every year additional money given at Christmas to buy presents for children.
- Approximately £1,500 towards the building of a desperately needed classroom in a Zulu school in eMakhosini, South Africa.
- Water tanks for various projects in Ghana and Kenya to allow the children safe drinking water.
- Toys and play equipment for children at a project that was severely lacking funds for this in South Africa.
- A donation of books for the Red Cross Hospital in Cape Town.
- A donation of $400 to the elephant project in Thailand.
We are committed to upholding strict ethical standards that ensure a positive and lasting impact upon the environments, communities, institutions, volunteers, animals, children and people that we work with. For example:
- We encourage our volunteers to make the most of local opportunities available to them, such as shopping at local markets, eating in local restaurants and using local services and transport.
- We encourage volunteers to pay fairly for goods and services. We believe that over payment for goods and services or payment to beggars can have negative consequences and result in the over-reliance of tourism within the local community.
- We strongly advise against purchasing wildlife souvenirs or anything which may perpetuate the death or cruel treatment of animals for the purpose of profit.
- We advise on dress codes and codes of behaviour in all of our destination countries to ensure volunteers don’t cause offence to local communities. Our aim is to create always a win-win-win situation in terms of the benefits for the local communities and institutions that we work in, for us and for the volunteer. We do not embark on any project that is not beneficial to the communities, institutes or volunteers. We conduct regular volunteer satisfaction surveys to monitor our performance.
Our projects enable vital conservation, research, care and education work to take place directly where it is most needed. For example, the schools where we teach English very often have no other English teachers, and so they rely on us for continued lessons. We kept a Species Survival Conservation project in South Africa afloat until completion after it was threatened by lack of funds. Our volunteers contribute, all over the world, to projects that would not exist without them.
We invite every traveller who books a holiday via us to send in a review. Because we don't run the holidays they're completely independent and unedited... remember to read between the lines though, as two people on the same holiday can have different views!
