Want a deeper insight into what an ICS placement looks like? Read the amazing blogs written by our past and present volunteers. Enjoy the journey!
‘John, I am empowering you to fill in this form!’ I genuinely heard this sentence today, said with complete sincerity. I don’t believe this was meant to be patronising, but when you work in development you are surrounded by buzzwords, which become part of your day to day vernacular. Empower, facilitate, engagement, all words I forget that I rarely used before until someone says something that sounds a bit… silly.
Malawi is such a beautiful country and every day I find myself being slightly more in love with it! On Thursday 15 of October it was Mother’s Day and it’s celebrated here with a national holiday. For Malawians, family is not only who you live with, it’s a support system, a way of life and a personal responsibility. Families are huge in comparison, with everyone being a cousin, aunt, uncle, brother or sister, so you can therefore imagine the hype and celebrations that take place on a holiday like Mother’s Day!
Volunteering is one of the most empowering things that I have done. This placement has allowed me live out my dream and I can now see myself achieving one of my goals in life because of this opportunity.
Our placement has been successful so far. This is because of how well organised people are on our placement. Both UK and national volunteers work to the best of their ability according to our target. Team work has been encouraged since we started and this has made everyone enjoy their work and roles.
Hola amigos, durante esta semana, el grupo de Brita-Nicas, nos hemos sentido muy felices, por la llegada de las lluvias a nuestra comunidad “Parcila”. El clima ha mejorado, el calor que tenía presencia por la falta de agua ha cambiado, parecía que nos derretíamos. Las causas de esta situación es parte de lo que estaremos hablando con la población ya que es un tema muy importante, que nos afecta a todos: el cambio climático.
As Zimbabweans, time is always ahead of us, and our sessions in the communities are always commencing late! This is something I feel the UK volunteers have had to adapt to, they might call it ‘Africa time’. Sometimes 10am, can really mean 10:15am, or even 10:30am! This is normal for Zimbabweans, but for UK volunteers this may be strange.
Conversely, the styles and accents of the UK volunteers can be strange for national volunteers, and for those in the sessions we are running for communities around the Mutasa District.
Having now been in Malawi for just over three weeks, the constant pointing and the shouts of ‘Azungu’ (white people) has become part of my every day routine. Over the last ten days we’ve had training on sexual reproductive health, cultural and traditional differences and issues affecting the Malawian youths of today, including early child marriages, school dropouts and HIV & AIDS.
A una semana de estar presente el grupo de voluntarios en la comunidad de Parcila, la población reconoce al grupo cuando recorremos las calles. Las familias muy alegres saludan con mucho carisma y hospitalidad a sus nuevos integrantes.
Los BRITA-NICAS, este es el nombre de nuestro equipo, nos dispusimos aprender sobre nuestra organización contraparte ASOMUPRO (es una asociación de mujeres productoras). Durante este ciclo trabajaremos con mucho esmero y dedicación aliados con este gran programa de voluntariado donde ayudaremos a muchas familias.
Despite having lived and worked in Honduras for nearly a month now, one thing that hasn't changed for us UK volunteers is the weather being a constant source of conversation matter. While our first week was relatively boring weather-conversation wise - it being gorgeously warm most days in Tegucigalpa - upon arrival in La Esperanza (famously the coolest place in all of Honduras due to its high altitude) the weather has been much more up and down.
Day one in Zimbabwe saw the UK volunteers stepping out blinking into the bright October sunlight. We spent a night in Harare at the Women’s Bureau, where the streets were carpeted with purple jacaranda flowers and we enjoyed our first authentic Zimbabwean power cut. The next day we drove to Mutare, enjoying breathtaking views down from the hills over the city and equally delightful signposts counting down the distance to our nearest Nando’s.
Hola amigos es un placer para mí saludarles. En este blog estaremos compartiendo con ustedes nuestras experiencias como voluntarios de Progressio asociados con la organización local, ASOMUPRO en la comunidad de Parcila, municipio de San Juan de Limay, departamento de Estelí, Nicaragua.
Los voluntarios que estaremos escribiendo este blog seremos Sam y su servidor Freedman. En este ciclo de voluntarios británicos y nicaragüenses hemos podido desde un inició entablar una muy buena relación.
