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In previous blog posts, we’ve already explained how donating $20 to YCI can truly make a difference. But who better to explain the impact of YCI than the volunteers themselves?
Considering donating at www.yci.org/20years
With over 3,000 alumni in action all across Canada, the kind of news we receive about where our volunteers and staff have gone can be overwhelming and, at times, awe-inspiring. Maggie McDonnell, a former YCI field staff member in Tanzania, is no exception to this rule. (Maggie is on the far left in the above photo, taken during the World AIDS 2008 activities in Mexico City.) She’s currently participating in the Sauve Scholarship program in Montreal. You can read more about Maggie here.
Each year, the Sauvé Scholars Program invites up to 14 young leaders (30 years old or less) from across the globe who want to change the world, to come to Montreal for the academic calendar year. They live together, have unlimited access to McGill University’s academic programs and other resources – including lectures, conferences and events suited to the advancement of their individual professional and intellectual goals – all the while benefiting from exchanges with their fellow Scholars. The program is still accepting applications until November 30, so if you’d follow in Maggie’s footsteps, check out http://www.sauvescholars.org.
While a Sauvé Scholar, Maggie will pursue study in social entrepreneurship, indigenous health, transnational feminism, and the role youth are playing in participatory research for community development. . .Specific projects Maggie will be working on include developing a participatory, youth-led chocolate making cooperative in Zanzibar, as well as collaborating with female athletes in Tanzania to create empowering sport opportunities for women. . .
In light of our recent 20th anniversary celebration (and our $20 for 20 years fundraising campaign!), this story is worth sharing.
Alan Shain was a volunteer with YCI in Costa Rica in 1993, when YCI was only four years old. Not only does Alan’s testimonial give insight into what volunteering internationally with a disability may be like, his account also give a snapshot into what volunteering on a YCI project would have been like 16 years ago. Read Alan’s story here.
“Our project group consisted of fourteen people (eleven participants and three staff members) from four countries including Canada, Costa Rica, English Guyana and Australia. None of us had met before. Our first community project was to construct a dormitory out of prefabricated material. We were working and living in a remote community of 400 people situated on the Southwest coast of Costa Rica for six weeks. . .“
In Mombasa, the combination of tourism, East Africa’s busiest port and a lack of economic opportunities has led some young people to seek alternative sources of income—including participation in the sex trade industry. “Mombasa is a tourist town and a lot of young people are jobless,” says Kasena Evans, Program Coordinator for Kwacha Afrika. “Their families are living below the poverty line so the only thing they can do is to use sex as an income generating activity.” This engagement in sex work leaves young men and women vulnerable to gender-based violence, unplanned pregnancy, and sexually transmitted infections, including HIV/AIDS.
Kwacha Afrika, which is Kiswahili for “Arise Africa,” tackles the oppressive realities of poverty through the use of theatre for development. “The [Kwacha volunteers] are really committed to their interests and devoted to Kwacha and the community,” says Amanda Birch-Bayley, Kenya 2009 Alumna. YCI volunteers and program staff have been working alongside Kwacha to increase awareness of HIV/AIDS amongst youth, promote condom use, and help youth develop an understanding of their sexual and human rights.
In October, YCI mobilized our second Youth Innovators program. (The Youth Innovators program, previously called the Youth Ambassadors program, was first piloted in March 2009 in Ghana.) We recruited, interviewed and selected 10 individuals that embodied YCI’s values of volunteerism and innovation, and who had backgrounds in HIV/AIDS education. Want to know a bit more about our Youth Innovators?
Group 1: October 2009-November 2009
Dan attended Queen’s for Biology and Health and Physical Education, and also possesses a Bachelor of Education. He has previously participated in health promotion placements in Samoa and St. Vincent. For the past two years, he’s been working on a health promotion and advocacy program to prevent tobacco use amongst teenagers.
With an undergraduate degree in Kinesiology and Physical Education, as well as a graduate degree in Health Studies, Lisa’s knowledge will be invaluable on the Youth Innovators project. She also has experience as a peer health promoter, and is currently working on a student peer leadership initiative to prevent substance abuse among grade seven and eight students.
April was born and raised in Toronto, but moved to Australia to complete her Masters in Health Science, with a specialization in health promotion. She resides outside of Melbourne, where she works as a community planner for a local city council.
Travelling to Kenya with YCI was James’ first international volunteering experience. But he’s no stranger to working with youth. James has worked and volunteered with Street Kids International, Oxfam Canada and the Toronto People with AIDS Foundation. He has also completed a post-graduate degree in Fundraising and Volunteer Management.
Group 2: November 2009-December 2009
Tsion was born and raised in Ethiopia, but now resides in Toronto, where she graduated from York University’s Social Work program. She has experience as an HIV/AIDS peer health educator with the Ethiopian Association of Toronto.
Brandon first got involved in YCI in 2008, when he participated in an Ethiopia project. Following his placement with YCI in Ethiopia, he traveled to South Sudan and Malawi, where he volunteered and worked with other non-profit organizations. He currently resides in Saskatchewan.
Another alumna of YCI’s programs, Candice traveled to Vanuatu in 2006. After graduating from a Master’s of Health Promotion program in Halifax, she moved to Yellowknife, where she works as an HPV Study Coordinator. Following her placement in Kenya, Candice intends to begin her doctoral studies, specializing in youth sexual health in the circumpolar region.
Sonja has a background in journalism, has conducted community research In Havana and believes in using experiential education (including the use of puppetry). Prior to her placement with YCI, she was studying in South Africa. Along with Candice, Sonja was a participant on the Ship for World Youth.
Katherine is originally from Vancouver, but currently resides in Toronto. She completed her Master’s in Sociology, with a focus on gender, family and women’s health, at the University of Toronto. She currently works in health research.
Yet another alumna, Corinne volunteered with YCI in Grenada in 2007, where she facilitated workshops for adolescent mothers, with a focus on women’s right, sexuality, health and self-worth. She works as a registered nurse in Toronto in a trauma intensive care unit.
By combining their unique experiences and skills in youth programming and HIV/AIDS education, the Kenya Youth Innovators teams are working together with local youth, YCI volunteers and peer educators from Kwacha to organize school and community outreaches, talent shows and “Club Nights” in Mombasa’s club district, all with a focus on HIV/AIDS awareness and testing. These events utilize the skills and knowledge of locally trained peer educators and targeted young sex workers.
Next up? The Youth Innovators program will return in January to Ghana.
Since 1989, YCI has provided more than 3,000 youth with the opportunity to develop substantive leadership skills and effect positive change in their global and local communities.
To celebrate our 20th anniversary, YCI will award 20 volunteers with scholarships of $1500 CDN ($1300 US) to participate in one of our international volunteer programs in Guyana, Ghana or Costa Rica.
Each of the 20 scholarships will be awarded to individuals with a demonstrated commitment to their communities. The scholarships are intended to provide young leaders with the opportunity to turn positive civic involvement into global action.
How to Apply:
1. Eligibility criteria:
• Applicants must be between 18 and 30 years of age.
• Applicants must be applying for one of YCI’s five-week programs in Costa Rica or Guyana (departing January, 2010), or YCI’s four-week program in Ghana (departing February, 2010).
• Scholarships must be used towards one of the above projects.
2. Scholarship entries must be submitted alongside an online application:
• Submit an online application at www.yci.org
• Please indicate on your application (in the “program preference” area) that you’re interested in applying for the “20 Year Scholarship Program.”
3. Once you have received confirmation of your interview time with YCI, please submit your essay, photo essay or video entry via email. Tell us:
How would a volunteer opportunity with YCI contribute to your understanding of what it means to be a global citizen?
In order to apply, submit one of the following on the above topic to YCI:
• Personal Essays: Must be between 600 and 800 words in length and submitted in .doc format.
• Photo Essays: Must be less than 20 photos and include captions. This may be submitted through a PowerPoint presentation or PDF format.
• Video Entries: Must be no more than three minutes in length. To submit your video, please upload your submission onto YouTube and provide the link to YCI. Videos may also be submitted through email or mail. Use only original or royalty-free music and images in your video.
4. Applications and entries will be reviewed on a first-come, first-serve rolling basis. The final deadline for all submissions is Tuesday, December 1, 2009.
To learn more about YCI’s volunteer programs or the scholarship program, visit www.yci.org or contact us at generalinfo@yci.org.
20 Years of Leadership. 20 Years of Innovation. 20 Years of Partnership. 20 Years of Youth Development. 20 Years of Positive Change.
Where will the next 20 years take us?
Since 1989, YCI has sent more than 3,000 volunteers overseas to work alongside youth on environment, health, leadership development, education and economic development projects in 15 countries worldwide.
Celebrate YCI’s 20th anniversary of building communities and leaders by donating just $20. Help us reach our goal of $20,000 to support our local and global youth development programs.
Why donate to Youth Challenge International?
Youth Challenge International is a leading global youth development organization that promotes youth innovation to drive positive change. Building on 20 years of experience, YCI’s programs are designed to meet the needs of youth affected by poverty through five integrated sectors: economic development, education, leadership development, environment and health.
In the last 20 years, YCI has:
- Provided more than 3000 volunteers with the opportunity to develop leadership skills and effect positive change in their local and global communities.
- Worked in 15 countries alongside more than 16 local partner organizations.
- Reached thousands of beneficiary youth through HIV/AIDS, sexual reproductive health, education, employability and leadership programs.
- Engaged hundreds of young people on team-based action projects that encourage global citizenship through the Volunteer Action Network.
- Participated in countless community development and conservation programs, including the construction of schools, water and sanitation, and ecotourism projects.
- Facilitated 37 International Youth Internships, which provide young people with their first substantive overseas work experience.
Your tax-deductible donation of $20 will go towards supporting YCI’s local and global youth development organizations.
We engage youth in creating solutions to the challenges they face. YCI incorporates youth development, volunteerism, partnership, equity and advocacy into all that we do.
Here are a few ways you can donate:
• By mail – send in a cheque or credit card information to Youth Challenge International, 20 Maud St., Suite 305, Toronto, ON, M5V 2M5
Please address cheque donations to Youth Challenge International, with a memo of 20 year donation.
• By phone – call us toll-free 1.877.504.3370
• In person – visiting our office
• Online – visit our website at www.yci.org/20years
To read more about YCI’s programs and how YCI uses your donations, please visit www.yci.org
Before I worked for YCI, I was an active member of my university’s campus, including volunteering for a local campus publication, McClung’s Magazine, a magazine for young, socially-active women.
To learn more about how I turned my campus volunteer work into a career, check out the McClung’s Blog.-Jessica Lockhart, Program Coordinator
Welcome to the recruitment season! Job fairs, career expos, information sessions. . .YCI has been working hard to get our name out to you. It’s been a busy Fall with recruitment for the first time ever in the States! I have been attending fairs and information sessions in New York State to talk about our overseas programming and the new opportunities available for American volunteers to get involved.
There has been a strong interest in YCI’s programs by potential American volunteers, particularly for our Americas programs. It’s been great for me to get the opportunity to talk to so many interesting individuals about youth development, international development and our overseas projects.
Yesterday, I went to Vassar College, a gorgeous small Liberal Arts College on the Hudson River in a little town called Poughkeepsie. The leaves are turning, the air is fresh and crisp and there was a football game going on in town. It was a beautiful vision!
Next week, I’ll be at NYU talking on a Seminar Panel about Civic Engagement at the Graduate School for Arts at Science and then to DC for the “Higher Education and International Volunteer Service Conference,” hosted by Partners of the Americas.
It’s been busy season and it’s been wonderful talking to you all! Potential volunteers, preparing volunteers or alumni, please continue to come chat with us, wherever we are. If you can’t make it in person, send us an email at generalinfo@yci.org. I speak for all of the YCI staff when I say that we love talking with you about our programs!
I hope to see you at our next outreach session.
Cheers,
Jane
-Jane Baldwin, Program Development Manager
