What is a Trip
Our trips provide participants with an insight into a number of the key issues facing a developing country and development initiatives that demonstrably go to addressing some of these issues. Our programmes offer opportunities for visitors to help with both the technical and non-technical tasks that make up our projects, working with local people.
As a consequence of their personal experiences, participants can learn about how they might better connect with the issues faced by those with no material resources and become long term supporters of initiatives that can change peoples’ lives. Our particular emphasis is on transformation – new attitudes and approaches – with a healthy proportion of the activities on a trip providing forums for learning to occur.
We aim to provide “a totally different, developing country travel experience, where you can profoundly contribute to the lives of the people - and so to your own.” There are no special skills needed to participate, although we look for qualified teachers to run the workshops on our Teacher programmes.
There are two types of trips:
A. Teacher trips
These place emphasis on ‘quality’ of education and involve running workshops for local teachers and developing resources for them.
B. Volunteer Trips
Emphasis is on ‘access’ to education, which involves a range of activities from helping to build and operate schools to helping families, hampered by the impacts of poverty, gain access to education for themselves and subsequent generations. This often requires us to support capacity building, enhancing communities’ economic situations in a variety of ways.
There are three elements to a trip:
| ELEMENT | THEME | CONNECTION | ACTIVITY | |
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| 1 | Location |
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| 2 | Volunteering |
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| 3 | Transformation |
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There are three components to a trip
Preparation
- What to expect, what will be expected of you
An experience
- Sightseeing/orientation
- Cultural exposure
- Programme activities
- Connection with those with knowledge and wisdom
Debrief
- Review, reflect, reminisce and evaluate
- What was learned and what does it reveal?
All programmes have essentially the same structure, involving preparation, the in-country experience and a time to review and reflect on the immersion.
Preparation
Preparation sessions will provide information about getting ready to leave and on aspects of the itinerary. They will give you an understanding of the difficulties facing particular communities you will meet and appropriate behaviour in circumstances that visitors may find themselves in. There is also the chance to meet others who will share the journey.
In-country experience
An in-country itinerary includes a variety of sightseeing and cultural experiences to set the scene, guided visits and talks by local experts to help understand the context, as well as involvement in projects at schools, orphanages and village communities, or similar, for hands-on experience.
For many, this experience will mean stepping way out of your comfort zone, travelling not as a tourist, but amongst a community who can teach us so much, and whose lives we can impact. Sometimes intimidating, sometimes uplifting, by being immersed in the reality of the Third World, we can see from a very different perspective. This will become a really personal adventure that will make a difference in ways you would never expect.
Being on an immersion trip means getting your hands dirty – you will be engaging physically with work on building programs, painting, planting crops, teaching, or whatever is required in each community. But you will also have the chance to learn about development possibilities, share dreams of greater opportunity, and develop an appreciation of local history, culture, commerce and a different way of life.
There will be days when several options are available depending on your fitness and interests.
Each day there will be a time set aside to talk about the day’s experiences as we believe opportunities to reflect with others during and after the experience are important parts of the programme.
After returning to Australia, a debriefing session will be arranged so participants can talk about the positive aspects of their experience and the perspectives gained, as well as consider how they can continue to be explored in their home environment.
Trip Aims and Goals
For those we visit
- Provide targeted support to communities in need, so that their quality of life improves over a range of indicators
- Focus on development initiatives, particularly in community infrastructure, as the means to alleviate poverty
- Work with partners who have expertise in the field, and support selected projects
- Continue to find new opportunities to develop connections between visitors and the local communities
- Maintain respect for local practices, cultures and traditions
For the visitors
- Help them come to appreciate the different cultures they are exposed to, the richness of the heritage they witness, and the barriers their hosts face in striving for a dignified life
- Provide an experience that helps them recognise their own ability to bring about change
SeeBeyondBorders is first and foremost an overseas development organisation whose aim is to alleviate poverty in developing countries.
SeeBeyondBorders’ goal is to achieve poverty reduction by directing financial assistance at a grass roots level, directly to specific projects. Donors connect with what is happening in a particular community. They have the chance to actively participate in what is being done; experience the direct impact on the community of the development assistance provided; and consider what other needs there are and how they can contribute.
Your contribution is firstly about volunteering your time to gain an understanding about needs, and then offering financial and personal support so that enduring change can be achieved. For many people, the problems seem overwhelming, seemingly too big to fix, and not knowing where to start is enormously disempowering.
So we offer programmes to inspire, to connect individuals to a broader reality and develop a better sense of their potential to bring about change. It’s as much about “what not to do” as it is about what should be done! Think first about how we can be better neighbours…. How we can stand in solidarity.
We work through partners who have day-to-day connections with communities we assist. Our partners determine how we get involved and they help visitors understand what will make a difference in the given set of circumstances. Our focus is on community infrastructure to improve health, nutrition, housing, sanitation and education - reducing pressure on families battling for survival.
We aim to foster hope, meaning and a sense of purpose, in both visitors and their hosts. Our goal is to build bridges between vastly different communities, offering those on both sides of the cultural and economic divide, new perspectives through mutual support and collaboration.
We aim to grow an international network, providing long-term support to developing communities, not just a quick-fix solution.
If you would like any further information, or want to make a booking, please:
Register your interest in coming on a trip or
Call SeeBeyondBorders on +61 2 9960 7077.
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