Blog & Press

Volunteers Abroad

A Volunteer Experience Not to Be Forgotten

In the summer of 2019,the Northeastern city of Salvador, Brazil, was home not only to the beautiful people of Brazil but also to Alex; who spent the summer turning young people to advocates for gender equality and reduction of inequality in the city, the country and the world at large.

Life Before Going on Global Exchange

In his own words:

"...for the past few years, I've been actively involved in volunteering in my local community..."

 Just like you, before going on an international exchange to Salvador as a global volunteer,Alex was involved in community development in Aarhus, Denmark. Through AIESEC GLOBAL VOLUNTEER program, he seized the opportunity to transform his local involvement into a global impact, in Salvador.

His Experience as a Global Volunteer in Salvador, Brazil

Alex was a global volunteer for SDG 5 and 10, Gender Equality and Reduced Inequalities.

 “...I decided to contribute even more and travel to Salvador in Brazil to involve myself in a project about reduced inequalities, where I aim to create workshops with children to raise awareness about this issue”

 If you want to make a lasting impact, where would you teach gender equality? You guessed it right…A school. Alex was involved in organizing sensitization seminars on gender equality, sexuality and domestic violence in a public school.

 When he was not talking with students about the sustainable development goals, Alex was exploring the Brazilian landscape and having the time of his life connecting with the people and culture of Brazil, especially their food.

Alex’s impact as a global volunteer

During his stay in Salvador Alex succeeded in

●    Getting the teenagers in the school aware of the issue of gender inequality and the challenges that comes with it.

●    Making them reflect on the effect of gender inequality in their community and how to solve them. Making them solution-oriented.

Made them advocates for a society of equality and sustainable development

Alex was a different person after the global volunteer experience

Alex wasn’t left out of the exchange, through his summer stay in Salvador he

●    Enjoyed a new culture. Giving him a different perspective about the world, what it is, and his perspective about people.

●    Left an impact in the lives of the younger ones he engaged with which built a sense of fulfillment and contribution to the development goals of the world.

●    Boosted his ability to thrive in a different environment (most especially the workplace)

●    Boosted his CV  and made himself more employable than those with zero exchange experience.

In his words:

 

“One thing I definitely noticed was the hospitality and how warm the culture is. People would know me for half an hour, and I was already invited to a barbecue in their summer house.
I’m talking about Brazilian culture, specifically about a vibrant city in the northern part,Salvador. I had a pleasure to live as a true middle-class Brazilian in a 3-million city – which is considered moderate for a country with more than 200million people.
My project was based in a public school, where we held seminars about reducing inequalities,by which we directly contributed to the Sustainable Development Goal 10. We were holding discussions about gender equality, sexuality, or even domestic violence. Teenagers that we worked with had fresh ideas on these topics and various games or music sessions contributed to getting a broader perspective on this issue I haven’t considered before.
Apart from volunteering in the school, I could taste local food or practice Samba, all thanks to my amazing host. And I even visited one of the most beautiful national parks in Brazil during the weekend – Chapada Diamantina!
This combination of work and discoveries was what made this summer an unforgettable experience.”

Want to create your own story of impact,position yourself for the jobs of the future and live an unforgettableexperience? You’re only a click away from tons of exchange opportunities thatwill help you achieve this.

 

Check out www.aiesec.org and #LiveTheExperience!

Written by
John Emoavwodua
I Help SaaS Companies Boost Customer Aquisition and Retention Through Effective Copywriting • Copywriter