Service For Peace | Volunteer Global

Introduction

Service For Peace involves volunteers in ongoing community development programs throughout the world. Our Global PeaceMakers and group programs are designed to further the growth and development of individuals and our Communities of Peace through the shared experience of voluntary service.

Service For Peace specializes in providing genuine, safe, fun, and meaningful international service experiences for private groups as well as programs open to the public, introducing volunteers to issues of community development, education, health, and other social themes.

Our programs attract volunteers from diverse parts of the world and engage international volunteers with local counterparts from the host country and even the host community. Volunteers and our Communities of Peace are transformed by intercultural service, and our participants also have the opportunity to experience their host culture from an “insider” perspective together with local staff and participants. Our programs are designed to assist in ongoing initiatives within our long-term partner Communities of Peace, providing an exciting and realistic experience to volunteers and ensuring a sustainable impact in our communities.

Our programs send volunteers to over 20 countries in the world, including the Dominican Republic, Kenya, Guatemala, the Philippines, Ghana, Honduras, and more. Our programs range in cost from between $550 to $950, and are essentially “all-inclusive,” providing housing, in-country transportation, meals, clean drinking water, service and program materials, cultural activities, 24-hour staff accompaniment, and more.

Types of Projects

At the root of all Global PeaceMakers programs is a commitment to sustainable community development. Our local teams and volunteers work with our Communities of Peace year-round to develop programs that are meaningful, relevant, effective, and sustainable. Project themes vary depending on location and program.

Most of our programs focus on primary education, but we work with volunteers, staff members, and community leaders to identify focus issues that are appropriate for each individual partner community. Past programs have focused on primary education, arts education, occupational therapy, community health, orphanage improvement, international children's health, literacy and more. We develop social issues that a) are interesting to the students, b) relevant to the host community, c) appropriate for direct service, and d) can be combined with educational and cultural components. It is our goal to engage students in meaningful service and cultural exploration with our grassroots staff in order to expose them to the realities of local life, with our on-ground staff there every step of the way to guide and assist you.

Our teams that go to Kenya focus primarily on education, literacy, agricultural sustainability/food security, and nutrition. This is due to the fact that our major ongoing programs in our Kenya Community of Peace, Dagoretti, engage local and international volunteers in building, improving, and utilizing the new Dreamcatcher Community Library and the new community greenhouse. In the Dominican Republic groups focus primarily on primary education as well as environmental sustainability and issues of immigration and identity, using Dominican-Haitian relations as a model to re-examine US-Mexico relations (volunteers can expect to do light construction, educational projects, or other work). In Guatemala, teams focus heavily on rural community development, environment, and health--including occupational therapy, special education and treatment, and elderly care--as well as primary education. One of our Communities of Peace in Guatemala is also launching a new program focused on understanding illegal immigration to the US and how it affects their community, many of whose members leave.

Accommodations

Participants sleep grouped by gender and by rooms of 2-10 depending on the housing for the project. Participants should expect modest settings; past lodging sites include rooms rented at a convent, small hotels, religious campsites, community-owned houses, and elementary schools. We typically eat breakfast and dinner at this site and bring lunch to the worksite. While these sites vary in the comfort level, participants can always expect running water, drinking water, and bathrooms.

Costs

Program costs range depending on the host country and complexity of project i.e. if the school is just being renovated or if a school is being built from scratch. The average program fee is about $650 but can go up to $950, not including airfare. Service For Peace accepted applicants with fundraising ideas and tips.

The program fee covers room & board, in-country transportation, service and program materials, cultural and recreational activities, clean drinking water, 24-hour local and US staff accompaniment, and more. Volunteer program fees not only helps the staff at each respective country sustain their offices but it helps them continue the US volunteers’ work in the communities with local volunteers as well.

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