Other posts related to volunteering

“The Dhaka Project” seeks volunteers, funding, resources

May 8, 2008 6:44 pm

~story by Mikey Leung~

Kids of The Dhaka ProjectThe Dhaka Project is one of those special projects that inspires hope, creates real change and works with some of the most disadvantaged children Bangladesh has to offer.

When Emirates flight attendant Maria Conceicao visited a slum near Zia International Airport, she decided she would change the future of the children she found there. Three years after the founding of the project, there are now two schools, a preschool, a nursery, a clinic, dentist, computer lab, science lab, and over 700 disadvantaged children getting an English medium education and two square meals a day.

Of course, none of these initiatives is possible without money, awareness and the helpful hand of so many people. Maria has worked tirelessly to raise the funds necessary to support her initiatives, and has been joined by volunteers from around the world to help her raise the funds and profile of the organisation. The project’s baseline funding is currently supplied by the Emirates Airline Foundation, although there is currently a new appeal out there for more funds for anybody who cares to support such initiatives.

Work like this is inspiring—the faces of so many children for whom this school represents the only chance to change their lives leaves a mark on your soul that you cannot forget.

For more information, please browse The Dhaka Project’s website, or have a look at volunteer Richard Fleming’s introduction via Youtube:

Brothel Justice: documentary screenings in Canada

March 19, 2008 9:05 am

Brothel Justice LogoBrothel Justice imageVSO Canada is proud to present “Brothel Justice” - a short documentary film based on the lives of women living and working in a brothel in Bangladesh. See how these women are breaking through social and political barriers to empower themselves and make change.

Brothel Justice is a public engagement component of SCORE : Strengthening Communities’ Rights and Empowerment, a joint project of VSO Canada and its partners along with VSO Bangladesh and its affiliate community-based organizations.

Join us and meet the filmmakers and other volunteers from the project. Hear from a panel of guest speakers about their own experiences working with vulnerable communities in developing countries, including volunteers who worked with the sex workers at the brothel featured in the film.

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Volunteering in Bangladesh: A Slideshow Presentation

November 5, 2007 4:50 pm

Volunteering in Bangladesh: A Slideshow Presentation by travel journalists Mikey Leung and Belinda Meggitt
7:30pm, November 8, 2007 - Travel Bug Bookstore, Vancouver
3065 West Broadway, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

***Latest: we now have over 30 registered attendees to the event.. if you’re interested in coming, please RSVP soon!

Dhaka - Unveiled-BW

Photo by Belinda Meggitt. See more photos here.

What’s it like to volunteer in one of the world’s poorest, most densely populated countries? Not as difficult as one might like to imagine.

For Belinda Meggitt and Mikey Leung, the experience was inspiring, invigorating and life-changing. Bangladesh, a country better known for its devastating floods, intractable corruption and intense poverty, is in fact a beautiful and verdant nation rich with history and literature. For what they might lack in material possessions, Bengali people make up for with unforgettable and legendary hospitality.

On the evening of Thursday, Nov. 8, the travelling couple will present a set of their photographs from the country and talk about one of travel’s last frontiers—one that may soon be underwater because of climate change. They will also have photographs and designer handicrafts from the Desh for sale. Finally, Mikey and Belinda are also inviting members from the Greater Vancouver Bangladesh Cultural Association to attend.

All Travel Bug Bookstore slideshows and presentations are free of charge, but it is necessary to reserve seating. Please call (604)737-1122 for reservations, or send an email to info@NOSPAMtravelbugbooks.ca. (Please remove the “REMOVETHISFORSPAM” message!).

Mikey Leung and Belinda Meggitt are travel journalists based in Dhaka, Bangladesh. The couple originally travelled to Bangladesh as volunteers (Mikey for Voluntary Service Overseas; Belinda for the Australian Youth Ambassadors of Development). They are currently researching a new Bradt travel guide to the country.

Click on the thumbnail to see the event flyer: Nov8-Volunteering in the Desh