Mon, Nov 03, 2008
The Straits Times
by Tan Weizhen
TRAVELLING with a conscience, it seems, has become a must-do for many Singaporeans.
A growing number of young volunteers are coming up with projects to improve the lives of the needy, while at the same time opening their eyes to foreign cultures.
While building schools or digging wells for poor communities are the usual standbys, teens and young adults are now doing everything from giving away medicine to building mobile science exhibits.
Their work often sees them travel from village to village in countries like Laos, Cambodia, Indonesia, China and India. Some groups are also starting to branch out to places like Vietnam and Africa.
The Singapore International Foundation (SIF), which recruits volunteers to help overseas communities, said that young people are the fastest-growing segment of the volunteer spectrum.
The SIF also said new trends are emerging in volunteer work. An increasing number of projects involve young people closing the so-called digital divide by giving away computers and teaching young villagers how to use the machines.
Another youth-centred group is Books To Read, comprising 11 working adults in their 20s. Their aim is to collect 1,000 books suitable for secondary school students in Nigeria and Sudan.
The group was formed this year. Co-founder Kaushal Dugar, 25, said Africa is chosen because children there are in desperate need and the continent is not a place where many Singaporeans volunteer.
Another team, Project L.O.V.E, made up of mostly undergraduates, is putting together for Cambodian children mobile science and technology exhibits which it plans to showcase next month.
Other projects include building homes for slum dwellers and distributing food rations to poor villagers.
Singaporeans are also starting to pay to go on volunteer trips organised by travel agencies that link them with needy communities.
This article was first published in The Straits Times on Nov 1, 2008.
The Straits Times
by Tan Weizhen
TRAVELLING with a conscience, it seems, has become a must-do for many Singaporeans.
A growing number of young volunteers are coming up with projects to improve the lives of the needy, while at the same time opening their eyes to foreign cultures.
While building schools or digging wells for poor communities are the usual standbys, teens and young adults are now doing everything from giving away medicine to building mobile science exhibits.
Their work often sees them travel from village to village in countries like Laos, Cambodia, Indonesia, China and India. Some groups are also starting to branch out to places like Vietnam and Africa.
The Singapore International Foundation (SIF), which recruits volunteers to help overseas communities, said that young people are the fastest-growing segment of the volunteer spectrum.
The SIF also said new trends are emerging in volunteer work. An increasing number of projects involve young people closing the so-called digital divide by giving away computers and teaching young villagers how to use the machines.
Another youth-centred group is Books To Read, comprising 11 working adults in their 20s. Their aim is to collect 1,000 books suitable for secondary school students in Nigeria and Sudan.
The group was formed this year. Co-founder Kaushal Dugar, 25, said Africa is chosen because children there are in desperate need and the continent is not a place where many Singaporeans volunteer.
Another team, Project L.O.V.E, made up of mostly undergraduates, is putting together for Cambodian children mobile science and technology exhibits which it plans to showcase next month.
Other projects include building homes for slum dwellers and distributing food rations to poor villagers.
Singaporeans are also starting to pay to go on volunteer trips organised by travel agencies that link them with needy communities.
This article was first published in The Straits Times on Nov 1, 2008.
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