The India Volunteer Program
World Camp expanded its outreach mission in July 2007 with a
pilot program in Ahmedabad, Gujarat. The program was led by
past WC volunteers with travel experience in India and
strong familiarity with World Camp's mission. Over the
course of five weeks, the initial team laid the foundations
for a successful program serving the culturally-rich yet
economically-poor populations of the subcontinent.
India is one of the largest and most populated countries in
the world, amassing a population of over one billion. At
least 6 million residents currently live with HIV. It is
difficult to determine exactly how many people in a given
region have HIV, but by many estimates, India presents the
largest number of HIV infections of any country in the
world. Poverty, in both rural communities and urban
slums, and cultural taboos against open discussion of sex,
HIV, and AIDS exacerbate the problem, leaving many
populations unaware of how to protect themselves from the
virus.
India's people vary
widely in culture, making it a
fascinating
country to get to know, and a complicated one to
work in. Due to the vast number of languages and dialects
within the country, national campaigns advocating AIDS
awareness have been hard to organize. Many effective
efforts are focused at a state or local level. World Camp
has worked alongside local organizations and community
leaders in Ahmedabad to establish a safe base for World Camp
India with access to both urban and rural communities
seeking HIV/AIDS awareness and prevention resources.
During the pilot program, the team presented its educational
message to a range of populations in both urban and rural
settings: primary school students, informal street school
students, local NGO employees, college students,
teachers-in-training, visually-impaired students, deaf and
mute students, and a female
empowerment organization.
Working with this array of populations, the volunteers
experienced a
holistic
introduction to the local culture and
the issues
of the region.
Outside of the daily camps, the team volunteered weekly at a
local service cafe in partnership with a local NGO. To rest
and recharge, the team traveled to the deserted beaches of Mandvi on the Arabian Sea, the traditional Gujarati region
of Kutch, and the historic city of Bhuj ravaged by the
earthquake of 2001. They visited local historic and
cultural sites in Ahmedabad, including the old city,
Gandhi's Sabarmati Ashram, and the famous Akshardham temple.
World Camp plans to expand in summer 2008 to offer two
five-week sessions to build upon our successful pilot
program! We are seeking motivated volunteers who want to
contribute to furthering the work of this new program.
Apply today!
Volunteer
::
2007 Annual Report
India
Program Volunteer Packet
