What to expect while in the field
AJWS service programs operate on the premise that service and learning reinforce one another, together yielding a greater impact than either could alone. We believe that to become effective social changemakers, volunteers should contribute to the hard, hands-on work of fighting poverty, and at the same time, reflect on their individual strengths and build relationships to others working to effect change.
Volunteer Corps participants are placed for a minimum of three months as full-time volunteers with AJWS grantees and other likeminded NGOs working at the intersection of international development and human rights, fighting poverty and addressing issues such as sustainable livelihoods, health, education, civil participation and community involvement in disasters and emergencies.
Learn more about AJWS's partner NGOs.
Please note: AJWS does not place volunteers with all of these NGOs, and also places volunteers with other like-minded NGOs that do not receive financial support from AJWS.
Past volunteer assignments have included the following:
- A participant with a business background served as a strategy consultant assisting an NGO that works with village women to promote social entrepreneurship and sustainable livelihoods in eastern Maharashtra, India.
- A mental health professional worked with an Indian NGO to provide training in counseling methods that address post traumatic stress disorder and other conditions affecting victims of police torture, a common practice in south India.
- A participant with a background in finance and administration helped review and rebuild accounting systems at an organization working on community development in Kibera slum, Nairobi, Kenya.
- A communications and PR professional wrote a personnel manual, assisted with fundraising, updated the computer network and conducted computer training for staff at a community development NGO in Kampala, Uganda.
- A participant with a background in business helped evaluate and improve an NGO's office management and accounting systems and assisted staff in expanding their fundraising strategies in Chiang Mai, Thailand.
- A consultant in organization development assisted an organization in Chiang Mai, Thailand with its first strategic planning process, involving a careful examination of the mission and vision of the organization, as well as the recognition of challenges and areas for future growth.
