My Volunteer Project

So far I do not have real specifics as to what my project really entails.  I have a general idea of what I'll be doing for the 6 weeks that I'll be spending in Arusha Tanzania.

My project activities may include:
    1. Working with the Umoja Centre
The Umoja Centre provides local youth, who have had minimal schooling, with an opportunity to 'fill a gap' in their education.  The Umoja Centre offers a year long course which enables youth to acquire the skills they need to obtain their dreams of becoming teachers, lawyers or entrepreneurs.  While at the Umoja Centre, I may conduct English classes, computer training, personal development, civics, business studies and careers.  (For more info on the Umoja Centre, check out: http://umoja.com.au/joomla/)

    2. Youth Clubs
I will be participating in current clubs and exploring the possibility of creating new youth clubs.  I'm especially excited about this, because it means that I get to talk with a lot of youth and find common interests.

    3.Youth Career Day
I believe that myself and the other volunteers would be working to develop a 'Youth Career Day'.  I'm not entirely sure what this means, the description is rather vague.  From what I'm reading, I would think that it would be a program that would allow youth to shadow someone that works in a field that they are interested in.

    4. Youth Entrepreneurship
Again, the details were rather vague, but I think I would be planning and running workshops and seminars on how to plan a business and how to start your own business.

    5. Engaging local youth
This will probably take place through out the project, and the team of volunteers will work on different ways to attract youth to participate in our programs/workshops.  We will be exploring community initiatives and finding ways to formally and informally engage local youth.  This seems really exciting, as it would give me a great chance to learn about the community in which I'm living and really get the cultural experience I am looking for.

So there you have it.  You now know what I know.  Its freaky to think, that in just over 100 days I will have not only completed my MSc, but I will be on a whole different continent!  While I still have quite a bit of time, I do still have a whole slew of things left to accomplish!

Stay tuned for more updates!

-Matt