Why did you decide to volunteer with OG in SEA?
Sidney: After visiting Thailand for the first time in 2010, I knew I had to return to this fascinating part of the world to discover much, much more. But I wanted to discover it in a way that took me beyond the backpacker trail – beyond the sightseeing, cheap beer, and crowded beaches. Upon learning about Operation Groundswell and their program in Thailand and Cambodia I knew immediately that this would be a great opportunity to really immerse myself culturally while also contributing towards positive change being generated by OG’s partners in the region.
I was attracted to the possibility of engaging with amazing organisations like Tiny Toones, Cambodia’s first hip-hop/breakdancing drop in-centre for at-youth risk, and SCAO, an education centre for impoverished children in Phnom Penh. I was also really drawn to some of the planned non-conventional activities, such as talking to monks in Chiang Mai and a scavenger hunt in Bangkok. In short, I decided to go Southeast Asia with OG because they combine ethical travel, immersive cultural experiences, and meaningful volunteer placements all within one reasonably affordable program.
Describe your day to day activities as a volunteer.
Sidney: That’s a tough question because the Southeast Asia trips pack a lot into only six weeks, so the day to day was characterised by a lot of variation in setting (Bangkok to Chiang Mai and into Cambodia all within 2 weeks for example). Generally, most activities and excursions were done as a group, meals were shared, and the trip leaders organised daily itineraries (with room for independent time as well). The main volunteer project, a leadership retreat with Tiny Toones in southern Cambodia, lasted about a week and the day to day was as follows. Every day we would get up and meet for breakfast at a designated time – there were about 40 of us in total (12 from the OG group and the rest from Tiny Toones).
We’d spend the morning doing communal activities (name games, team-building exercises, etc.), have lunch as a group again, and then kick off the afternoon. One day we had a pretty intense hike (with 40 people mind you!), on another we had heartfelt discussions on leadership and solidarity, and on another we built sand castle replicas of Angkor Wat and swam in the ocean. In the evenings, after communal dinner, was generally downtime when we all relaxed and got prepared for the next day. Throughout the retreat there were frequent spontaneous outbursts of breakdancing and Cambodian rapping!
What made this experience unique and special?
Sidney: For me, the most unique aspect of the OG’s Southeast Asia trip was the work we did with Tiny Toones. The chance to befriend such inspiring people and to collaborate with them on a leadership retreat which helped strengthen their community was an invaluable experience. On a more general level, what made my experience with OG so special was the combination of education, exploration and partnerships. It is very rare to find an organisation that can combine travel and volunteering effectively, but based on my experience in Southeast Asia I can say that OG does a very good job at it.
OG’s focus on conscientious and self-reflective travel added another dimension of uniqueness – activities and discussions aimed at revealing the impacts of travel, development, and volunteering were sobering and educational. Travelling as a close-knit group and forming great friendships also can’t be overstated! Lastly, OG’s staple “Independent Travel Time” (ITT), provided a great opportunity to explore my own specific interests in the region, which for me was checking out some archaeological sites in Thailand.
How has this experience impacted your future?
Sidney: My experience with OG has had a pretty drastic impact on my future – so much, in fact, that it drove me to become a trip leader for the Southeast Asia programs this summer! I am now involved in cultivating new partnerships in the region and am constantly working with my co-trip leader Amanda to refine these trips. I have developed a particular interest for sustainable and community-based tourism, something I began thinking about during my experience as a participant on the OG trip.
Above all else, the trip has taught me that our actions as travellers have direct consequences – if we choose to be conscientious and engaged then we can contribute towards positive change in the regions that host us. I am now committed to the OG style of travel in Southeast Asia and don’t think I’ll be stopping anytime soon.