Program Reviews

If you are looking for adventure at every turn, an opportunity to challenge and develop yourself while making an impact to the lives of people in need, and meeting an array of likeminded, inspiring people, I recommend a Raleigh expedition. I signed up for a volunteer manager, communications officer position in Tanzania, Autumn 2017, and can safely say it was one of the best decisions I ever made. Disillusioned with London’s 9 to 5 cyclical and monotonous lifestyle, I hoped to immerse into a reality far different from my own, on the promise of gaining a perspective into a new style of living and working, while adopting and promoting the idea of being a global active citizen; experiencing, learning and making a difference somewhere other than my immediate surroundings. With Raleigh, you integrate with rural communities, living with host families and working with community members on projects geared towards sustainable development through young people, benefiting the communities who have a say and are actively involved in the Raleigh operations from the start.

The community members I met were incredibly welcoming and generous, eager to share what little they had contributing to the experience of feeling like having a home away from home and re-enforcing the spirit of placing human relationships at the heart of priorities, something I gladly re-discovered and wholeheartedly embraced; against the backdrop of rural simplicity, I was humbled and grateful for such an experience. On top of this you live and work in teams of fellow volunteers from all over the world, including host country volunteers.

In Tanzania, Raleigh concurrently run water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) projects based around schools that are severely lacking in sanitation facilities and practice awareness and natural resource management (NRM) projects focusing on conservation of forests and other natural areas, which are also livelihoods, crucial to economic growth. Additionally, you have a chance to embark on an adventure phase based around developing youth leadership, which involves a 19-day trek through rural Iringa, passing remote, unexplored, continuously diverse and breath-taking areas of Tanzania’s Southern Highlands, a highlight of which includes a safari day through Ruaha National Park, and a chance at a close-up experience of Tanzania’s wildlife.

Expedition is challenging and that is one of its best traits. You should be open minded and adaptable as the conditions will not be something you are used to. Once I overcame the challenges, I felt empowered, my confidence built, I found out I was tougher than I knew and ready to face the future with a newfound resilience and determination, all inspired by my three months with Raleigh. I took away all the above as well as the best of friendships and memories shared with people that inspired and challenged me every day. There aren’t enough words or descriptions that will do the experience justice, and that is the point. It is up to every individual to go out, step away from comfort and familiarity and make it their own.

I went on a 10 week expedition to Nicaragua and Costa Rica in 2011. I loved being able to work on 3 different types of projects in two countries whilst working with community members to make worthwhile impact. The trek was incredible (a mixture of fun and challenge) and let us see parts of the country many other visitors wouldn't get the chance to. I've also made some life long friends from around the world.

Fantastic experience meeting new people from all over the world, especially the locals, and learning about their cultures. Made loads of new friends and learned a lot about myself - it is important to note that Raleigh's main goal is youth development. The work you do in the host countries is obviously of huge benefit but there is always a big focus of personal development (leadership, teamwork etc). I wasnt aware of this before I went, but it was really useful and absolutely doesn't stop you having a great time! Some of the best 3 months of my life!

Awesome time was spent working on wash (water and sanitation), youth development and environment projects for a renowned company in a wonderful location. There is a big emphasis on teamwork and youth development and the support provided by the Raleigh fieldbase staff was great. It was such a good opportunity to spend an extended period of time in an incredibly diverse environment and play a part in making a lasting change to the projects and communities.

What can i say? 15 years on, my Raleigh expedition is still a defining part of my life. I made some firm and lifelong friends, but meeting so many people from diverse backgrounds also really helped to develop the networking and interpersonal skills that I rely on in my subsequent career (as a lawyer).

The experience of living and contributing to a community so very different to mine rocked my world. I'll never forget my Nicaraguan "family", receiving piles of ripe mangoes for an English lesson well delivered, the experience of pulling water from the well to "shower" in the open air under a hail of twigs from cheeky boys in the trees above, nor watching the sun rise over the steaming rainforest from the verandah of the village chief's house after 10 exhausting days of trekking through paths few other non-indigenous feet had trodden.

Raleigh taught me the power of my own self -belief - and awoke a thirst for new travels and experiences that has stayed with me. I recommend it to you without hesitation!

I was fortunate enough to be able to volunteer in Malaysia Borneo as Raleigh International's staff photographer. It was such an exciting adventure I couldn't be happier for going. You get to work on sustainable development in the rainforest, a place most of the world will never get the opportunity to experience. You get to live in the jungle, learn about yourself, make differences in communities, and make life long friends with people from all over the world.

Working with communities, not for them, is such an amazing experience. You learn about a culture you wouldn't otherwise have the opportunity to learn about. The communities accept you into their homes and make you a part of their families. You learn about sustainable development and change your life for the better as you're helping to better the lives of others.

Raleigh teaches you what you are capable of accomplishing and you come out a stronger, more confident individual who will go on to greater things. I would encourage everyone to participate in a Raleigh program.

I found Raleigh International on a job board and originally thought I was applying for a job. I found out in the interview that it was a volunteer position and had to make a split second decision whether or not to continue. I'm beyond happy for choosing to go.

I learned about sustainable development and was able to actually be a part of making a difference. I made friends with people from all over the world who share ideals for making this world a better place to live for everyone. I've seen parts of the world that I never would have had the opportunity to see otherwise. I volunteered for 13 weeks as the staff photographer and ended staying for a total of 7 months. In fact, the photos you see to the right are all photos that I took.

Raleigh helps you become a global citizen that is willing to take charge to make life and the planet a better place to live. They help you develop your confidence, leadership skills, and adaptability while you are helping communities better their lives by working with them, not for them. Raleigh Tanzania is not voluntourism, it's sustainable development to create a better world for your future.

The connections I made, the people I met, and the work we accomplished has helped shape me into the person I am today and I couldn't be happier. I am stronger, smarter, and more aware.

Being an American and volunteering for a U.K. based NGO was the most eye opening experience I could have ever asked for. I learned about cultures that I never would have learned about and met individuals I am proud to call friends.

My experience with Raleigh was truly life changing. It made me challenge myself and achieve things that I did not think I would be able to. I took part as a volunteer manager and felt that the training and support from the in country staff was excellent. The safety standards were exceptional with a strong emphasis on preventing accidents but also ensuring that we were confident in what to do in the event of an emergency and having had to put these into effect I felt completely able to deal with the situation. We got to work in some of the most outstanding scenery in Costa Rica and meet some amazing members of the community. The experience has truly changed my outlook and made me want to be a more active citizen and carrying out further volunteer work is now an integral part of my life.

After a few years working in the NHS, as a Paramedic, I felt what I d always dreaded would happen. Everything seemed like a predictable treadmill. I d been interested in Raleigh since I first heard about them about 20 years ago and being able to mix the two, as a Raleigh medic and working on a Raleigh expedition. I did feel a bit older than most of the other VPMs but that wasn t a problem. Raleigh use Nurses, Doctors, and Paramedics as Medics. In reality though, it is a very small part of the overall experience because most of the work is whichever project you are on. And I mean work! It was not a holliday. I had arrived in central america a little earlier and had felt a connection with the people in Nicaragua, so I asked to work there. The first phase was a Trek through Nicaragua, and none of us will ever forget that. I remember, at a villiage in Nicaragua, which had taken hours of walking throught the heat, dropping my back pack, which by then felt like a lead weight, and collapsed beside the shade of a small house. Then one of the pigs, which walk freely around the village saw me get my lunch out, and came over expectantly sticking his snout in my face and 'oinking' at me. I am an animal lover but this was not a time for generosity. We were exhausted. After overcoming a few setbacks we finally arrived at lake next to a volcano and spent the night there before meeting the bus the next day and returning to field base. The next two phases were helping on a water and sanitation project in Nicaragua. In the end, we helped dig about 5km of trench, which eventually supplied clean water supply to each of the houses, about 12 in our village. The host families were beautiful, honest people. I often think of the contrast between a hectic western life, and living in nature, sitting outside, talking, in the candlelight, maybe with the sound of birds or rain, after a hard days work. Raleigh was everything I was looking for. I d love to do it again, but as any Raleigh alumni will know, whichever expedition destiny has in store for you will be a unique. For me, there wil always be Raleigh expeditions, but none like Costa Rica and Nicaragua 14 G & H.

The main gist: I had a wonderful time with Raleigh in Costa Rica, and despite several logistical things going wrong and lots of frustration, it was a really valuable experience.

The first couple of days were spent doing induction and training at Field-base and a short practice trek for an hour or so to get to 'jungle camp' - a kind of mock scenario for our actual trek at the end, and a team building exercise. Quite a memorable night because it started pouring with rain, I got thoroughly drenched, and it didn't stop for about 4 days.

The whole group of about 60 was split into 4 teams for the 3-week projects; mine was sent to build a classroom in an incredibly remote place called Blori Ñak, which has a tiny school and is in the Chirripo indigenous reserve. Some of the people living there didn't even speak Spanish, but they speak an indigenous language called Cabecar, which we tried to learn a few words of.

The main aim of our project, to build a wooden classroom/building for the school, essentially failed. Building materials were slow to arrive, we didn't know what we were doing a lot of the time and had relatively little direction from the local builder who was meant to be overseeing us. A lot of time was spent waiting for things to happen, or for materials to arrive, and in some ways you could see it as wasted time. But we filled it with other things, like playing football - sometimes with the kids in the school - and getting to know each other. Our team were much more cohesive than any of the other groups by a long way, probably because we had to make an effort to enjoy the time together that we couldn't use to work on the project.
Did we make a difference to the local community? In the grand scheme of things, probably not. We only managed to start the building, laying the floor boards and some structural posts, but even if we had finished the project, our interaction with the local people was fairly limited, which was a shame. The 3 weeks were full of frustrations, but an interesting experience, with lots learned and gained from it. I'd say I learnt more about myself than I helped anyone in Blori.

Then - my favourite part of the trip - we set out for 5 days trekking, with the same team. We walked about 15km each day in quite mountainous terrain (avg. altitude was about 1500m). Such beautiful views and in some places you could see out to the Pacific coast to the West. Hard work and tiring, but so worth it.

Finally, we spent 3 days on an island off the Pacific Coast called San Lucas, which used to be a maximum security prison but is now a nature reserve. This was the 'Survival Challenge', which was essentially just a bit of fun and a kind of fake desert-island situation; we did team games and survival skills like building a fire and skewering fish to cook for ourselves. A lovely end to the 5 weeks, which had ups and downs but overall was wonderful.