Program Reviews

Bonding and making connections with people is something I value, be it when I'm traveling or at a coffee shop; it's what I live for. This program brought both to the table. I was able to bond and make connections with my team, with the locals, with the surroundings, and even with the spirituality that saturated the country. I had never experienced bonding like that before. But, going into the program with an open mind, excitement, and making one of my main goals bonding and making connections, really paved the way for that to happen.

Within the first three days, the whole team had bonded, and the bonding took place over the topic of fecal matter! But it helped make us a cohesive group. We were able to be vulnerable with each other, confront each other if there was an issue, and bring things to the table at group meetings that we may have been struggling with and discuss it without feeling any judgement.

When we started working with Students For a Free Tibet, I felt so strongly about reaching out to the community beyond those we were working with, to really grasp the Tibet/China diaspora. By doing this, I made connections with people who I'm still in contact with, who I consider friends. I was able to learn about their personal struggles, learn more about their fight for Tibet, and most importantly, learn how to listen and be an ally.

The scenery in Northern India is absolutely breathtaking! You have mountains surrounding you, lush trees, waterfalls, flowers galore, a cold dessert, and stars in Spiti that look like they were freshly painted because of how bright and clear they were against that dark expanse of sky. I felt so alive when I would take it all in. I felt so grounded and yet so free. I felt balanced. I can't even describe how incredible it felt. It made me connect with the nature and spirituality that was there. It was such an overwhelming feeling.

My connections and bonding experiences could not have happened had it not been for the PL's making me feel so welcome and able to achieve them, and had it not been for the group bonding as quickly as is did. Operation Groundswell does a hell of a good job when they choose Program Leaders. They are able to really help bring you out of your shell, help expose you to new ideas for you to consider, which help you be open to connections and bonding experiences. OG facilitates such incredible programs that should you choose to join one, you will not be disappointed. The people you will travel with will always strive to help you achieve your goals. They did for me.

Operation Groundswell provides an extremely unique experience wherein they give travelers insight into social/environmental issues specific to a country by working with different non-profit/advocacy groups who are trying to make the world a better place. They're also realistic with the experience they provide and don't create a facade of 'voluntourists' being able to make drastic impacts in short periods of time. Rather than solely focusing on the volunteering aspect, OG also incorporates workshops, tours, and discussions to create an educational experience that helps you to become aware of some of the issues the country facing.

For the At Origin trip, a large focus of the trip was on the importance of coffee production and how it affects the country both at the local and international level. We were given the opportunity to visit different coffee farms, observe the process of how coffee was made, and live with coffee farm families who gave insight in their day-to-day activities. If you only have a short time amount of time to travel and would still like experience something outside of the typical tourist experience, OG should definitely be put into consideration!

I'm the person who gets buyer's regret while I'm waiting in line to purchase something, so I hope you can believe me when I tell you that the price of this trip is minuscule compared to what I've gained from this 9 day program! OG's Guatemala Team and its' partners exhibit the most incredible amount of passion, diligence and perseverance for the causes they stand behind and the projects they have brought to life - and continue to inspire and motivate me every day. To know that I was able to help directly with some of these projects by getting my hands dirty - and also meeting, connecting with, and working along side the people who dedicate their lives to these projects - is an incredible feeling. Staying with local families and riding chicken buses allowed me to get up close and personal experiences that I wouldn't have gotten anywhere else. My mind was blown more than once on this trip, resulting in knowledge and confidence that I have since used to make conscientious decisions in my every day life. I found appreciation for the smallest things that we take for granted. I found humility in righteous causes. I found happiness in its purest form. OG has enriched and changed my life for the better. What will you find during your program?

During my first year of University, I really did not know what to do for my reading week until I got an email from my schools International Office.

At first I was extremely hesitant to go on the trip due to the cost, being a student it is quite hard to cough up the money but in the end it was probably the best decision I made.

It was my first trip to South America, and first time independent traveling. It truly was an experience of a life time.

Not only was OG a great way to give back to local communities, it was an awesome way to meet people, learn about different culture and how life is lived when you are not handed all the luxuries of being in a developed country like Canada.

This trip was a good mix of volunteering, education and site seeing. We had great program leaders who helped immerse our group in the culture, made us feel safe at all times and truly added on to the experience.

I would 10/10 recommend going on an OG trip, currently I am looking for my next one!

I went to Guatemala with high expectations. Our itinerary sounded amazing. What I didn't expect was that the nooks and crannies between the activities on the itinerary was where the real experience happened. I rode in a tuk-tuk for 30 minutes listening to Total Eclipse of the Heart and Time After Time on a continuous loop-- the driver's special mix tape for tourists. I had a good bm on top of a volcano-- still one of my proudest moments. I made new connections with incredible people. I learned that I couldn't get rid of my anxiety by facing my fears, but it also couldn't stop me from seizing amazing opportunities. I gained confidence in my own abilities as a traveler, which inspired me in my international excursions since. Most of all, I learned that people, regardless of language, lifestyle, and location are all just as complexly human as I am. As obvious as this statement seems, it took traveling to a completely different part of the world for me to fully understand it. I grew up more in that week than I did during the rest of my college career. If everyone participated in a trip like this, I truly believe the world would be a better place.

Volunteering in East Africa through Operation Groundswell was an invigorating, eye-opening and life changing experience! Their collaboration with local NGO's allows you to truly integrate into the local culture and community while making a real positive impact. By working with these local NGO's you ensure that the projects you are working on are not only helpful and useful, but something that the community truly needs.

Our Program Leaders Shamira and Julius unified our group and allowed us to explore what it truly means to volunteer abroad. The operations team at the OG headquarters made sure everything was in order and were very helpful when it came to answering questions and concerns. Given the chance, I would take another trip with OG in a heartbeat.

I landed in India ready for my Operation Groundswell Gender & Religion trip with no idea what to expect (mmm except crowds, heat & for my curry addiction to get worse...). However, I am glad I had no idea because I never could've imagined the unbelievable journey I was about to embark on.

On my trip I got to travel with the most beautiful people (S/O to all my OG family that I still talk to & visit), have the most remarkable trip leaders (who have become significant role models for so so many - if not all - of us trippers), and experience and learn so much. We were faced with hard truths, tall mountains, flat tires, and a little bit of Delhi Belly, but all of this was worth it, especially with the unwavering support from our new family, and the locals we met and stayed with.

Operation Groundswell gives people the opportunity to travel in an ethical manner, to meet and have deep, impactful conversations with locals and local organizations, to become a more engaged global citizen, and to grow into a 'backpacktivist' alongside wonderful new friends (...family)!

I will never forget my experience and everything that I learnt in India still resonates with me, and still impacts my daily decisions.

I got the chance to attend a Palestinian wedding with fellow OGers, but it got real interesting when I realized the friends I had come with were women and we were going to be separated for the entirety of the ceremony.

No booze at Palestinian weddings either, just lots of coffee and cigarettes and smiles and dancing. Me with my minimal Arabic just grinning foolishly and that awkward moment when, atop the groom's shoulders, the music stops and the DJ calls in his equally minimal English, "my friend! Where you come from?"

Pause. Swallow. "Ah-America!" and not wanting to be from anywhere at that moment and the wave of silence in the dirt street of a small West Bank village. The pause passing and everyone around me yelling ebulliently and we all continue the dance.

One man, afterwards, pulls me aside and explains this was one of the few moments in their culture where they could be happy. That life was very difficult and did I see? Me taking a cigarette from his leathery long fingers and rheumy eyes, listening to him tell me in an earnest and stern voice that life must be enjoyed at some point, even in the hell that Palestine is.

That's Israel to me. That's Palestine. It's some unspoken and prehistoric pain that a wistful stare can stir in the bowels of the stranger, the foreigner that I was.

I enjoyed this program so much. I was at a point in my life in which I needed a restart if you will. I jumped on this program really late in the game. They were accommodating, understanding, and helpful. I have never been to the Middle East and I honestly had no expectations. I was glad to be with people who were in similar boats, and that the group was relatively diverse. I didn't go to be a tourist, and so I was pleased to find that there was not too much of that happening. The purpose to learn and be immersed in the culture was clear. The leadership was also amazing. I felt safe and cared for the whole time. I left the trip feeling like a new human. Something shifted in me. I began to look more at what I was actually passionate about and what my next step should be. My perspective on my life, and those around me, shifted.

Going on this adventure was a last minute decision for me, but one of the best decisions of my life! I made friends that I still talk to every day and I am positive I will travel with later in life. I got to experience Northern India through the people that live there, rather than just as an outsider looking in. I got to eat some of the best food I've ever had. And I came home with a greater understanding of who I was.

OG's Gender and Religion program is a whirlwind of adventure and an absolutely amazing time! It is a 6 week trip that is so jam-packed if feels like it goes by two days. We hiked through the Himalayas, got lost on the Delhi subway system, met the Karmapa, got head-butted by cows, lived with a local family, and had countless laughs on endless train rides. I can't help but smile when I look back on my trip and have suggested and would suggest it to anyone!

Some logistics... OG as an organization is amazing! All my questions were answered, I had support every minute leading up to and while on trip. They aren't lying when they say they have the whole tripped planned for you. Our program leaders were some of the raddest people I have ever met, and they had our schedule planned down to the minute. They knew where we were going to eat, had medication when we needed it, and went above and beyond to provide support 24 hours a day. And somehow they did this all without feeling like leaders, they were just our friends.

I had done a fair bit of travelling before going on this trip, and I always had something to complain about when I got back. But reminiscing on this trip, there really isn't anything I would change. I would do it all again in a heartbeat!