IVHQ is all about enabling socially-conscious travelers to have a meaningful impact, to foster cultural exchange and to expand their skills and horizons. This is our global purpose and our local teams deliver against it by placing volunteers on a wide range of projects that collectively seek to achieve the following five objectives.
1. Heighten cross-cultural learning and global understanding
This first objective forms an important part of every single project that IVHQ volunteers contribute to. Crossing boundaries to work side-by-side with people from different cultures fosters cultural understanding and builds global citizenship. The two-way exchange of volunteering heightens global awareness and understanding, and encourages people all over the world to become more active citizens of their own community.
This objective is about challenging volunteers and communities to interact responsibly and constructively, and to engage with cultures, ideas and perspectives that are different to their own.
Project types that contribute to this project objective:
2. Increase access to education
Helping to increase access to education is a common objective across a wide range of the projects that IVHQ volunteers are placed on. Greater literacy supports opportunities for higher education, helps to build vocational skills, and opens the door to enhanced life and career prospects. Volunteers support local staff to increase the quality and inclusiveness of the education in communities all around the world. Education and English language education in particular, are highly valued in many of our program locations because of the potential it has to enable people to improve their lives.
Project types that contribute to this project objective:
Teaching, Medical and Health, Environment and Conservation, Wildlife and Animal Care, Childcare, Special Needs Care, Sports, Arts and Music, NGO Support, Community Development
3. Promote health and wellbeing
The promotion of better health and wellbeing is an aim that guides many of the projects that IVHQers are placed on. Having access to basic medical care and resources, hygiene campaigns and health education enables people to live longer, happier and more productive lives. Volunteers work alongside local staff at the frontline of promoting better health and wellbeing outcomes.
Project types that contribute to this project objective:
Medical and Health, Elderly Care, Childcare, Special Needs Care, NGO Support, Sports, Community Development
4. Support community development
Supporting community development is another important objective that a lot of the projects that our local teams work with strive to achieve. Resilient communities have infrastructure, resources and organisations that build capacity in local people and offer support to the most vulnerable. IVHQ is not an aid organization or a charity, so our volunteers contribute by developing community infrastructure, sharing skills with local organisations, and providing assistance to outreach campaigns that deliver vital services to those in need.
Project types that contribute to this project objective:
Construction and Renovation, NGO Support, Community Development, Environment and Conservation, Wildlife and Animal Care, Elderly Care, Childcare
5. Conserve the environment and protect animals
Animal welfare and conservation of the natural environment is another objective that applies across several project types. In many countries, animals and wildlife face an uncertain future and the environment is in need of protection. Volunteers provide vital support to local people and organizations to help ensure fragile ecosystems and species are protected and treated with dignity.
Project types that contribute to this project objective:
Environment and Conservation, Wildlife and Animal Care, NGO Support, Community Development
