This past summer, I helped my college friend, courtney, put together a little volunteer program of six californians (and a couple "drop-ins"). We worked with kids in a favela (shanty town) and set up a day program during the kids' winter vacation. It was tough work since we were all starting from scratch, but we did it! my friend, courtney, is still running the program and is putting together another group to go this coming summer. everybody funds themselves, so it's cheaper than going through a bigger NGO. that's how the program first started, through a large NGO that courtney went through. but the program was abandoned, and courtney picked it up (along with me) and put together a makeshift program (with the help of craig's list to advertise the opportunity). from that, a group of six set off for salvador. a handfull of others from around the bay area contacted us and said that they would be traveling through and would love to help for a few days. that was exciting too. we had a high school chem teacher from san francisco drop by and make playdough with the kids from salt and flour... so if you're interested or just want to know more information (even if you happen to be passing through only for a few days)... contact courtney on her myspace (
http://www.myspace.com/courtsabourts) or by email at
courtliz@berkeley.edu
Here's a partial description... ooo and a website to visit!
http://web.mit.edu/mitpsc/fellowships/focu...ad-wom-06.shtml
This is for anyone with at least an elementary background in Portuguese who is interested in volunteering with children in a favela with a Brasilian NGO in Salvador Bahia Brasil for summer 2006 for about two months somewhere between june and early august at the latest. The NGO is the CFDN (Centro Feminina Da Diaspora Negra).
Its mission is to provide services that will benefit women of the African diaspora. One of the ways CFDN is making an effort to improve the social status of women and people of the African Diaspora in Brazil is by providing an enrichment program for Santa Luzia: a community of impoverished Afro-Brazilians in the city of Salvador da Bahia. Programa Santa Luzia contributes to the goals of CFDN by providing enrichment opportunities for the children of Santa Luzia, many of whom are girls of African descent.