People who attended this year's Carling Weekend: Reading and Leeds Festivals are being given the opportunity to volunteer as helpers for charity Cradle, to work on projects in places such as Bosnia Herzegovina, Albania, and Thailand, with festival organisers Festival Republic covering travel, accommodation, food and all project related expenses.
Cradle is a Non-Governmental Organisation, working with children and community development programs in Bosnia Herzegovina, Albania and Thailand. They work without prejudice in areas that have been defined by ethnic hatred, they remain with those who need assistance long after the reporters have moved on to new stories, they listen closely to the communities they work with, to ensure that they provide what is really needed, rather than what is easiest to give.
The accepted volunteers will work at selected projects, including home building and refurbishing projects in Bosnia and Herzegovina and Albania, a school refurbishment project in Thailand which in addition, supports children who have lost parents to the tsunami and a music and arts project in Mostar, in Bosnia that aims to help children who have been repressed to express themselves creatively and foster relationships with other children from different ethnic backgrounds. Most assignments will last for one week.
To apply, you must be over 18, keen, energetic and motivated, ideally with skills relevant to one of the projects. Some experience of working with children would be an advantage, but if you’ve contributed to community or student projects, or have other skills or experience that might benefit the project, they want to hear from you. Social skills are the most important; the ability to engage and interact with people, remaining sensitive to the troubles of the communities and appreciative of their simple living conditions. Dates for assignments will be confirmed later.
You must have been to the Carling Weekend: Reading or Leeds in 2007. You will be required to prove you attended to one of this year’s festivals with either a wrist band, ticket stub, ticket confirmation email, or other relevant proof of attendance.
To apply, you need to download the application form, and email the completed form to sven@cradle.ie. For more information on the valuable work that Cradle do, see here.
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