Canada World Youth (CWY) is a Canadian non-governmental organization that uses informal education and international exchanges among youth to develop engaged citizens. Since 1971, CWY has carried out programs with more than 60 countries in Africa, Latin America, Asia, the Caribbean, and Eastern Europe. Their mission is to “increase the ability of people, and especially youth, to participate actively in the development of just, harmonious, and sustainable societies“.
Currently, they have three programs running. In particular, I’d like to draw some attention to the Youth Leaders in Action program.
Youth Leaders in Action is a six month long volunteer program (read: six months of adventures, excitement, and fun!) for a group of about 18 young people (ages 17 to 24); nine are from Canada and nine are from a partner country. They spend three months in a community in Canada followed by three months in a community overseas, living with host families and working together on a project. Each Canadian participant is paired up with a participant from the exchange country for the entire time. In this project, not only do you get to travel overseas, but you will discover other cultures and maybe learn another language!
The two other programs CWY is running are Global Learner and InterAction, which do not last as long as Youth Leaders in Action, but are also unique learning experiences. You can learn more about CWY on their About CWY page.
Wouldn’t it be amazing to be away from home doing volunteer work for half the year? I totally think so.
