Association of Relief Volunteers Project Description

1. How long has the project existed?
   The project existed since 2001
2. Is this project a faith-based organization? (and if is please explain the role of religion within it?)
   Absolutely it is not faith-based organization. Purely social oriented organization existing with 281 volunteers. Volunteers are different religion, more over it is not our criteria and we respect any religion.
3. Have you ever had foreign volunteers work at your project?
   We have good experience with foreign volunteers. We specially designed project for foreign volunteers based on information updated in www.idealist.org
4. Are you currently part of a volunteer program?
   Yes. We are working with National and International volunteers.
5. Is there a language requirement?
   It is good if volunteers speak English.
6. How many volunteers can you handle at one time?
   Fortunately we have 281 volunteers to manage / coordinate / assist as many as foreign volunteers.
7. What time of year do you want volunteers?
   We have been designed work camps for foreign volunteers through out the year.
8. What is the minimum and maximum time volunteers can stay?
   We have two projects, one is for individual volunteers minimum 21 days to maximum 90 days. Another project designed for teams, any foreign volunteers team can stay minimum 5 days to maximum 12 days.
9. Depending on the mission of the project and its financial resources we often ask our volunteers to fundraise and donate money to the project that they will be volunteering with. In an effort to encourage volunteers to stay for an extended period of time, we generally ask that donation amounts are decreased for extended periods of staying. In no way, do we want projects to have volunteers to simply 'make' money from them. We only want you to have volunteers whole skills you think you could utilize rather than just their money (although we realize that the money is also vital to the project!) Donation amount for 1 week?
   Indeed money is needed to coordinate all programs and activities. But we have taken decision not to ask any donation to the foreign volunteers. If they are interested or after seeing the situation, volunteers are welcome to give donations to the project called, "building communities." ( work camp)
10. Will you accept volunteers who can't donate?
    Donation is not our objective but they should meet their expenditure.
11. What will the donations be used for (please give a detailed description?
    If volunteers donate any amount it will be used for the same villages where volunteers work in the project as village education, food campaign, health and sanitation and local volunteers program.
12. Will you provide volunteers with food and/or accommodation?
    It is very difficulty to provide volunteers food and accommodation. We will help them for their accommodation and food in good and reasonable rate by taking safety measures. Relief volunteers exist with purely local volunteers contributions
13. Who can volunteer (men/women/both)?
    Men / women both can volunteer. If volunteers are students, they can learn more on issues and culture besides the work camps.
14. When do volunteers have to contact you (the minimum time they have to contact you before volunteering at a project)?
    Volunteers are requested to contact before 25 days.
15. Is there anyone else, former volunteers, that we can contact (by email) as a reference for your project?
    Mr. Shawn Rubin - USA E-Mail: rubinsc@juno.com
    Laura - USA E-Mail: laurawestberg@yahoo.com
16. Description of the project:
    How did the project start?
    About the ARV
    
    ASSOCIATION OF RELIEF VOLUNTEERS
    
    "Association of Relief Volunteers "(ARV) is a non-profit social service organization registered under the societies registration Act XXI 1860 with society No 42 of 2001, working in the following key Focus Areas of
    • Hunger - Right to Food Campaign
    • Starvation Deaths
    • Land Rights
    • Health and Sanitation
    • Dalit Human Rights
    • Caste Discrimination
    • Manual Scavenging
    • Jogini / Devadasi System - (prostitution)
    • Untouchables

    ARV is head quartered in Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh and works with the help of 281-trained volunteers/Human Rights Activists. The organization is well structured and equipped with trained human resources to deal with above-mentioned issues in a scientific way. In a short period of time ARV has been able to attain recognition by both National and International agencies working on similar issues.
    
    In the State of Andhra Pradesh ARV has established a network in all 13 districts of Andhra Pradesh. ARV has successfully intervened in the areas of Land Rights, Starvation deaths, Human Rights Awareness for the Dalits by empowering the poor and illiterate people on their rights and has worked closely with the Government and NGOs for the social up liftment of Dalits suffering from various discrimination.
    
    ARV has developed special interventions and educational methodologies to address the above issues. The trained and reputed volunteers played a vital role in developing these tools. These volunteers have been successful in empowering the Dalits to know their rights through various campaigns thus establishing ARV as leading organization on rights based issues.
    
    Programs of ARV:

    • Research: ARV under takes extensive research and Fact finding for human rights violations in Andhra Pradesh.
    • Human Rights Education and Training: ARV conducts special educational programs for professionals such as Teachers, Media professionals, Youth, Human Rights Activists, NGO personnel, National and International NGO practioner's , Interns and Corporate houses.
    • On site field exposure: ARV organizes and conducts three-day camps in the Dalits villages to educate the Dalits on the Socio Economic Cultural Rights.

    Projects for foreign individual volunteers & teams
    
    Today, in India volunteering is more often seen as helping persons or groups or structured organizations achieve a their objective. While volunteering means giving of oneself ARV provides a platform for the volunteers to create new friendship, insight of other cultural through the cultural exchange activity and relationship building through on site work camps.
    
    In addition to the above the volunteers are exposed to real issues and through this the volunteers become agents of positive social change.
    
    Salient features of ARV program

    • Orientation on local ARV program
    • Cultural exchange program while volunteering in ARV focus areas
    • An opportunity to meet people of different cultural background
    • Freedom to choose focus areas for volunteering
    • A certificate on successful completion of the program

    Interested volunteers should send their profile to the address mentioned below choosing the key focus areas and reasons for choosing the focus areas.
    
    ARV believes in achieving excellence in all its activities and the volunteer program is carefully designed to deliver the best to all volunteers interested in working with ARV and jointly serving the discriminated Dalits in this country.
    
    Project description of Individual volunteers:

    • To teach English in School
    • To train local teachers
    • To work with slum dwellers
    • To organize health camps in slums
    • To teach nurses in terms of medical grounds
    • To work in clinic center

    Project for foreign volunteer teams: (minimum 5 maximum 18 volunteers in a team)
    
    Main objective of this project "building communities"
    
    Before starting the project called "building communities" organizers will plan on the budget and program scheduled to get consent to the volunteers team. Based on volunteers available dates we prepare program by keeping in touch with volunteers. The program is flexible in terms of volunteers convenient.
    
    In the work camp of "building communities" the following tentative scheduled will be carried out.

    • Orientation to Volunteers team about project and culture.
    • Meeting with the villagers (where project work starts)
    • Village cleaning work along with local volunteers and few villagers.
    • Interaction with the villagers and survey.
    • Meeting with villagers to create awareness on health and education.
    • Cultural program in the village
    • Community children bath (we call all children to play and to give bath to them)
    • Medical camp (expenditure will be mobilized by Relief volunteers)
    • Community meal (all volunteers and villagers take meal together)
    • Site seeing
17. Additional comments?
    We would like to work with you to develop volunteers program, which will help village communities as well as volunteers. Some of the volunteers have rich experience to deal with International volunteers in different programs.