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Published: November 16th 2010
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Guanzhou
My UN colleagues and I meet the Asian Games mascots Volunteers are seldom paid; not because they are worthless, but because they are PRICELESS!
So in between my travelling adventures I am doing lots of work, honestly. It is so varied I can only give you some highlights and like the rest of my experiences it goes from the sublime to the ridiculous. One day I am head down in a modern office writing a training course. The next I am in a 5* hotel being hailed as an international expert and delivering a speech to the Asian Games. Another I am on a cultural visit with 50 blind people to Prince Gong’s palace and the next I’m playing a mouse in a sketch about moving the cheese (don’t ask!) as part of a workshop to develop new strategy for VSO China or doing compulsory exercises in the BVF office with all the staff including the big boss. One thing for sure I am never bored!
My core work is to build the skills capacity of local NGOs and to somehow document this good practice, which we plan to do with case studies and a DVD. The first of my four key groups is Hongdandan Education Centre for Blind
in official mode
presenting at Asian Games training camp People and last week they were overwhelmed by getting the chance to host a visit for the wife of UN Director Ban Ki Moon - no less! I have never been involved in such detailed preparation right down to when to stand up and sit down etc. But on the day we had sunshine and smiles all round. Other unusual projects have been an art exhibition, loaned by The Louvre, which positively encouraged people to touch famous statues (copies!) to explore the art work through touch rather than sight and a sports day at the Olympic Park. Most of the time I am doing more nitty gritty work with them, like trying to meet a deadline for a funding proposal, running training sessions in volunteer management and trouble shooting when projects go pear-shaped. They are inspiring people to work with, who, I just discovered, have not been able to pay themselves, even expenses, for the last 3 months because of lack of funding - but somehow they still keep going.
Another group is the Leling Association for older people, a more established community group, who we are supporting to expand their activities into more areas and reach more old
Prince Gong's Palace
Miss Zeng one of the leaders at Hongdandan who is severely visually impaired people. We were invited to join a birthday celebration. It was 9am and we had to eat traditional noodles - the length of the noodle denotes long life - and the gooiest cake. You will never starve in modern China, they really do ‘live to eat’. The oldest of the assembly, 88 years, got to wear the crown but she wasn’t going to put here noodles down, not even for the photographer!
The other two projects are both to support migrant workers and their families and football seems to be a recurring theme. It’s an easy way to establish a relationship with the children and for university volunteers to get involved. One group run regular Happy Football sessions for a migrant school and we held a special activity to celebrate International Children’s Day, which will lead to an even bigger event with 100 migrant schools and 1000’s of children to raise awareness on International Volunteering day on 5 December.
This is our next big challenge and we are madly organising for a Volunteer EXPO to promote volunteering with VSO and a range of activities with our own groups, including songs from the blind choir, dancing from the older
VIP visit
Mrs Ban Ki Moon at Hongdandan people - and of course football! Although I am hardly the most sporting type I did find myself marching round a stadium recently waving BVF flags to open a youth league sports day - another of my unique Chinese experiences, I felt as if I was in the Olympics!
The other part of my volunteer commitment is to give one day a week to VSO itself. One trip with them was to the rather less than beautiful industrial city of Lanzhou in Gansu province, NW China. I got to meet a group of Muslim migrant women, who were all single mothers and prepared to fight for their children’s future the only way they know. That is to battle to get them accepted into school and to get a good education, their only escape route from the village they were born in, which is designated by the UN as not fit for human habitation. They were so feisty; they were brilliant, but not used to anyone listening to them or giving them a chance. Last week I went back to Xi’an with my VSO colleague Sifan and it was good to get out of Beijing and to talk to English
Disabled sports day
A blind participant told me he had a certificate for dancing and next moment we were having a twirl people for once. We were visiting two disability projects where another young UK volunteer is trying to develop art therapy techniques. I also assisted a local Foundation to develop a volunteer management system training course for other groups. I seem to be becoming something of an ‘expert’ on this. There is a certain expectation that the international volunteer is the expert on everything!. I’ve even had to write a chapter for a book, although I am really just learning as I go. But I have certainly increased my skills as a trainer.
So I am not just sight seeing, I am enjoying myself at work and play, and I still managed to fit in rumba dancing, cinema and a hike this week too!
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jacky poole
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Your true vocation
Your energy is astonishing - you know they are going to try to persuade the international expert to stay on - in fact I expect you have already been approached!!! But is does sound that work of this nature in China remains totally voluntary despite how much good you are all doing. No doubt thisexperience will have been life changing for you and I wonder if you may have outgrown your current job here ??? Lovely to see how happy you are LOL Jacky