Society        

Global Xchange       

Global Xchange is a six-month exchange programme for young people from different countries, managed by the British Council and VSO

VSO       

VSO is the world’s leading independent international development organisation that works through volunteers to fight poverty in developing countries.   

Our Shared Europe       

This programme seeks to find common ground, and build shared values, perspectives and behaviours between Muslim communities and the wider European society

Application form word icon        

Additional information word icon        

Multilateral Youth Xchange    

"Living our differences together" - Cross cultural dialogue for community development and social change    

What is Multilateral Youth Xchange ?

The Multilateral Youth Xchange ( Global Xchange) programme is an exciting six-month international volunteering exchange programme which gives young people from different countries a unique opportunity to work together, to develop and share valuable skills and to make a practical contribution where it is needed in local communities.

It aims to support the development of active global citizens, committed to working for positive change within communities.  The programme is managed by the British Council and VSO. In France it is developed in collaboration with a range of institutional partners such as INJEP, APELS, and OMJA.

Where, What and How?

The programme is recruiting 20 young people (aged 18-25) from five participating cities: Belfast (United Kingdom), Durban (South Africa), Paris (France), Freetown (Sierra Leone) and the Los Angeles (United States). The exchange will take place between October 2010 and March 2011.

Volunteers will live with host families and work in host communities for 3 months in Durban (South Africa)and 3 months in Belfast (United Kingdom). You will live and work in cross-cultural counterpart pairs and the exchange is designed as a fully reciprocal volunteer programme, involving cross-cultural partnerships in every aspect of our work.  There will be no cost to the participants of the programme as all travel, accommodation and catering will be provided for (approx 20 euros pocket money will be given to participants per week).

Volunteer Placements are extremely varied and have in the past included working with children as educational assistants; working with refugee organisations, assisting wiht education health projects, working as care assistants with older and people wiht physical and mental disabilities.  For more information about the actual content of the programme and its underlying theme, please click here.

Who can apply ?

Participants criteria include :

Be aged 18 to 25 years old   
Have a good level of spoken English   
Be prepared to volunteer to work for 6 months full time without financial reward   
Be medically cleared by a recognised medical authority   
Be prepared not to see your family or friends for a period of 6 months   
To have lived for a minimum of a year in France and to be based in Paris region   
Have a clear police record   

What are the benefits ?

Promotes intercultural dialogue through meaningful two way dialogue and reciprocal activities   
Supports the participation of large numbers of young people globally as active citizens   
Delivers benefits to communities by strengthening existing community development initiatives, promoting community cohesion; and encouraging community participation   
Builds active networks and dialogues that did not exist before    
Challenges perceptions and stereotypes of other global communities   
Promotes the contribution of volunteering to communities    
Broaden your horizon and discover new cultures and countries   
Gain work experience and new skills   

How to apply ?

Applications are now closed

DCSIMG

Text Only Options

• Change the current font size: larger | default | smaller
• Current color mode is Black on White, other available modes: Yellow on Black | Black on Cream
• Show textual links as buttons
• Do not move navbars
• Do not alert me when leaving text-mode
• Open not handled documents directly
• Hide Text Only Options

Open the original version of this page.