NICARAGUA
Temple Global Brigades
VOLUNTEER ABROAD OPPORTUNITY
Public health brigade--but you do not have to be a health major or speak spanish to join!
We will be traveling to Nicaragus, and the trip will run from May 25-May 31,we will build a latrine, shower, stove and cement floors for a family. It will cost $1500.00, this price includes airfare, travel, food, and lodging.
Itinerary
Day 1: Arrival and Public Health Orientation
Welcome to Nicaragua! Once you are settled, you will be given a tour of the surrounding area. After dinner we will discuss health in Nicaragua and the role of the Public Health Program.
Day 2: Community Introduction and Tour
More specifically, your team will begin to understand some of the specific health issues facing your community and Nicaragua as a whole on day 2. This day will include a tour of the community, an introduction to the families with whom your group will be working, and a meeting with members of the Basic Sanitation Committee.
Day 3, 4, 5: Project Implementation
During days 3-5, your group will dive into your infrastructure projects, working alongside the Nicaraguan community throughout the entire effort. You will get your hands dirty and put your minds together to help improve the living conditions in families’ homes and the overall quality of life in the community. In teams of 2-4 students, you will be building either a latrine, water storage unit ("pila"), eco-stove, shower, or concrete floors. These projects are labor-intensive, but as you will be working side-by-side with local masons, anyone can take part regardless of expertise.
Day 6: Education
Each group will receive their education topic and projected audience before they leave for the brigade, and will have time to work on the session before departing for Nicaraguan. On the education day, your team will collaborate with Basic Sanitation Community members to present the education workshop to children in the primary schools, then have a final "despedida" (good-bye) lunch with the family.
Day 7: Airport Departure
Depending on the time of your groups departure flight, there may be time to visit to the colonial town of Valle de los Angeles in the morning. Transportation will be provided to airport.
Brigade Components
The holistic PHB model utilizes three methods of disease prevention for the complete care of our communities: Infrastructure Improvement, Education and Community Involvement.
Infrastructural Development
These projects were chosen based on observations of Medical Brigade patient records, which illustrated high levels of chronic respiratory disease, chagas, and other preventable illnesses caused by poor in-home infrastructure. Working side-by-side with local masons and family members, volunteers will participate in a number of construction activities: mixing cement, laying concrete blocks and bricks, pouring concrete floors, digging trenches, spackling, assembling wood structures, creating rebar reinforcements, and making cement polish.
Community Organizing and Involvement
Throughout the entire project and your stay Nicaragua, you will be involved in Community Organizing. This will activities such as meeting with community leaders and members of the Basic Sanitation Committee; visiting families and seeing the effects of the projects; and taking part in community activities (such as playing with the children, playing soccer, etc.) that build a relationship between the communities and Public Health Brigades. This will be one of the most valuable and most rewarding parts of the trip.
Education Workshop
Public Health volunteers collaborate with the Basic Sanitation Committee and local teachers to help provide health education "charlas," or workshops, in schools and in-home project maintenance training. This community-wide education proliferates sanitation and hygiene practices and empowers families with both the knowledge and tools to lead healthier lives.
Interested?
ONLY 6 SPOTS LEFT
If this is for you, you can start raising money for your trip here: https://www.empowered.org/Temple-U-Public-Health-Brigade-Nicaragua-May-2014
Email: veronica.hopkins@temple.edu
Website: http://www.globalbrigades.org
Phone: 215 385 4718