MISSION STATEMENT
Worldwide Helpers is a non profit search engine created to foster partnerships between volunteers and charitable organisations worldwide. It commits itself to removing the financial barriers of volunteering by providing only low/no cost projects. It raises awareness of organisations and communities worldwide and provides them with the manpower they need to survive. By helping people help the world WWH will develop into a community of volunteers and organisations working together to change lives and transform landscapes.
OBJECTIVES
- To develop into an interactive online community for volunteers and organisations by 2010
- To initiate and maintain a WWH Grant scheme for specialist volunteers in line with the 8 Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) set out by the United Nations. http://unstats.un.org/unsd/mdg/Host.aspx?Content=Indicators/OfficialList.htm.
- To increase registered volunteers by 100 percent year on year.
- To become the No.1 online volunteering resource by 2015.
ABOUT US
Acting as a catalyst, creating partnerships among volunteers and communities, Worldwide Helpers has developed into a network of people helping all over the world. The projects listed on the website all have minimal or no costs associated with them, therefore enabling people from all walks of life to make a difference. The portal is free to both the organisation listing positions as well as the volunteer.
Thanks to our supporters, Worldwide Helpers has connected over 200 volunteers to organisations and communities worldwide.
With your continued help, we hope to turn 200 into 2000, 2000 into 20,000 until the concept of volunteering becomes a worldwide phenomenon.
WWH has broken down the financial barriers to volunteering and together our continuously growing community of volunteers is changing lives and transforming landscapes all over the world.
Spread the word and be a part of it!
HOW DID WWH COME ABOUT?
A letter from the Chairman. Roya Elghanian The beginning of any new year is the ideal time to embrace change. In January 2007, I did just that. I took a break from my job to travel the world and discover what it had to offer. I had a few destinations (Asia, Central America, and South America), and one objective, in mind -- to work with underprivileged children.
Prior to setting off on my journey, I conducted an exhaustive, and increasingly frustrating, futile web search to find a project to which I could donate my time for free, or even for a minimal cost! There were several organisations, which offered fantastic opportunities, but they were all very costly. Having quit my job, I finally had all the time in the world, but nowhere to volunteer. So you can see my predicament.
Not one to be deterred easily, I was determined to find a project along the way. A short month into my travels, it became apparent that I was not the only one who had encountered problems in finding low-cost volunteer projects. In fact, seven out of ten travellers that I met were interested in volunteering given the chance. And of those seven, less than two ended up volunteering, due to the lack of information and high fees.
It was truly shocking to discover that so many people were deterred from offering their time, while there is so much need for volunteers in the world. What an oxymoron. At that moment, I decided to make a difference.
There was a real need to provide people with information on projects which were not associated with high costs.
For the remaining months of my travels, I searched for non-profit organisations, running low-cost projects in need of volunteers. They were everywhere to be found! At one of these very projects in a very poor village in the North of Thailand, I taught English and assisted families in their daily duties. It really was an exhilarating experience that had changed my outlook on life. Seeing the joy in the faces of these families, and realising the difference one person can make to so many lives, inspired me to embark on the most rewarding project of my life. Worldwide Helpers.
