Thank you! Thank you! Thank you for coming this far and visiting my JustGiving page!

In February 2014, I will be travelling to Southern India for 10 weeks to volunteer in remote communities, with Raleigh International as part of the International Citizen Service. ICS brings young people together, from all walks of life, to fight poverty and make a difference where it is needed most.

I’ll be working alongside other volunteers from the UK and India on a project that focuses on these areas crucial needs; health, sanitation, education, environmental issues and rural livelihoods - many things that we take for granted! We will be working in small, isolated communities that have little or no access to government funding or education programmes. Our aim is to create a sustainable environment for those who live there.

Raleigh and ICS work in deprived areas that have requested their help. The people in these communities are forced to live in a very different way to us. In India, only 31% of the population has access to adequate sanitation facilities. In the UK, that statistic is 100%. If you want to learn more about these organisations and the work I'll be doing, check out their websites:
http://www.raleighinternational.org/where-we-work/india/raleigh-ics-india
http://www.volunteerics.org/about-ics


Be under no illusions, there will be absolutely no perks to this job - we will be living and breathing as the locals do. We will be working long days in the heat, in communities where the people have no choice but to live in the most basic of ways. The whole experience is going to be very challenging both physically and mentally.

On our return, we will then implement what we've learnt on location, within our own communities through the Action At Home project.

Now here's the bit where you come in..
Although Raleigh & ICS are non-profiting charities, I need to fundraise a minimum of £800 to partake on the project. This does not goes towards my journey. Instead, the money raised goes back into the communities we help and the ICS scheme. This is so that they can continue to send volunteers out to disadvantaged areas, bring about positive change and eradicate poverty for good. 

You can donate through JustGiving, all you have to do is click the big Donate button at the top of this page
or via this new-fangled texting lark
Text BMAN92 followed by the amount you wish to pledge (£1, £2, £3, £4, £5 or £10) to 70070
 

Over the next few months, I will be partaking in various fundraising activities in order to reach my goal. There'll be music events, pub quizzes and "living below the line" to name just a couple. I want to involve you all. I will be documenting and promoting what I'm doing to fundraise through social media and, when on location, the official Raleigh blog. You can keep up to date and see how it's going through..
My Travel Blog - http://www.bambiadventures.blogspot.co.uk
YouTube
Official Raleigh Blog

From 14th October, I will be going "luxury free for three".
I will be giving up three luxuries over three weeks as part of my fundraising.
The first week, I will be giving up my iPhone (or my right arm, as I like to call it)
The second week, I will be living below the line of poverty, on less than £1 a day on food and drink
And for the third week, I will be giving up my bed and camping.
This is not only for fundraising purposes, but also a minute taste of the extremes of poverty, and good practise for my expedition!

On 15th November, I will be a holding That Friday Feeling - a night of ska, reggae & soul at The Hassocks Hotel, Hassocks
From 8pm-midnight, tickets will be £5 on the door 
There'll be a disco, bar and raffle - come one, come all!

Thank you so so SO much for your support!
It really does mean the world to me and the people that I'll be helping in India! This is going to be a life changing experience and because of you, I'm one step closer!
If you do have any more questions about what I'll be doing, where your money goes or anything, do not hesistate to ask!

Thank you again!

Barnaby Smith


"You must be the change you wish to see in the world" - Mahatma Gandhi

 

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