About the ProjectBuilding houses families can call their home
Millions of families in developing countries face a severe housing problem. A lack of shelter is a manifestation of widespread poverty. People live in homes that are built of flimsy materials, lack adequate sanitation, have an irregular or no electricity supply.
To help mitigate housing issues, DWC’s RAISE THE ROOF program provides adequate shelter and improves the conditions in which families live through sustainable construction projects. Essential services are addressed, such as safe drinking water, improved sanitation, space for food gardens and other means by which people can increase their capacity to generate income.
A liveable home can have a tremendous impact on a family’s well-being and their ability to break the cycle of poverty. For example, research suggests that replacing a dirt floor with cement can result in reductions in cases of diarrhea and anemia due to the presence of fewer parasites. In addition to health improvements, ownership of decent housing increases a family’s personal safety, security, and performance in school and at work. Secure housing improves a whole community.
What to ExpectA Typical Workday in Cambodia
As a volunteer in Cambodia, you’ll help build a home, a latrine, or even a combination of these, while you are on site. You’ll work in a village near Kompong Khleang, and your team will stay in a hotel in nearby Siem Reap.
Our in-country partner, Bridge of Life School, is a grass-roots, not-for-profit organization providing free educational and community-based programming at rural sites in the Cambodian countryside. The organization started in July 2009. Most staff come from local villages and have a direct relationship with the communities where they work. There is a solid presence in the areas to ensure the long-term viability and passion about trying to make people’s lives better.
You’ll do construction that builds a future for people who have little. You’ll work alongside like-minded volunteers who are also passionate about travel and giving others a hand up, not a hand out.
It's Not All WorkVisit the Temple of Angkor Wat
Temperatures are definitely warm, and humidity is low – it’s dry, dry, dry. This is a great time to be seeing and volunteering in the country, but it can be hot and dusty.
The team will be stationed in Siem Reap, the cultural mecca of Cambodia. This is a tourist city with a population of just over 140,000 people. The list of cultural activities is endless, including such standards as Angkor Wat, Banteay Srei, Bayon and the Phare Circus. The outlying countryside is loaded with several options for full-day or two-day excursions.
Trip Details
Terry-Lynn Stone
Terry-Lynn lives by the motto, “You cannot change the world—but you can help change someone’s world.” Whether it is volunteering with her local Rotary Club, traveling with DWC, or following her passion making and delivering menstrual kits to girls so they can go to school, Terry-Lynn delights in helping others. Any trip with DWC and Terry-Lynn will be one part work, one part passion and a huge helping of humour and fun! Why not join us in Sri Lanka as we don’t change the world, but do help change some people’s world—and as an added bonus, we will help keep several hundred girls in school by taking them menstrual kits.
Travel Light Offset Your Carbon Footprint
Carbon offsets are used to compensate for the greenhouse gasses that we create through certain activities, such as flying. For every tonne of carbon released into the atmosphere, an ‘offset’ is a carefully designed project that absorbs or stores the equivalent CO2 emissions. You can choose to offset your own flight, your whole family’s, or do this as a gift for a friend.
Offset Your Carbon Footprint
Joy
Trip Coordinator