1. Do our expeditions, service trips, and international student travel programs meet the requirements of a well recognized standard like BS8848?
2. Do we have a detailed Risk Assessment and Management System, that is communicated widely, for every phase of the trip?
3. Do our parent permission and waiver forms adequately spell out all the project risks so that there is informed consent by parents and students? (hint: many school permission forms are woefully inadequate at this)
4. Do we carry out a full reconnaissance for our expeditions, service trips, international student travel programs? If not, are we truly aware of the risks involved, and the competencies of the local tour operator?
5. Are the competencies of the teachers/faculty accompanying the students clearly spelt out?
6. Is there a Crisis Management Team, with clear responsibilities, available at the school during the entire trip, even during holidays?
7. Do we have the right type of insurance for expeditions? Not all travel insurance is the same – they vary widely in terms of what is /is not covered.
8. How can we get 100s of students, beyond those participating directly in the program, to benefit and learn meaningfully?
9. How can the students participating make a much more meaningful and lasting impact on the environment beyond paying into a carbon offset program?
10. How can we make this experience one that is truly life changing for EVERY student who participates?

There are numerous other questions we can think of, and would be happy to discuss, but we thought this was a good starting point.

If you have other key questions you’d like to suggest, please email us: narmin@climbforleaders.com

The Yanapay School started as an alternative school in 2004 where children would receive help with homework, as well as receive education in the arts, cultural expression, and topics relevant to today’s world, free of charge. With more than 160 children attending the school every afternoon, the school moved to a bigger space and started a volunteer programme in 2005. The Yanapay School is now sustained by profit from the Yanapay House, where volunteers pay for their room and board. In 2006, Yuri opened the Yanapay Village Restaurant and Café, which will help to fund the cultural centre he hopes to make a reality in the near future.

“We were impressed by Yuri’s vision and achievements so far. The self-sustaining nature of his projects is a breath of fresh air. We hope to be able to make the Aldea Yanapay cultural centre a reality, so that children can have access to the arts, a comprehensive library and the internet, so they can learn about and maintain their culture, and most importantly, grow up to be caring, tolerant, broadly-educated people who will contribute positively to society,” says Narmin K. Ismail, co-founder of Climb for Leaders.

Yuri said: ”So far, I’ve found success in creating and stabilizing a business venture in one year, and the next year, using the proceeds from the business to fund a social project. We are committed to tackling not just economic problems, but also educational, moral and spiritual issues, in order to provide children with social and life skills and empower them with knowledge. We are delighted to partner with the Climb for Leaders, who we are confident can help us meet some of our key program objectives, including opening the cultural centre and hopefully an orphanage for Peruvian children.”

The Yachana Technical High School is a non-traditional boarding school providing a practical and relevant experiential learning approach. It is forging a new generation of green leaders and entrepreneurs and is sparking students’ interest and desire to continue their education. The program is promoting conservation of the Amazon’s biodiversity through teaching sustainable use of natural resources, providing professional skills to improve employability, and mentoring management of student-run ecological enterprises. Subjects include ecotourism, sustainable agriculture, forest and wildlife management and environmentally sustainable micro-enterprises.

“On a recent visit to the school, we were delighted to learn first-hand from the program coordinators of the successes—and challenges—that the program had. In the Amazon region of Ecuador, poverty, environmental degradation and poor quality of public education are all inextricably linked. Thirty percent of elementary school children in the Amazon region do not finish the 6th grade. Only 15% finish secondary schooling. Students drop out because they feel the current public education available in their remote communities is impractical and irrelevant to their everyday lives. Young boys and girls from poverty stricken backgrounds now have a great opportunity to get a good education and learn practical skills , which will make a huge impact to a growing number of families,” says Narmin K. Ismail, co-founder of Climb for Leaders.

Adds Juan Kunchicuy, senior manager of the program:”Meaningful education is the key to reversing generations of poverty, raising environmental awareness and ensuring the sustainable use of the region’s natural resources. With the proper preparation, Amazon youth can become good stewards of their land, leaders within their communities and ambassadors for the Amazon. They can learn how to be successful entrepreneurs, gain the tools to improve their standard of living, and create environmentally sound employment possibilities in the rainforest.

We are delighted to have the support of the Climb for Leaders, who we are confident can help us meet some of our key program objectives. One of the unique features of the Yachana Technical High School is that its operation is designed to be as close to self-sustaining as possible. Initially, large sums of support are needed for salaries, operations and the construction of infrastructure. Our goal is to have the school self-sustaining in a short period of time. The innovative combination of support from Yachana Lodge, Yachana Technology and microenterprises run by the students, plus volunteers and supporters, will we hope ensure this goal within a few years”, he adds.

]]> http://www.climbforleaders.com/posts/students-to-help-improve-environmental-sustainability-in-amazon-rain-forest.html/feed 0 http://www.climbforleaders.com/posts/students-to-support-working-girls-and-families-in-quito-ecuador.html http://www.climbforleaders.com/posts/students-to-support-working-girls-and-families-in-quito-ecuador.html#comments Thu, 01 Jul 2010 22:48:13 +0000 karim@climbforleaders.com http://www.climbforleaders.com/?p=686 Climb for Leaders is delighted to announce its support of CENIT, the Center for the Working Girl, in the south of Quito, Ecuador. The Sisters of the Good Shepherd, a Catholic order, founded CENIT in 1991 in response to their observations that the prevalence of child laborers in Quito had increased greatly due to urban migration, debt crisis, and an increase in poverty. To learn more about CENIT, please see this short video on CENIT.

They sought to give these children the necessary skills, talents, and education so that they could find work away from the streets and hopefully break the cycle of child laborers. Over nineteen years later, CENIT continues to be run by a group of nuns from the Sisters of the Good Shepherd. These nuns work in conjunction with about 35 Ecuadorian paid professionals (including teachers, administrators, psychologists and social workers), and around fifty foreign and national volunteers in order to locate the child workers, befriend them and their families, and eventually integrate them into an educational program. CENIT helps working girls (and boys) and their families overcome grinding poverty and improve their quality of lives through education and job training, nutrition programs, health and social services, psychological help, and recreation.

On a recent visit to the school, Karim H. Ismail, co-founder of the Climb for Leaders, interviewed Sister Blanca Rosa Chuquimarca. She said, “The majority of the children have suffered from various types of abuse, be it psychological, physical or sexual. As a result they often have deep-rooted problems. We at CENIT believe that in order to achieve a real change in the life of any individual, it is necessary to work with the child, his or her family, and the community. As a result, despite the fact that CENIT’s title is “The Center for the Working Girl”, CENIT helps children and family members regardless of gender, although it continues to place special emphasis on helping female children due to the fact that they tend to have a disproportionately large workload. CENIT is able to be effective due to the variety of programs we have, all of which confront the problems of working children, each with a different emphasis.”

Sister Rosa continues: “We are delighted to have the support of the Climb for Leaders, who we are confident can help us meet some of our key program objectives. Our community health clinic provides general health services to about 2,000 patients every year. The schools give educational and life skills to around 250 children per year, many of whom would not otherwise have the opportunity. The street outreach program helps over 190 children and parents by bringing educational recourses to the streets, and our drop-in-tutoring center (CEA) provides tutoring to about 70 children, helping them integrate into the school system. The time that Climb for Leaders students can volunteer here, and any funds they can contribute, will help sustain and strengthen our existing programs, some of which we sometimes have to trim back due to a shortage of funds, and growing costs.”

So we put together this comparison that shows how we differ along a host of key factors. In addition to these substantial differences, one of the key differentiators is our fanatical emphasis on safety, risk management and customer service. And above all, the role we assume with schools is that of a true partnership, which is essential to successfully pulling off  the programs we offer, and achieve the benefits we have seen schools and students enjoy.

- Essay
- Physical training
- Fund-raising
- Expedition
- Exploration
- Service project
- Environmental sustainability
- Wide-spread benefits
- Program costs
- Preparation and length

Please go here to access

>>>>  Climb for Leaders Ultimate Student Challenge – comparison with other programs <<<<

We’d be pleased to discuss this comparison in more detail.

Climb for Leaders is delighted to announce that it has completed self-assessment against the toughest expedition standard, BS 8848, developed by the Royal Geographical Society in the UK. There is currently no equivalent Canadian or US Standard.

The new standard aims to reduce risk from injury or illness and provides those that comply with the standard, with a way of being able to demonstrate that they are following good practice to manage the venture/expedition safely.  BS 8848 specifies operational requirements for organizers of adventurous and educational activities abroad including university and academic fieldwork, gap year experiences, adventure holidays, charity challenges and research expeditions.

BS8848 is designed to provide  a comprehensive but simple system to ensure that all participants are aware of the need to conduct risk assessments; are adequately trained and prepared; and are aware of the scope of measures to protect their well-being. BS 8848 helps minimize risk through:

• Guidance on how to run a safe and well organized overseas venture;
• Establishing best practice for organizers;
• Helping students, parents and a school recognize whether a venture has well developed safety standards;
• Preparing participants for the risks involved;
• Aiming to reduce risk of injury and “near misses”;
• Providing clear accountability and defined roles for everyone involved.

“While we have carried out many complex expeditions using our in-depth experience of the area, the deep knowledge and experience of our carefully selected local tour operators, and common sense, we had not necessarily documented everything to the extent required by a standard like BS 8848,” said Karim H. Ismail, co-founder of the Climb for Leaders. “This assessment therefore gave us the opportunity to take a second look at each of our practices and policies, step by step and from ground up, and make revisions where we felt it would improve our expeditions.”

He adds: “Overall, we have identified 49 key steps to undertaking an expedition like what we offer through Climb for Leaders. Schools that undertake only service trips, or cultural trips, or only trekking trips may find that they need a few less steps. But nonetheless, at a time when there is growing concern about safety and the strong possibility of litigation in the event there is a mishap, compliance with a standard like BS8848 would demonstrate that a school or venture provider had exercised a high standard of care in planning and undertaking such trips,” he adds.

“The process of defining and undertaking all 49 steps was challenging and very time consuming. To help all schools that undertake trips with increased safety and better outcomes, Climb for Leaders is please to share its knowledge by showcasing these steps in an online video presentation and transcript that any school can access,” he continues. “It is our hope that school faculty and staff, heads of school and school boards will find this step-by-step guide useful to improving their own practices as they either adopt such a standard, or partner with organizations that can offer compliance with such a standard for school trips.”

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The HMGC provides its students with a safe and secure class environment that feels more like a home than a school. The centre offers students FREE meals and lessons daily, and opportunities in skill development, as well as the opportunity to become a part of a greater organization. For as part of the Kenya Girl Guide Association, the students benefit from a life-long sisterhood, improved self esteem, and a greater sense of self worth.

“On a recent visit to Nairobi, we were delighted to learn first-hand from the program coordinators of the successes—and challenges—that the program had. Young girls from poverty stricken backgrounds now have a great opportunity to future independence and a solid livelihood, which will make a huge impact to a growing number of families,” says Narmin K. Ismail, co-founder of Climb for Leaders.

Adds Shariffa Keshavjee, Founder of the program:”It’s important to understand the context in which the girls grow up, and as a result, our objectives. The Mathare slum is  Africa’s oldest slum. It is home to over 500,000 people and is one of the largest slums in Kenya. The slum is located approximately 5km from the city center. Most of the population consists of laborers living on daily wages. The area is economically disadvantaged, with a very high rate of illiteracy especially among young women. Even though there is intention to send the girls to high school, education is the least priority due to the state of circumstances.  However, the girls have a keen interest in furthering their education.

We are delighted to partner with the Climb for Leaders, who we are confident can help us meet some of our key program objectives:  reach out and train disadvantaged young women, build their self esteem, entrepreneurial, social and life skills and empower them with knowledge through our capacity building programs; promote social awareness and understanding of young women in Kenya; and provide opportunities for jobs to these young women through sewing and other vocational skills. This is the only way that they and their families in the future will be able to break the endemic cycle of poverty in this area,” she adds.

Says Narmin K. Ismail from Climb for Leaders, “Students will get to experience a challenging six day trek, culminating in hiking to the top of Mt. Fansipan, the highest mountain in Indochina, at 3 143 m. It is located in the Lào Cai province in Northwest Vietnam, 9 km southwest of Sa Pa Township in the Hoang Lien Son Mountain Range. Fansipan is dubbed “the Roof of Indochina”; it is approved as one of the very few eco-tourist spots of Vietnam, with about 2,024 floral varieties and 327 faunal species”

She adds, “They will also spend part of their trip making a difference in the lives of school childern aged 11 to 18 in Ho Chi Minh City through hands-on-participation with the Saigon Children’s Charity, which was established in 1992 to help children escape from the cycle of poverty by giving them an education and an opportunity to enhance their life. And they will get to experience the wonderful history of Ho Chi Minh City, Saigon and other destinations, which are replete with UNESCO designated sites.”

Paul Finnis, Director of Saigon Children’ Charity says, “ Children born into poverty face numerous obstacles in getting to school. If they do get to school it is probable they will drop out early.  Many will not be able to remain in school unaided after age 10 or 11. They are most unlikely to make the most of their potential and struggle later in life as a result. They will emerge into the adult world unqualified for anything other than the most menial and lowest paid jobs that no one else will do. In short they and their families will remain trapped in the cycle of poverty into which they were born and that is the setting into which their children will be born.”

He adds: “Saigon Children’s Charity takes simple, practical steps to ensure that the children most in need get an education. We build schools, we give scholarships, we target additional support and help and we provide vocational training in a range of subjects such as IT, hairdressing and office work, as well as exploring their creative side through hobbies such as photography and art. All students also study English. We know that a good education increases their choices in life and their opportunity to find and sustain decent paid employment.”

Schools can undertake the expedition in December 2010 or Spring 2011.

For further details, please see http://www.climbforleaders.com/expeditions/vietnam.

Kiva’s mission is to connect people, through lending, for the sake of alleviating poverty.

Kiva empowers individuals to lend to an entrepreneur across the globe. By combining microfinance with the internet, Kiva is creating a global community of people connected through lending.

Kiva was born of the following beliefs:

• People are by nature generous, and will help others if given the opportunity to do so in a transparent, accountable way.
• The poor are highly motivated and can be very successful when given an opportunity.
• By connecting people we can create relationships beyond financial transactions, and build a global community expressing support and encouragement of one another.

Kiva promotes:

• Dignity:   Kiva encourages partnership relationships as opposed to benefactor relationships. Partnership relationships are characterized by mutual dignity and respect.
• Accountability:   Loans encourage more accountability than donations where repayment is not expected.
• Transparency:   The Kiva website is an open platform where communication can flow freely around the world.

As of March 2010, Kiva has facilitated over $125 million in loans. To learn more about Kiva, please go to http://www.kiva.org/about/facts- scroll down to see some fun facts

Amani is dedicated to the protection of Tanzania’s most vulnerable population: street-children and AIDS orphans. It is estimated that there are 2.5 million orphaned children in Tanzania.

Since its founding by Tanzanians in 2001, Amani has rescued hundreds of children from the perils of life on the streets, where they face a high risk of HIV transmission, malnutrition, and abuse.

Amani, which means “peace” in Swahili, provides healthy food, education, counseling and medical care for every child who turns to them for help.

“We first visited Amani in 2006, and were very impressed by the director’s professionalism and determination to expand and improve the services that Amani provided. We strongly endorsed Crescent School, Toronto’s decision to support Amani, which they have done every year since then through fundraising and community service visits. Since 2006, Amani has moved to much larger premises, grown substantially, and supports hundreds of kids within at Amani and in the community. On our visit to Amani on March 1, 2010, we are delighted to see first hand their progress, the quality of their programs, and the impact they are making in the lives of some of the most needy children in Moshi,” says Narmin K. Ismail, co-founder of Climb for Leaders. “We look forward to students who undertake future Climb for Leaders expeditions also supporting Amani through community service and fund-raising efforts.”

Valerie Todd, Amani’s Director, said, “Street-children are among the most vulnerable of all Tanzanian children. At Amani, homeless kids not only find safety, nutritious food, clean clothes, and medical care; they also find education, love and, whenever possible, the chance to grow up as part of a family. By raising awareness of and support for Amani, the students who participate in Climb for Leaders expeditions will make a difference in the lives of hundreds of Tanzanian children, offering each one hope for a brighter future.”

Trips are being organized for December 2010 or Spring break 2011.

For details, please visit http://www.climbforleaders.com/expeditions/africa.

To see a slide show of images from the recent visit, please click on any of the items below.

[Show as slideshow]

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