Volunteer Placement Organization: Cross Cultural Solutions
By Kate | Permalink |
7 comments | February 10th, 2007 | Trackback
Cross Cultural Solutions provides short-term volunteer placements for international participants; “one of the primary goals of the organization [is] to follow the lead of local organizers and provide them a helping hand without imposing outside ideas.”
Cross Cultural Solutions got started after founder Steve Rosenthal spent a week with a friend in the Peace Corps in Kenya during a much longer multi-country trip. There he felt he had a brief chance to be more than a traveler – he felt a part of the community, working on a project with social impact. Upon his return to the US, and after sharing and reflecting on this experience, he decided to see if he could organize this type of experience for others. In this way, Cross Cultural Solutions was born.
“As an international volunteer with Cross-Cultural Solutions, you’re making a meaningful contribution, working side-by-side with local people and sharing in the goals of a community that warmly welcomes you. You’re experiencing another culture like never before and really getting to know its people.
You’ll gain new perspectives and insight into the culture and yourself. It’s an exciting and personally inspiring experience, and you’ll develop memories that will be with you forever.”
You can choose from 12 countries: Brazil, China, Costa Rica, Ghana, Guatemala, India, Morocco, Peru, Russia, South Africa, Tanzania, and Thailand and either intern, volunteer, or have a one-week “insight abroad” in any of a selection of cities.
You can volunteer with any number of partner organizations which are community-led initiatives, generally for two to twelve weeks in fields such as: orphanages and childcare centers, schools, health clinics and hospitals, homes for the elderly, centers for people with disabilities, and other community organizations.
The cost ranges from $2489 for two weeks, plus $272 for each additional week (12 weeks comes to $5200). You can also find an explanation of the fees and a guide with tips on how to fundraise for your participation in a Cross Cultural Solutions project.
Comments
Hmmm…I don’t see anything on Google news, and the Cross Cultural Solutions web page still has programs in India.
Where did you hear this information? Do you have any links to confirm it?
Some people get very angry that an organization would charge money to volunteer. I think it’s fine to choose not to use that organization, and to go ahead and arrange your own volunteer work independently using a site such as this one. In fact, that’s part of the point of the Volunteer Logue. But when you pay you are basically paying for a service - and non-profit doesn’t mean “free”.
Most of us don’t have unlimited time to orient foreigners with good intentions who don’t speak our language to help us do our jobs … why should we expect others to?
Is Cross-Cultural Solutions a scam? I have signed up to go to India for 11 weeks in the fall, and its costing $5000. I know this is probably a rip-off compared to other organizations, but I just want to know from someone who is familiar with CCS: is it a legitimate organization that does indeed set up volunteer work with communities in India? Is there anything they lie about on their website?
I am in the process of studying Cross Cultural Solutions and would like to sign up to do this project. I, too, would like to know if there is anyone out there who has done this and could give me honest feedback. I’m very excited about doing it and I totally understand the reason for the fees charged (although it is pretty high). But just trusting the brochure that CCS sends out seems a bit naive.
Matthew; i dont see how that is a scam. Its over 2400 for the 1st 2 weeks to go then a little over $200 a week for every week after that. thats about 5k.
I volunteered in Costa Rica and Tanzania with Cross-Cultural Solutions and both experiences were the best of my life. CCS is extremely well organized and their staff is amazing. I never would have been able to have set up such an amazing volunteer work on my own. They have amazing relationships with the places that the volunteers work. I also volunteered with other groups and their is no comparison.
am interested also in org and any comments on the russia experience,
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I heard that Cross Cultural Solutions is currently being taken to court by the Government of India on charges of fraud. Namely for abusing their NGO status when the are actually a profit organisation. I wonder how many of these other organizations are doing the same thing.