Short-term development mission [ST]

​A short term mission with Gawad Kalinga could be described as follow:

• Interns and volunteers with a group of 4 to 8 people (in groups either already formed or with other people who wish to form a group)

• Minimum duration of 5 weeks and maximum duration of 4 months

• Within an designated Gawad Kalinga community with a mission based the needs of the community

• Types of missions: construction, education activities, kids activities, sports activities, arts activities, health development, small social business development…

To find other people willing to build a group and, you could join our Facebook group: GK Europe Group!

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build a Team

We suggest to form a group from 4 to 6 people but you can have up to 8 people. Since you will be living together for weeks/months in a foreign country, it is important to have a strong relationship between the group members. The smaller the group is, the easier it is to resolve arising conflicts. For people who do not have a group yet, we will put you on a waiting list and assign you to a group with the others based on the availability of each person.

Each group assigns a team leader who will be the main contact person with GK Europe (ST mission coordinator). The team leader will be put in contact with the local village coordinator of GK in the Philippines before departure to communicate about the mission, logistics, etc.

We highly recommend each group to raise funds before departure to finance the projects that you wish to implement. GK functions a lot through volunteerism. The villagers often have project ideas but to implement them, some do not have the necessary funds. (Majority of the GK funds are allotted for the creation of new villages; hence additional funds are needed for the development of projects within the villages).

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Integration and competences

Each group will be assigned to a GK community with the objective of developing projects in collaboration with the villagers. You will have a manual mission and another more intellectual one (depending on the competences of the group members). For groups consisting primarily of students from business schools or similar background, you will have a mission to help the community develop a social business in order to create employment and develop the competences of the villagers.

The group brings competences to the community, working through sharing and knowledge transmission. You must take the initiative, be tenacious and work independently.

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Field methodology

Upon arrival in the Philippines, the group will spend 2 days in the GK Enchanted Farm for an on-boarding camp before proceeding to your assigned village. This adjustment period is necessary and allows interns and volunteers to rediscover themselves and their group in a different context. It will also allow you to know about the 2nd phase of the GK program and meet the social entrepreneurs in the Enchanted Farm.

Arrival in the assigned village:

• Complete immersion with the villagers (time to take in and understand the culture)

• Observation of systems, rules and interaction/questions with the villagers

• Proposing systems and solutions, always in collaboration with the villagers and the GK caretakers who are monitoring the village. (To be certain that the solutions you will be proposing correspond to their needs, always work in collaboration.)

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About Gawad Kalinga

The first phase (Social Justice) is about building communities: social communities with rules of life based on values of sharing, respect and honor, through the construction of villages.

The second phase (Social Artistry) is to develop a more inclusive national economy through the creation of social enterprises. To create employment through social enterprises which add value to the competences of the locals. To fulfill this objective, GK has created the Center for Social Innovation (CSI), a platform for social enterprises.

To know more about the model of Gawad Kalinga and enterprise development in the Philippines, follow the links here.

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Concerning the expenses

A fee of 250€ per volunteer is requested. For more information about how to pay the fee and how it will be used, please visit our Q&A page on questions about the fee.

Your plane tickets, paid by someone belonging to a tax-paying household in France, could be tax-deducted up to 66% as in-kind donation.

The daily fee on site is 500 pesos (around 6.5€) which covers 3 meals per day, water, electricity and gas. All other personal expenses will be at the intern or volunteer’s expense (ex: transport). Lodging is also included (in dormitories or with the villagers).

As previously stated, we recommend you to raise funds in advance for the development of your project in the village.

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Participating in the development of social enterprises

Since 2014, groups have begun working on social enterprise projects, based on the know-how of the residents and opportunities in the village:

• Social tourism: bed and breakfast, restaurants, leisure activities and tours

• Local food production (manufacturing/sales & marketing)

• Decorative products (manufacturing/sales & marketing)

Within the allotted time, the groups have worked on marketing, production, finance, management, and logistics. Most of the groups made a business plan and began the projects. It is important to note that most villagers do not have formal business knowledge. It is therefore necessary to train them and adapt to their ways and methods.

GK Europe is primarily looking for groups able to continue the work already undertaken. In addition, in order to advance with their projects, the groups are highly encouraged to raise funds before departure, because if not, the activities to be done in the villages are limited.

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The objectives of Gawad Kalinga missions

• Discover Gawad Kalinga’s approach in combating extreme poverty in the Philippines, and discover the Philippine culture by building relationships with the villagers. The objective is to learn as much from other people as they will learn from us.

• Transmit your knowledge to increase the competences of the villagers, bring to light the potentials of the village.

On a daily basis, you will accomplish tasks corresponding to your mission, which is defined before your departure.

You could plan a one-week vacation at the end of your mission.

If you are interested in this Short Term group program, send us your CV (or a document presenting each member of the group: motivations, experiences, interests, so we can get to know you better) as well as one motivation letter by group in English.

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Once you’ve sent your application, one of our coordinators will contact you for the next steps.

Visit our FAQ page as well for some of the most frequently asked questions by our interns and volunteers.

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