Plastic Upcycling & Community Cleanup

location
1 - 50 weken  ·  Leeftijd 18 - 50+

rating  Uitstekend 4.8  · 
  Geverifieerd door Volunteer World
  Uitstekend Responsgraad

Hoogste Kwaliteit Vrijwilligersproject. Dit project biedt de hoogste kwaliteit die normen stelt - ver boven het gemiddelde.

Highlights

  • Join the fight against plastic waste to enhance the communities, environment and local wildlife.
  • Produce and create upcycled items using waste plastic along with ecobricks to use in sustainable community projects.
  • Gain a new family, living in shared volunteer housing gives you the perfect chance to make life long friends across the globe.

Highlights

  • Join the fight against plastic waste to enhance the communities, environment and local wildlife.
  • Produce and create upcycled items using waste plastic along with ecobricks to use in sustainable community projects.
  • Gain a new family, living in shared volunteer housing gives you the perfect chance to make life long friends across the globe.
  • Make unforgettabe memories travelling with your fellow volunteers at weekends to places such as Mole Safari Park, Cape Coast Castle & Boti Waterfall.
  • Explore the surrounding rainforests and mountains in your free time along with the rural Ghanaian way of life and it's laid back, friendly atmosphere.


  • Vooral geschikt voor

    Leeftijd 18+
    Alleenstaanden
    Koppels
    Families
    Groepen
    50+

    Over het programma

    Help the fight against plastic waste by community cleanups, producing ecobricks and creating upcycled products from plastic waste.

    About The Placement

    Join the fight against plastic to enhance and improve the local environment. Arranging community cleanups and collection points from a rural waste management service struggling to keep up with demand, producing ecobricks to use in school and community projects such as seating, ...

    Over het programma

    About The Placement

    Join the fight against plastic to enhance and improve the local environment. Arranging community cleanups and collection points from a rural waste management service struggling to keep up with demand, producing ecobricks to use in school and community projects such as seating, buildings and greenhouses alongside creating and implementing upcycled items using waste plastics. All whilst joining in on the education campaign side of things to demonstrate and explain to local communities and schools just how damaging the current situation is and why it is so important to reuse and recycle.


    Why This Placement?

    Single use plastics are a major issue in Ghana and across West Africa. With a large part of the population living under the poverty line, companies opt for single use plastics to maintain lower price points. There is also a lack of knowledge and understanding on just how much impact plastics and waste are having on the environment and why it is so important we act now in our fight against plastic waste. The attitudes across the regions are starting to be more environmentally friendly focused with some companies and government schemes highlighting these issues however with everything in Ghana, at it's current pace it will take a long time before the impact is truly felt and understood in our rural areas.
    The plastic waste in question also has a huge impact on a choked waste water system, the towns that are lucky to have gutter systems in our areas are often open and these cause the plastic rubbish to collect, cause blockages and therefore the perfect breeding ground for mosquitos. This then impacts the most vulnerable in the community who don't have access to mosquito screening etc to the health risks caused by malaria.
    Also huge amount of plastic waste building up in the community rubbish dumps along with deforestation is having a massive impact on the health and variety of the local wildlife which then causes in some cases permanent damage to the fragile ecosystems.
    After planning with our team and members of the local community we wanted to not only fight this plastic waste but to also produce useful and meaningful items with the waste! With research from partners across the country and Ghana we have setup an ecobrick chain working with local stores to collect the water bottles which in turn we will then use to the items collected in the community cleanups to produce these ecobricks which we will then use for community developement projects such as school buildings, seating and greenhouses to modernise small scale farming.

     

    What Is Included In This Placement?

    Support Staff - Accommodation - House Utility Bills - Pre Departure Support

    We charge cost price for this project just so we can cover your stay and employ local support staff to increase loyal employment. This placement includes accommodation in a modern style house for the semi rural area of which we are based with great views and surroundings of the local towns and rainforest. All house utilities are included for your time, you will have use of the kitchen, electricity throughout the house and running water which is a luxury among the area of Kwahu. You will have a member of our local support team living in house or close by depending on the volunteer numbers so there is always someone on hand for any questions or support you may need.


    How Do I Get To The Placement?

    Budget an additional 20 - 30 cedis per day for transport costs.

    Volunteers will usually take taxis back and forth to their placement site at the plastics workshop and community clearups. It is very easy to take shared taxis in town and they are very reasonably priced. Most of our project sites will require volunteers to pay transport between 15 cedis and 40 cedis a day, with the average being about 18 cedis. 

    Volunteers are usually able to head off into the town after school easily to shop for food supplies, grab a cold drink or meet up with friends before heading home and the ease of taxis offer a really flexible experience for the volunteers.


    What Will I Be Doing?

    During your placement you will be scheduling and taking part in community cleanups and litter picks for part of the week. You will then be based in the volunteer accommodation or our workshop space to produce ecobricks and implement these projects where funds allow or help the team create and research items that can be produced and upcycled with the waste material collected. For those of you who also would like to be involved in the community outreach aspect we also arrange assemblies and demonstrations on plastic waste management and how everyone can get involved with the local schools and community groups. The placement is very flexible and the weekly timetable can be adjusted to suit your area of interest and passion along with combining with our other conservational projects across farming and agriculture.


    Who Will I Be Working With?

    You will usually be working alongside your fellow volunteers, support team or members of the community however for parts of the day you may be required to work independently.

    A member of our volunteer support team will also visit you at your placement site periodically after the initial introduction to ensure you are getting on well and making an impact on site.


    What Do We Expect From The Volunteers?

    All we request is the passion and drive to make a difference with us, one step at a time. Being able to get involved and stuck in will help you much more with this project especially with the community cleanup days which can be tiring in the heat and humidity. The greatest traits of a volunteer are enthusiasm, empathetic and the ability to adjust to alternative cultures. You will get the most of our your trip by opening your mind to new experiences and beliefs whilst also bringing your own to the table.
    We expect volunteers to visit their placements Monday - Friday, exceptions can be made for long weekends of travel etc but we hope for the children and yourselves to get the most of your placement this is kept to a minimum.


    What Can You Expect From Us?

    We will be on hand any time of any day to support you in your placement and trip as a whole. There will always be someone you can speak to or get a hold of should you want to discuss anything or require any guidance, from organising and altering your timetable to changing your placement. Our team living in the volunteer house will also be able to offer advice regarding travel plans and the local area so you will soon feel at home.


    What Should I Bring?

    In terms of your placement make sure you bring at least one strong pair of shoes and full length trousers/tracksuit to use whilst on the community clean up days. For people with a passion with upcycling and creating new items we would also advise bringing plans or documents on ideas for this which we then plan to share to local communities or sell online to fund further projects depending on the items. Professional litter picking tools would also be amazing as they're difficult to source locally.


    What Happens During School Holidays?

    Other than for the community outreach and education part of this placement the school holidays will not affect this placement and you will still be able to continue as normal.




    Dagelijkse activiteiten

    • 07:30am - 08:00am / Volunteer transport leaves the volunteer house to project sites
    • 08:00am - 10:00am / Arrive at workshop and begin daily tasks. Eg, Ecobricking, Sorting plastic types, Shredding or Community cleanup
    • 10:00am - 11:00am / Break
    • 11:00am - 13:00pm / Resuming of placement site work. Eg, ...

    Dagelijkse activiteiten

    • 07:30am - 08:00am / Volunteer transport leaves the volunteer house to project sites
    • 08:00am - 10:00am / Arrive at workshop and begin daily tasks. Eg, Ecobricking, Sorting plastic types, Shredding or Community cleanup
    • 10:00am - 11:00am / Break
    • 11:00am - 13:00pm / Resuming of placement site work. Eg, Ecobricking, Sorting plastic types, Shredding or Community cleanup
    • 13:00pm - 13:30pm /  End of placement and start to travel back to the house to rest and meet up with the other team members
    • In their free time, volunteers are free to go shopping in the local markets, return to the volunteer house or visit the local swimming pools.

      This is just an example day and a flexibility to workload and timings is a crucial skill for a successful volunteer trip. Increasing workload to lengthen your day is possible, you just need to communicate with your in country support team.



    Vrijetijdsactiviteiten

    Mid Week Free Time
    After school and evenings offer these local opportunities around the local area:

    • Hiking / Trekking
    • Swimming
    • Sightseeing (Waterfalls and breathtaking scenery)
    • After school & Homework Clubs
    • Sports facilities
    • Live Music
    • Plenty of Nightlife
    • Restaurants & Hotels providing western cuisine

    Weekend

    Vrijetijdsactiviteiten

    Mid Week Free Time
    After school and evenings offer these local opportunities around the local area:

    • Hiking / Trekking
    • Swimming
    • Sightseeing (Waterfalls and breathtaking scenery)
    • After school & Homework Clubs
    • Sports facilities
    • Live Music
    • Plenty of Nightlife
    • Restaurants & Hotels providing western cuisine

    Weekend Free Time
    Most volunteers will travel at weekends, across Ghana we have many amazing experiences which you can discover. Here are just a few ideas:

    • Safari
    • Museums
    • Slave Castles
    • Canopy Walk
    • Waterfalls
    • Malls and Cinemas (Showing latest films)
    • Beautiful Beaches
    • Surfing

    We are on hand to offer any advice that you might need.


    Voorwaarden

    Voorwaarden

    Minimum leeftijd: 18 jaar

    Om deel te nemen aan het programma dien je tenminste 18 jaar oud te zijn op de startdatum van het programma. Er kunnen uitzonderingen gemaakt worden indien je een bewijs van toestemming kan aantonen van uw wettelijke voogd(en) of samen met je ouders deelneemt.

    Taalkennis

    Je dient over volgende taalkennis te beschikken Engels (basis niveau)

    Opleidingsvereisten

    op High School / Secondary School niveau

    Vereiste documenten

    CV/Résumé

    Nationaliteitsbeperkingen

    Geen beperkingen. Helpende handen van over de hele wereld zijn welkom.

    Tijdsinzet

    Uw helpende hand wordt verwacht op maandag, dinsdag, woensdag, donderdag en vrijdag van 08:00 - 15:00

    Diensten ingesloten

    Diensten ingesloten

    Diensten door Atlas Volunteers

    Atlas Volunteer's aim is to provide low cost, meanigful volunteer placements abroad. By keeping our program fees affordable, we hope for helping hands from across the world to be able to come and help as well as experience Ghana no matter their financial situation.

    Our program fees cover the core foundation of your program which are:
    • Registration Fee
    • Volunteer House Accommodation
    • Local Support Staff
    • Volunteer House Utility Bills; Tap Water, Cooking Gas and Electricity
    • Organisation running costs, both online and in country.
    • Marketing & Introduction Commissions
    • Social Funds - When possible we use part of our fees for community development such as; sponsoring of the children's sports academy, mobile library, social enterprises, plastics workshop, farm expansions, reforestation site and seedlings, conservation site maintenance and expansion, scholarship school fees, school materials and maintenance.
    In addition to your core program fees, there will also be some other items you need to consider to cover your complete trip. We have setup our program in this way as we believe that each of our volunteers' trips should be different and personalised to their stay. Due to this, we decided not to choose a blanket price for transport or food for example where this would perhaps increase the fees unnecessarily for volunteers travelling a shorter distance or that eat certain diets. These optional items to consider are;
    • Airport Transfer from Kotoka International Airport (Optional - Approximately 700 cedis as of January 2024)
    • Daily Transport to Projects (Approximately 20 cedis as of January 2024 from Aduamoah to Abetifi)
    • Food (Volunteers usually advise $2-3 per day but it's possible to spend less or more depending on if cooking at home or eating out)
    • Drinking Water (Approximately 8 cedis for 30 x 500ml filtered water sachets)
    • Internet / Data (Starting from around 30 cedis for 10GB depending on local sim network and setup)

    Accomodatie

    Volunteers live together in shared accommodation in the Abetifi district of Ghana along with our support team in house. The house is based in a quiet town where you are within walking distance to local shops, street vendors and taxi routes - all whilst being able to enjoy the beautiful surrounding views of the rainforest and mountains.

    Bedrooms -
    Bedrooms are shared usually between 2 - 4 people. Most bedrooms are supplied with a bunk bed. All doors and windows in the house are covered by mosquito netting or covered completely however you are more than welcome to bring a mosquito net for your bed although usually not necessary.

    Bathrooms -
    There are basic bathrooms in the accommodation with individual WCs and shower rooms. Most of the time (but not always!) we have the benefit of running water which is a local luxury so showers and toilets will work as normal. We ask to consider others when using the water as it's a valuable commodity in Ghana.

    Kitchen -
    We have a basic kitchen available in the volunteer house for you to use throughout the day. The basics of Fridge/Freezer, Gas stove, Kettle and Microwaves are supplied.
    It is a self catered placement however plenty of food stuffs can be bought from the market such as bread, rice, pasta and many fresh ingredients.
    We also have connections with local people in the town who will be able to prepare your meals or teach you how to cook local dishes.

    Living Room -
    There is a large living room with sofas, TV and a dining set for use by the volunteers. Evenings are often spent in here and volunteers are welcome to bring DVDs or memory drives with movies to watch although local television channels are provided.

    Outdoor -
    The house circles around a large outside compound where volunteers usually spend their afternoons and evenings eating outside, catching up with the other volunteers and group activities such as games nights.

    Store Room -
    We have a small store room where we keep left over teaching materials and resources for new volunteers to use. You are invited to leave any items you may not use here for the next person to continue the flow. Master copies of activity sheets or lesson plans are a key item we hope to see keep growing in the store.

    Internet toegang

    Beperkte toegang op de project site

    Wat is er NIET inbegrepen?

    Wat is er NIET inbegrepen?

    Afhaal aan de luchthaven op Kotoka International Airport

    Afhaling van de luchthaven is ook niet inbegrepen in de programmakosten.

    Eten & Drank

    Eten, tussendoortjes en drankjes zijn bijkomende kosten.

    Vlucht tickets

    De dichtste luchthaven is Kotoka International Airport (ACC) in Accra. We assisteren u met het vinden van goedkope vluchten naar Ghana. VIND GOEDKOPE VLUCHTEN

    Reisverzekering

    Naar het buitenland reizen is een avontuur en het is best om goed voorbereid te zijn. Plots ziek worden of gewond raken, annulaties of diefstal - een reisverzekering voor Ghana biedt zekerheid en is een meerwaarde. KRIJG EEN OFFERTE

    Vaccinaties

    Als je de intentie hebt om als vrijwilliger aan de slag te gaan in Ghana dien je eerst medisch advies in te winnen alvorens je eropuit trekt. Kijk de benodigde vaccinaties na voor Ghana. VACCINATIE CHECKER

    Gegevens over jouw aankomst

    This placement is available throughout the year. You are welcome to arrive with us any day of the week or flight arrival time and we will adjust your airport collection accordingly.

    How Do I Get From The Airport to Volunteer House On Arrival?

    We can arrange for one of our partnered drivers to collect you from the airport and bring you directly to the volunteer house although fuel, airport parking and toll fees must be covered by yourself - payable in Ghana cedis or US dollars on the day (You can use local ATM machines on the way to withdraw Ghana cedi currency.)

    Cost: As of January 2024, this is around 700 cedis.

    We will arrange this as standard procedure unless you choose to OPT OUT as we would feel much more comfortable with you arriving into a new country that the team are on hand to greet and reliable vehicles made available for you and your luggage.
    Upon arrival our regulat collections driver Asare will meet you outside the arrivals hall at Kotoka Intl. Airport.
    They will be holding a sign with your name on so they should be easy to spot!

    Beschikbaarheid
    jan. feb. mrt. apr. mei. jun. jul. aug. sep. okt. nov. dec.

    Programmakosten

    1 week (min. verblijf) 135€
    12 weken 1.067€
    24 weken 1.965€
    50 weken (max. verblijf) 3.541€
    Gemiddelde kosten 103€/week

    Programmakosten

    103€ per week 1 - 50 weken Leeftijd 18 - 50+

    Betaalmethodes

    Visa Master Card Maestro American Express PayPal

    GEEN CREDITCARDKOSTEN


    Duurtijd

    1 - 50 weken

    Waarborg

    De waarborg dient om je plek als vrijwilliger te verzekeren. Betalingen worden door PayPal behandeld, onze betrouwbare betalingsprovider. Indien je niet over een PayPal account beschikt, kan je ook met een credit kaart betalen.


    Finale betaling

    Uw finale betaling zal worden goedgekeurd door Atlas Volunteers gedurende de aanmeld procedure. Veel voorkomende oplossingen zijn een banktransfer of contante betaling op de projectsite.


    Ontmoet je organisatie

    Atlas Volunteers

    Uitstekend 4.8 rating (241 beoordelingen)

    NGO - opgericht in 2017

    Geverifieerd door Volunteer World

      Uitstekend Responsgraad

    Gepresenteerd door

    Sam

    Gesproken talen: Engels

    Over de organisatie

    Atlas Volunteers is an NGO providing affordable & meaningful volunteer placements in rural Ghana, Thailand & Cambodia. Created by volunteers, for volunteers.

    Ontmoet je organisatie

    Who We Are?

    We're a team of volunteers that wanted to startup a volunteer organisation truly by volunteers for volunteers. The initial founders of the team met whilst volunteering in Ghana from 2010 onwards. After becoming the largest volunteer organisation in Ghana in 2023 where we focus on development within our rural areas, we answered the call in 2024 to help our partners on the ground elsewhere in the world whilst still maintaining the same Atlas standards of creating meaningful & affordable volunteering programs for people from all over the world to come lend a hand so that we can leave the world in a better place whilst getting to experience new people, countries and cultures from a meaningful travel experience.

    What We Do?

    Our volunteer team and support coordinators work directly with our local community partners to help make an impact and leave the world a better place than we found it. Our team work across

    • Education - including school support, tutoring sessions, reading clubs and vacation classes.
    • Sports - Football academy, physical education lessons and school sports days.
    • Renovation - Constructing and maintenance of unsafe school buildings as well as decorating and improvements.
    • Eco Projects - including reforestation, plastics upcycling and community cleanups.
    • Community - farm assistant and health insurance drives.
    • Conservation - Sea Turtle & Elephant conservation programs.

    Where We Work?

    Our main flagship program is based at the Abetifi district in the Eastern Region of Ghana. It holds the highest habitable town in Ghana upon a mountainous area so we have the benefit of a cooler overall temperature especially on the evenings and mornings. The volunteer house is in one of the towns close to Abetifi called Aduamoah. Abetifi is our closest larger town just a few minutes drive where there are banks, shops, market etc. The volunteer programs you will be visiting will be spread from the towns to just twenty minutes down the road on the road to Lake Volta (the largest man made lake in the world) where we work with remote villages to strengthen their facilities and improve their way of life. Life is fairly laid back in the area and time is soon spent chatting with people in passing and visiting friends. The Kwahu area has an extremely low crime rate and volunteers are given the chance and encouraged to explore the local towns alone or in groups with our team.

    We also run our sea turtle conservation project at Cape Three Points between September - March each year during the nesting season. Cape Three Points is a complete contract to Abetifi where it's a tiny rural village but benefits from the most amazing beach and forest views. In 2024 we have also launched programs in Thailand and Cambodia with really exciting programs that are genuinely making a difference to conservation, education and community development efforts on the ground.

    Our History

    Our Mission


    Who Are We Looking For?

    We are looking for flexible, caring volunteers who have the drive to not only help but to familiarise themselves with the local culture and characters. The ability to work outside of your usual comfort zone will not make your trip easiest but help towards our social impact goals.

    241 beoordelingen · rating4.8

    Julie Wojtanowski rating4.8

    2024 at Plastic Upcycling & Community Cleanup

    My trip there was full of new experiences. I loved doing my project, plastic recycling, as I could see the positive impact in real time (and it is an essential part in our fight against climate change). Living with people from many different countries is really nice, as we can learn from the ...
    Manon Gaillardot rating5

    2023 at Plastic Upcycling & Community Cleanup

    Absolutely memorable experience with Atlas. I recommended it already to people around me who want to join a serious association. They propose different projects, and you might be able to work on different ones at the same time. They give you the autonomy to achieve tasks the way you want, and are ...
    I have not stopped raving about my experience to the people back home. This is the most meaningful trip I have taken, the experience is unmatched. Everyone on the team was so helpful and made sure we were taken care of and we were also able to be a part of the good work they are doing. The ...
    Ingrid Delaville rating5

    2023 at Plastic Upcycling & Community Cleanup

    These 4 months were so nice! I could test a lot of placement : turtles, plastic, teaching and reforestation! I really enjoyed being part of this adventure and get to interact with the local life in a safe ...
    Paulina Rachanska rating4.8

    2023 at Plastic Upcycling & Community Cleanup

    My stay in the Kwahu district doing upcycling and re-forestation was very enjoyable. The Atlas team are very knowledgeable of social issues that need addressing in the area and can connect volunteers with meaningful social projects suited to the volunteers' skills and preferences. ..
    Clementine F rating5

    2022 at Plastic Upcycling & Community Cleanup

    I had the opportunity to participate in several projects. First, I participated in the summer school. I did French and sports classes. At the beginning I didn't come for this project and I didn't feel legitimate to participate in such a project. However, this experience with the children allowed me ...

    Plaats

    Afrika > West-Afrika > Ghana > Abetifi

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