earthquake

Jenkins/Penn Haitian Relief Organization (J/P HRO)

Sean Penn Haiti Volunteer

Image source: Indiewire.com

When a 7.0 earthquake struck Haiti in early 2010, it seemed like the entire world turned its eyes to the poverty-stricken Caribbean nation – and Sean Penn was no exception. In the wake of the disaster, which virtually leveled the tiny country, Penn and fellow philanthropist Diana Jenkins sprung into action and formed the Jenkins/Penn Haitian Relief Organization (J/P HRO).

Unlike some other celebrity-based charity organizations, the J/P HRO and its namesakes were not only at ground zero immediately following the disaster but, nearly three years later, are still actively involved. Sean Penn’s volunteerism through the J/P HRO is, in fact, so lauded that he was recently named ambassador at large for Haiti.

Elevate Destinations: A Voluntour in Haiti

Young Girl at Elevate Destinations Site in Haiti

Image source: Citi5.tumblr.com

Writing about voluntour organizations all around the world means exploring inspiring projects conceived by inspiring people. It forces me to remember that making the world a better place is a process and that everyone, no matter how experienced or educated or motivated, can step up and change lives. Whilst reading AFAR, my favorite experiential travel magazine, I stumbled upon a voluntour organization that really got my attention: Elevate Destinations.

Fukushima 50: Japan’s Volunteer Heroes and The International Volunteers they Inspire

An Explosion at Japan's Fukushima Daiichi Plant After the Earthquake and Tsunami

Image source: Gratisparacelular.blogspot.com

When city officials, reeling from the massive tsunami that ravaged Japan, realized their Fukushima Daiichi power plant was facing a potential melt down, they were at a loss. The surrounding villages were under an evacuation order—the plant was about to vent radioactive vapor to avoid an infrastructure collapse and the resulting radiation would be extremely hazardous to human health—yet someone had to stay behind to operate the machinery. Who could they possibly find to make that kind of sacrifice?

NGO Profile: All Hands Volunteers

All Hands Volunteers NGO Logo

Image source: Vimeo.com

All Hands Volunteers is focused on “providing hands-on assistance to survivors of natural disasters around the world, with maximum impact and minimum bureaucracy.” There are several things that make this NGO unique. For starters, they provide housing and food for volunteers, so all you have to do is cover travel expenses. Since budgeting is such a huge problem for so many eager workers, providing these services means more people get to the scene of the disaster, and they get there fast.

Help Tammy Help Haiti

Help Tammy Help Haiti

Image source: Samaritanmag.com

The more I learn about voluntouring and the people who do it, the more I seem to stumble on stories of lives diverted in dramatically new directions, and always for the better. Take, for example, the story of Tammy Babcock, a security supervisor at Queen’s University in Kingston Ontario. Babcock was just like us, our friends, or our neighbors—a professional young woman leading a quiet, comfortable life. And like many of the stories I’ve read lately, a single event turned all that around.