By Monica Owen, Argentina I am Monica, a 58-years-old Argentinean retired woman. I have always wanted to experience living in a community, living in England. If you dream it, you can achieve it!!! I was interested in the 7 month program about climate change and sustainable living that started in October 2024. It was all planned for that, but fortunately, something good happened!! Marie, our promotion responsible person, told me about a place left to join the Gaia team and raise a scholarship to help cover the costs of the program. So, I joined CICD’s life in August 2024. An...

By Jose Becerra, Colombia, Development Volunteer team April 2024 Here you can enjoy parts of the monthly report from Jose about his work with DAPP Malawi. Supporting preschool teachers in Amalika with DAPP Malawi We have been visiting the seventeen preschools to talk with the teachers and get a deep understanding of their needs and ideas about education of the children around. It has been an advantage to have the children on holidays, because then we can talk quietly in long conversations. As almost all of them are not well English speakers, we took the decision of making some interviews...

Ellen Nayara Kotai Costa, Brazil, Poverty Activist team August 2024 CICD has “Sister Schools” and institutions in Europe, that share the same values and the aim to practice “Another Kind of School´s pedagogy”. Because of that twice per year CICD´s students have the opportunity to participate in events in Denmark. As a DI, Development Instructor, I participated in the "Olympic Games" in Tvind - a school centre in Denmark, and I still feel impacted by this experience - it can be described as deep, busy and at the same time transformative in my life. Not because of something in particular,...

By Edson Eduardo, Brazil, Development Volunteer team April 2024 Where I live July... we arrived to Malawi, it looked like a dream ..... we were all so excited and thrilled, everything was new for us, language, culture, people, and environment. And now going to the third month in Malawi I would like to share briefly my experience here. My quartet and I live in Dowa/Malawi, which is based on one of the most huge refugee camps in Africa, called Dzaleka. I've never been in a refugee camp before, so living near one have been a new experience for me. In...

By Franz Rodriguez-Gualdrón, Development Volunteer team July 2024 Volunteering abroad is more than just checking off the "doing good" box—it’s a crash course in life, growth, and sometimes, the ultimate "what am I even doing here?" moment. Here's a sneak peek into several things a Colombian volunteer in the UK is learning, and that hopefully will stick around long after, whether working, travelling, or crushing life goals! 1. The political: "Recycling, upcycling…learning?" ♻️ Living and studying in the UK have been the opportunity to open my eyes to the subtleties of global politics and social responsibility. From an "obsession" with...

By Ana Jesus, Poverty Activist team August 2023 My name is Ana and I will tell you about my impressions of Malawi - the culture, the people and the impact that had in me. I did the 12 month Poverty Acivist programme - with 5 months of preparations at CICD, 6 months at the project country (Malawi) and 1 month back in England for the Bringing It to the Public.    Toghether with my Trio - Ivett, Peter and myself, in Amalika we worked with two different projects, as  Pre-School Supervisor and Core Group Teacher. During 6 months we worked...

By Ana Jesus, Poverty Activist team August 2023 Hello, my name is Ana and I am going to tell you a bit about Learning by Doing. At CICD, "Learning by Doing" does not mean just today, but it is also about the future. As a student you are part of the daily activities like cooking, cleaning, and working in the garden. So you will learn many practical and soft skills which are useful in the future , especially within community development p rojects . You are about to get ready to contribute to the creation and reali s ation of...

By Diana Heinfarth, Hungary, Poverty Activist team February 2024 My team and I were given the task of conducting research on real problems in our society. We chose to investigate poverty in England. In the UK, more than 22 % of the population were living in poverty in 2022/23 – that’s 13.4 million people. This included: - 8.1 million (or around 2 in 10) working-age adults - 4.2 million (or nearly 3 in 10) children - 2.1 million (or around 1 in 6) pensioners. During our investigation, we delved into the following topics: - What is the extent of immigration...

By Andrea Barreto, Brazil - Development Volunteer team April 2024 At another time in my life, before CICD, I had other experiences living in a community, in Buddhist centers. Especially at the beginning here, I felt a similar sensation, a certain similarity in the routine and the energy. From my point of view, everything starts with the motivation of the community's members. In the Buddhist center, the motivation was to study, practice, and pray for the well-being of all beings. At CICD, I believe it is the preparation for volunteer work in the African continent and, in a way, to...

By Sebastián Rey, Development Volunteer team, April 2024 My responsibility area is "Grass and wood". It's an experience to value the work in the countryside. Every Wednesday, I step out of the desk, put on my boots, and dress in warm clothing. The meeting to receive instructions is at 9:00, and we are five minutes late. After listening carefully and asking a few questions, I'm ready to start my first day driving Fred, a 1973 Massey Ferguson tractor. It is the biggest machine at the school. Though it has lost the streetlights, mirrors, and some glass panels, and its doors...

By Akos Koncs, Hungary / Poverty Activist team February 2024 As a child I was an enthusiast for Africa. I read lots of stories by hunter-writers from the XIX century, I found it very romantic. Later my interest turned from the African natural beauty to the African society, and this was what pushed me to study cultural anthropology in the university. But getting my diploma in my hands I experienced disappointment, because in my country there are no programmes for Africa. Hungary never had any colonies anywhere, maybe this is why we had not much aid programmes to this continent....

By Edson Eduardo, Brazil, Development Volunteer team April 2024 Going to Africa, making a difference, helping people, communities and schools, volunteering, learning new cultures and sharing knowledge is undoubtedly the desire of many students who arrive at CICD for the 10 and 12 month programmes. Sometimes the fear of the new is mixed with the desire to go to the African continent straight away and embark on this adventure, a real mix of emotions and feelings. But you have to remember that it takes one step at a time, everything has its own time. Studies and learning is needed as...

By José Becerra, Gaia Team I arrived to CICD one month and a half ago. Has this period been long? Has it been short? Why or how? Forty five days sounds like the first half of a long football match; each day a minute. It is a perfect moment to look back and enjoy. As an old vinyl record, this article will have an A-side and B-side. The A-side Occasionally I would like to pause my life, so time won’t continue absorbing me towards the road of death. Perhaps it is a very tricky formulation, but I suppose many people feel...

By Carla Barrado, Team Teacher I knew that I did not want to continue being part of this capitalist and consumerist society in which what you do has no value and in which you normally work for someone making that company or that someone grow economically. Therefore I thought that taking this adventure of working as a teacher at 'Another Kind of School' would give me the opportunity to work with others and with myself, not for others and draining myselft to get the profit for others. And every day the phrase 'work with what you like and you will...

By Kelvin Rodrigues, Development Volunteer team October 2023 HOW DO WE PROTECT THE POOREST FROM CLIMATE CHANGE? My considerations while working with Youth in Action project in Zambia, and studying the UNDP Report 2021 on the global situation of poverty. Climate Change is inevitable, as the climate on earth is no longer the same and it has been giving indications that it is only the beginning and that the future will be extreme with regard to the variation of temperatures, rains and extreme droughts. The land is sick, the symptoms are everywhere. Those responsible for incisive measures to reduce the...

By Jeanette Fall, Poverty Activist team February 2023 My name is Jeanette. I'm 45 years old economist. I have worked in the finance department all in my life, in various positions during the last 20 years...so I could try to do almost everything possible there. I am also the proud mother of two grown boys whom I raised alone. In August 2022, I made a big decision – that is after the fact I can say it was a very good one - and joined the CICD 6+12-month program. What did this mean in my case? 6 months Gaia period,...

By Adriana Millalen Rivas, Development Volunteer team February 2023 Engaging in a volunteer programme can be one of the most rewarding experiences in life, particularly when shared interests and passions align. It becomes evident that gratitude is boundless. Why participate in a volunteer programme? There is much to be done in the world beyond what meets the eye, and many of these tasks are within our grasp. Across the globe, there exists a substantial gap; what is abundant in some countries is lacking in others. For this reason, you have the opportunity to effect change. By leveraging your skills, you...

By Kelvin Rodrigues, Development Volunteer team October 2023 Planet Earth 2024: Many believed that this year man would be living a fuller life, full of peace, love, abundance, joys. But this is the scenario for a small portion of the world’s population. What we see today, after so many technological advances in all areas of knowledge that man dominates, are known ills: pandemics, wars, hunger, diseases and the most feared and current of all, climate change that affects mainly the poorest. They are themes that somehow bother so many people, but the majority does not take any position or action...

By Rivanildo Novais, Brazil / Development Volunteer team October 2023 In my point of view, it has always been in practice that you learn. In theories you have artificial learning, but it is in practice, leaving your comfort zone that you really learn, and the CICD College provides us with this, and so it is good for everyone. I'm going to show here an example from me and some teammates and colleagues about what I learned and what they say about the subject. In this photo, you can see me operating a motorised elevator. I had never operated anything like...

By Natalia Benitez, Poverty Activist team August 2023 - getting ready for departure to Youth in Action project, Ndola, Zambia in January 2024! THINGS I NEED FOR THE PROJECT IN AFRICA Traveling to Africa as a volunteer can be an enriching experience, but it is important to prepare properly. Here are essential things I will take with me: 1) Personal hygiene items and basic medical supplies: • Insect repellent and mosquito nets to protect against insect-borne diseases such as malaria. • Sunscreen: The sun in Africa can be intense, and it is best to be protected from the damage that...