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I am fundraising for Habitat for Humanity Northern Ireland's Global Village Volunteer Team to . The team leave on 29th August, and each member must raise £1600.

Global Village is Habitat for Humanity's international volunteering programme. Volunteers travel overseas to work hand-in-hand with people around the world to help them build safe, decent homes. They work with low-income families who invest hundreds of hours of sweat equity into building their own house and those of their neighbours.

Brazil

Statistics from the João Pinheiro Foundation for the year 2000 demonstrate that in there is a housing deficit of almost 6,660,000 houses. More than two thirds of the housing deficit is found in urban areas, where families suffer overcrowding and worsening housing conditions.

is a country of 165 million speaking Portuguese. There is a huge divide between rich and poor. (population 16 million spread over 30,000 km²) is the second most populated city in the world after . Forced mass evictions from the rural areas and general poverty have meant more and more people have moved into the city adding to the problems. One third of the population of São Paulo live in shanty slums called favelas where squalor and deprivation have encouraged violence, drug abuse and child prostitution. Living conditions are appalling and dysentery and cholera are common.

Why volunteer, why not just send money?

Money is vital for Habitat for Humanity to achieve its mission of a world where everyone has a decent place to live. Less than 10% of Habitat houses are built with overseas volunteer involvement. Yet the impact of volunteers goes beyond the labour and the money that volunteers bring. They also bring laughter and enthusiasm, and leave partner families and local communities with the sense that they are not alone - there are people far away who understand and who are prepared to travel to personally deliver the ‘hand-up' which will change their lives forever.

Why do volunteers have to pay a donation?

Volunteers are asked to make a donation towards the building costs of the houses in the host country and towards the costs of hosting volunteer teams. Habitat has an enormous vision for a world where everyone has a decent place to live. They need funds to make this a reality. Taking part in a Global Village team is about volunteering time and about raising as much money as you can for house-building projects.

Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving – they’ll never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they’ll send your money directly to the charity and make sure Gift Aid is reclaimed on every eligible donation by a taxpayer. So it’s the most efficient way to donate - I raise more, whilst saving time and cutting costs for the charity.

So please dig deep and donate now.