Starting in July I will be joining SLV. Global to spend five weeks volunteering in Sri Lanka. This placement combines a wide variety of daily activities aimed at improving the conditions in the local community. The placement features one day a week working in a psychiatric or community mental health setting. The rest of my timetable will be divided between projects involving youth teaching, children’s teaching and working with people with special needs.

I look at my time abroad not only as a way to give back but also as a way to gain a better insight into the world around me. While I am volunteering I will be living with a local host family. I believe that the long-term relationships that I hope to make with my project colleagues and host-family will be of great value to me as well as them. At the end of my project I hope to return with a better understanding of the country I’m volunteering in and the people that I have interacted with there.

I’m choosing to volunteer through an organisation called SLV. Global. SLV provides psychology students and graduates from around the world the opportunity to gain valuable, practical experience in the mental health sector whilst being immersed in a unique and exciting culture.

As this experience is unpaid, I will need to cover costs for things like flights, the Mental Health programme fee and vaccinations. I plan to contribute a significant portion of my own funds to this, as well as funding through sponsorships and fundraising events. I am also relying on the help of my friends and family. Even a small amount will get me one step closer to my goal. Thank you in advance for any support you can give