Girl Guiding - LaSER International Opportunities - Offers young girls such as myself, amazing opportunities to experience working abroad in communities less fortunate than our own - and help me and many other Girl Guides, appreciate and understand the challenges others face, on a global scale.

My name is Lulu and part of the above selection process involved, is being recommended in the first place, then being invited to attend two weekends of team building activities with other Girl Guides aged 14-18, from London and the South East region, to determine suitability, with no certainty of qualifying for a place at the end of it. I did however realise, no matter how disappointed I might feel if I was not selected, I would feel more disappointed with myself, if I did not 'Have a Go' in the first place. With that knowledge in mind, I understood my chances were as good as any one else's, and that nothing ventured , nothing can is gained.

Different charities obviously promote different awareness - Girl Guiding's aim is committed to empowering girls like myself to find their voice and to be their best version, through girl-led programmes delivered by inspirational Leaders. Their vision is for an equal world, where all girls can make a positive difference, be happy, safe and fulfil their potential. Furthermore, the ultimate mission of the Guiding Movement is that through fun, friendship, challenges and adventure, they enable all girls to find their voice, inspiring them to discover the best in themselves and to make a positive difference in their community.

The destinations that were up for grabs on this occasion, were Malawi, Cambodia and Ecuador, and no words can describe how I felt, when my name was selected for Malawi......my spirits soared like a rocket with excitement, the reality of the next challenge ahead of me however, came with an almighty bump back to earth. The overall cost of this Expedition is an eye watering amount of £3,000 and I have already applied for Regional and District grants, that I understand are available through Girl Guides, which of course is not a guarantee, but my leader is confident we shall be successful on application.

That then, potentially means I need to personally raise a further £2,000, which I realise is heavily dependent on the generosity of those around me and things I can do for myself to contribute to this, such as running a Christmas stall and making a variety of items to sell...such as cakes, cards and necklaces. Along side advertising my cause in our local magazine 'The Roundabout'. It is never an easy task asking for grants, sponsorship and donations, all of which are an unknown quantity and come with no guarantee, so this is a bit daunting as you might imagine. However, if do not put myself out here, I will never know, if I could of managed to achieve this and with that thought, I at least have to try.

This is an amazing opportunity for someone like me, who literally turned Fourteen yesterday and I am hungry to consume every aspect this opportunity presents, for all the cultural differences it has to offer....I know already, if I manage to pull this off with your help, it will open my world up in a way I never imagined...I really have no idea at this stage, what part of this trip will have the most impact on me but I dearly hope I get the chance to find out for myself and share this experience with other Girl Guides on my return and promote similar opportunities.

Through this project, I have become increasingly aware of how fortunate I am, to be in education and that right does not necessarily apply to children of other countries, such as Malawi, due to poverty, which means they lack the teaching staff and resources to even teach the basics such as reading.

Our team comprises of fourteen girl guides and four leaders ...we will also be sharing our love of singing and playing games and be organising craft activities with the children....and I can only think, how much fun will that be!. Afternoon activities are yet to be decided at this stage and further meetings will establish what other worthy causes we want to address whilst out there, be it :'Reaching out to girls to stay in education - helping provide fresh water to rural communities and fixing pumps and providing training -helping build classrooms for children to learn, where they previouslybworked under trees or in grass shelter - proving local schools with one good meal per day -opening up libraries in primary schools, painting colourful murals on walls and setting up the books in classification systems - teaching communities to make efficient clay ovens to reduce the amount of wood used in the households as part of the reforestation project. All of these are equally important and undoubtedly any one, would unleash some new sense of life back into there community.

What remains to be said is 'I have a mountain to climb, in terms of raising these funds, to make this opportunity a real possibility for me and any financial support, however small, would be a step closer to my summit .

All support would be gratefully received and I will keep you posted how I get on.

With sincere and warmest regards,

Lulu