People may think that being famous means only five-star hotels, private jets, and personal chefs. Looking to lend a helping hand, many switch these out for mud huts, bamboo rafts, and a good Sherpa. Which celebrities can be found on location getting their hands dirty? From animal conservation to work with the poverty stricken, there might not be a red carpet at these volunteer events, but the rewards are just as great. 

Star quality isn' t just reserved for the rich and famous. GoVoluntouring helps travelers of all kinds connect with their ideal volunteer vacation in locations across the world, including those that the celebs hold dear to their hearts:

Angelina Jolie fights poverty in Cambodia

This Oscar-winning actress who often graces the "most beautiful woman" list can be found in Cambodia. Whilst filming Tomb Raider, Jolie was touched by the plight of the poor and impoverished. See for yourself the source of Jolie' s inspiration with Globe Aware' s Cambodia Rediscovered program. Even though the tourism trade is blossoming in Cambodia, a large percentage of people still live in poverty. With a street-child problem and an underfunded education and medical system, volunteers will be working on a variety of projects. However, they will still have time however to visit the ancient temples that feature in Jolie' s Tomb Raider movies.

Natalie Portman loves them big and hairy

From black swans to mountain gorillas, Natalie Portman trekked into the rainforests of Rwanda to raise awareness of these beautiful giants. Gorillas share 98% of their genetic make-up with humans and volunteers can get involved with their plight by joining the Peaks Foundation. The organization runs a one-week trip where volunteers climb Rwanda' s highest peak, Nyiragongo (an active volcano), in support of the conservation efforts at Virunga National Park.

Elton John turns tragedy to triumph

St. Lucia is where celebrities are usually snapped lounging on the beach or private yacht, however this is one of the places where volunteers are needed to help educate the local people about HIV and AIDS. Elton John has seen many of his friend' s succumb to this disease and has channeled his grief into fund raising efforts, providing money for research and vital services to those in need. Join African Impact in the impressive setting of the Greater St. Lucia Wetland Park, a UNESCO world heritage site, as they help the local orphans and raise awareness of HIV and AIDS.

Jennifer Lopez helps women around the world

After learning that 350 young women have been killed in areas of Mexico since 1993, causes for women took precedence with this Latino songstress. These issues are certainly not unique to Mexico; volunteers with Kaya Responsible Travel will be improving the future of abused women in the Philippines. This project is about empowering women through encouraging social engagement and teaching them about their rights.

GoVoluntouring is an online community for volunteers, overseas teachers, and learners' abroad that allow users to perform detailed searches from a huge database of projects and programs. With thousands of programs to choose from, GoVoluntouring offers pre-checked charities and non-profits the chance to connect with the volunteers they desperately need, with no added cost to the user or the volunteer organization.  For more information visit www.govoluntouring.com.
 

Happy Birthday to the Peace Corps, Student Volunteers from New York Institute of Technology (NYIT) in Ghana, A profile of Globe Aware, and a short doc on New Orleans.

Water for San Pedro de Casta

Gainesville women " vacation' in Andean town for a cause

By Evvy Struzynski
Correspondent
Published: Saturday, October 29, 2011 at 6:01 a.m.

The ideal vacation is rarely one where water is a precious commodity. Resort destinations don' t usually advertise vacationers digging a well, educating school children and traveling on a treacherous, one-lane road in the only vehicle in the village. But for some, to sunbathe on a beach just doesn' t cut it.

Three Gainesville women recently returned from a "volunteer vacation" to San Pedro de Casta, Peru, where they worked in rustic conditions for one week helping dig and build a well and teaching children English.

But their work just scratched the surface, and on their return, the women decided to host a fundraiser for the 999 residents of the small village. "Bring Water to San Pedro de Casta" is scheduled from 7 to 10 p.m. Nov. 4 at the United Church of Gainesville.

Beth Karbe, an acupuncturist and herbalist, said she and her friends worked from dawn to dusk and stayed in a hotel with little water and no heat in the Andes Mountains.

"If you could call it a hotel, it was more like a building," she said. "There were no showers and the toilet only flushed every three or four times."

San Pedro de Casta, which is at an elevation of 12,000 feet, is only 50 miles east of Lima, Peru' s capital, but it takes 5 ½ hours to get there due to its remote location.

Karbe said she discovered the volunteer vacation after her first trip to Peru, where she traveled on her own to an orphanage that housed 50 young children. On her second trip in August, she traveled through Globe Aware, a U.S. based non-profit organization that arranges supervised volunteer vacations all over the world to "promote cultural awareness and sustainability," according to its mission statement. This time she traveled with two other Gainesville women, Judy Keathley and Carol Barron.

About 30 percent of San Pedro' s residents are children, and about 80 percent of them are malnourished, according to Karbe. The lack of water means little grass for cows to feed on, which in turn causes the animals to fail to produce milk.

The absence of water creates other difficulties as well, such as sanitation.

Two members on the trip were sick with dysentery, and had to walk a mile to the well to get fresh water, said Barron, the director of construction for Alachua County Habitat for Humanity.

"It was primitive and very intense," she said. "The people there that were 40 looked 65 because they' re so dehydrated."

Barron said that for more than 50 percent of their trip there was no running water, and for the other half of the time the water was freezing.

Karbe said the now dry town was previously a lush plateau, but climate change and global warming has resulted in water becoming scarce.

Karbe said the women were unsatisfied with their progress by the end of the week and wanted to help more.

"As hard as we worked, we didn' t really accomplish that much."

So to compensate, they' ve planned a fundraiser with a goal of raising $22,000 to bring an irrigation and water system to the town.

The "Bring Water to San Pedro" fundraiser includes wine and cheese, a silent auction and live performances of Peruvian music. Tickets cost $35, or for those who are unable to attend the event, a monetary donation can be sent electronically to the Bring Water to San Pedro de Casta Project at the Internet link, Globeaware.org/sponsor-volunteer-vacationer and enter "Bring Water to San Pedro" in the field.

The cost of the trip ' not including airfare to Peru, which the women paid for themselves ' covered food, guides, travel costs within the country, tools and their gift to the area ' a water heater for the local school.

Karbe said there are no volunteers scheduled for travel to Peru for the next year, likely due to the rustic living conditions.

"Every time I turn the water on to brush my teeth, I' m grateful," Karbe said.

Copyright © 2011 Gainesville.com

“The habitual characteristics of vacations are quite notorious: Stress relief. A hiatus from your accustomed duties. The effortless Pleasures of relaxation, or they can be used to simply revitalize a relationship. Although these likings may be essential, your short-term journey can also benefit the world around you,” writes Kimberly Haddad in Pasadena Magazine.

Ms. Haddad goes on to add that there are are a number of affordable volunteer vacations across the country that will allow the interested and inspired to travel to a unique destination “while giving back to the community. Whether it’s environmental assistance, lending a kinding hand to a child’s education or habitat restoration for wildlife,everyone has the opportunity to take part in an adventure with a purpose.”

Included in her list of top volunteer vacation providers is Globe Aware:

"Globe Aware is a non-profit organization that organizes volunteer vacations in various parts of the world including Africa, Asia, Eastern Europe, and Latin America.

Globe Aware allows volunteer travelers the extraordinary opportunity to be involved in a community while gaining valuable knowledge about cultures and the foreign environments we may not be accustomed to. Set goals for yourself and work alongside locals and other volunteers in elaborate hands-on projects like working with disadvantaged children in India, building shade shelters for elephants in Thailand, and working with youngsters who suffer from Down Syndrome in Cuba.

Some volunteer vacation organizations do not offer room and board, but Globe Aware is one of the few that do. Although it may not be as extravagant as you wish, the cost of the program includes housing accommodations and traditional style meals during your stay."
 

Globe Aware was featured in a June article written by Lisa M. Dietlin, CEO of Lisa M. Dietlin and Associates, Inc., philanthropic advisor, author, for the Huffington Post.

• Cross-Cultural Solutions was founded in 1995 and has an outstanding reputation. Their tag states:
• “Volunteer Abroad – work side-by-side with local people and experience another culture like never before. It’s the experience of a lifetime.”
• They work with over 4000 volunteers annually, have a staff of more than 300, and work in 12 countries.

• All costs including air fare are tax deductible
• You need no special skills nor do you need to speak a foreign language.
• People can go solo or with families such as multi generational trips.
• Enjoy befriending people in new and interesting countries and experience the reward of helping them on meaningful community projects.
• Promote cultural awareness and promote sustainability; cultural awareness means recognizing the beauty and challenges of a culture, but not changing it; sustainability is the idea of helping others to stand on their own two feet; teaching skills rather than reliance.

• For a Cause’s mission is to energize and inspire people to make a difference in the lives of those affected by HIV/AIDS and Breast Cancer so that no one faces these battles alone.
• The World Bank runs a program called Stay Another Day that directs tourists via a website and booklets to pre-evaluated activities that benefit the local community. For instance, vacationers can tour an orphanage in Cambodia, playing with the children and, if they wish, purchase goods such as the silk products the locals have made. The visit is free, but tourists are asked to make a donation.

1. Find the best organization that matches your passion and has a long standing commitment to that area.
2. Select a trip that suits your abilities and interests.
3. Speak with volunteers who have been on the excursion before.
4. If traveling to a non-English speaking country, try to learn the language or at least some phrases; even though it is not required, it is a great way to begin getting prepared.
5. Research local customs and mores, but recognize that reality can be different from what you read in a book or online.

• You know you will be making a difference through your efforts.
• Studies show that volunteering adds years and health to your life.
• You will be traveling to places with unique cultures and in some instances, especially with voluntouring, you become immersed in the culture and community.
• Your trip could be tax deductible.
• You will make lifelong friends!

Globe Aware was featured in a June, 2011 spotlight in the International Herald Tribune:

Steven Learner Studio
project Globe Aware
site Cuzco, Peru
completion December 2010

“I’d been looking for ways to contribute beyond designing residences and galleries in New York so I took the opportunity provided by our office’s Christmas-New Year’s holiday to volunteer at a home where children from surrounding villages board during the school year. My team of five quickly learned to work without extensive planning, or demand materials, or task specific tools. Just purchasing polycarbonate for the greenhouse, where vegetables for the kids’ will be grown, became an adventure that Involved visits to three lumberyards, hiring a pickup truck and being stopped by the Peruvian police as I bounced around In back”

Travelocity’s Senior Travel Editor, Genevieve Shaw Brown, joins Al Roker on Wake Up With Al to share all the sweet travel deals for Spring Break.`Included in their discussions is Globe Aware`s volunteer vacation destination in Peru.