Raleigh International connected communities that wanted to improve their lives and their environment with passionate people from around the world who wanted to take positive action.
With local and international volunteers, project partners, local communities, funders, and 50,000 previous volunteers, Raleigh International formed a global community who were passionate about working together to build a sustainable future.
Find the courage. Open to discovery. Never give up. Act with integrity. Create impact together. What do these all have in common? These are not just values on a website. They are values lived and breathed by previous volunteers, project partners, community members and supporters. They defined our unique way of working and helped us to create a global community working to build a sustainable future.
Raleigh International used to offer two different programmes and a variety of roles. To ensure safe and impactful delivery of programmes, Raleigh International also needed volunteer managers and leaders to lead and support programmes. They used to have a variety of roles available depending on age and experience.
In May 2022 Raleigh International stopped operating. For similar opportunities browse our voluntering abroad directory.
I have now been with Raleigh 3 times. Twice in Tanzania and once in Borneo. Each time I got to see the country and experience a culture that would never have been open to me as a tourist. I respect the organization and believe in their work.
I went on a 12 week WASH Project in Nicaragua in Autumn 2016 and it truly changed my perspective on life. I always knew I wanted to work in development, but my time with Raleigh in Nicaragua confirmed it. Plus the skills and confidence I was able to gain are lifelong.
My main motivation for coming was to contribute to a local community to help to improve the lives of people who have been less fortunate than I have. At home, there’s always a doctor, electricity, running, clean water that’s safe to drink and food on the table. Here, people don’t always have that. I had a very brief experience of this when I was in Uganda.
I completed the 7 week Nicaragua and Costa Rica expedition and loved every second of it. Unfortunately I didn’t do the environment phase but community and trek were both incredible and I’d highly recommend doing those 2 if you choose to do 7 weeks.
Admittedly I was very nervous about the whole experience before getting out there. It was nothing like anything I had experienced before but it truely is a must to do.
Best 7 weeks of my life and wish I’d stayed out to travel with the amazing people I met.
I usually wouldn't write reviews for anything but Raleigh are amazing so I will.
I went with Raleigh to Tanzania (with ICS) where I undertook a 12 week volunteering programme in a team of both UK and Tanzanian national volunteers. We undertook a WASH (water, sanitation and hygiene) sustainable development project in a small village called Mgudeni in the Kilombero Valley, about 5 hours away from Raleigh Tanzania's base in Morogoro District. My time with Raleigh and doing the project was of course challenging but doing ICS with Raleigh was the best decision I've ever made (no exaggeration). The organisation itself has fantastic values, ethics and focus that I fully align myself with and I'm incredibly proud that I have worked for them.
The Raleigh team (primarily our in-country team) were so supportive, dedicated and passionate and I think that was key to making our time out there worthwhile, productive and making the whole experience amazing. They made sure we were safe and happy and you could really feel a collective passion and will to make our projects meaningful and sustainable. I would personally like to give special attention to Owen Doel who was our Country Operations Manager (alongside national Deputy Operations Manager Tino Dickson and UK Deputy Alfie Batt) who was so committed and caring for the whole of WASH Raleigh Tanzania. They made sure we weren't doing some whimsical voluntourism trip and we worked SO hard but it was great.
In terms of personal development, you of course learn a lot about yourself and there is a great deal of self-reflection that happens, either whilst you're there or when you return. It is challenging but you develop fantastic bonds with the team around you who become your family and for my experience, where I lived with a host family for the three months, I have made a connection to Tanzania that I will continue to nurture and maintain. My host family were amazing and I wept like a baby when I left them (and also when I got on the plane home). I now have friends and family in the UK and Tanzania and we are united by this common experience.
Since coming home, so many people have developed their interests in international development, sustainable development and community work and every single person I know is working hard to contribute to the world around them. This was encouraged and cultivated by Raleigh. I can't thank Raleigh International enough for giving me some of my best memories and this experience, all the staff and all the volunteers.
I have always been sceptical about volunteering in developing countries but I really felt I made a difference and I felt like that was ensured by the organisation throughout and the in-country team especially.
If you're looking to challenge yourself, learn about yourself and the world around you and make lasting connections...Raleigh International is the one. You will 1000% not regret it.
Asante Sana & Kwaheri!!! (thank you very much & goodbye in Swahili!)