EIL Intercultural Learning

If you are a young person or student who is interested in what is going on in the world, could be an Ambassador for Ireland, are free to travel in summer 2012 and think that you would benefit from a challenging adventure in another culture then one of these awards could be for you.

Individual awards

Fully funded awards for people aged between 16-18:

• Japan - spend 6 weeks living with a family in Suwa, learning Japanese and going to a high school, while acting as an ambassador for Ireland, sharing Irish culture as you learn about that of Japan.
• Ecuador - Live with an Ecuadorian family for 4 weeks, learn Spanish, go on excursions to the rainforest, mountain hiking and horseback riding, volunteer at a community project.
• Vermont - 12-day Institute in Vermont in the USA challenges participants to find solutions to the local and global problems that directly impact young people.

Fully funded awards for people aged 18+:

• Mexico - The beach village of La Ventanilla set up a co-op project to stop the killing and selling of turtles and their eggs and has grown into a sustainable alternative source of income for the community. With this award you'd spend 6 weeks assisting the co-op with a range of activities.
• Argentina - up to 20% of the population of Chilecito live in poverty and the poorer children often survive on one meal per day. This award involves assisting a local project that helps young children. As this is a new project a dynamic volunteer with lots of initiative and new ideas is required.

Other awards

• ACCESS / Mature students - Spend 2 months on a Volunteer Abroad programme for free. 3 places for young ACCESS students and 1 place for a registered mature student.
• Global Awareness Programme -  33 Million People are living with HIV. The response to AIDS depends on the strength of individuals and communities. This is your chance to make a difference! 4 people are needed to participate on this partially funded programme which includes: training in Ireland, volunteering in Nigeria and South Africa, awareness raising on your return in Ireland.

Who are EIL looking for?

In assessing the applications we receive, volunteer or other community involvement as well as leadership potential will take priority over academic capacity. The Awards are open to a range of different age categories starting from 16 years old and successful applicants need to be available to travel during the summer months.

For anybody interested in presenting the 2012. Travel Awards opportunities to their class or youth group you can download a short Powerpoint outline here (19MB).

How do I apply?

Click on the award you are interested in on the left hand side of this page and follow the instructions: typically you just need to download and complete a short application form and write a short essay before posting both to EIL. You can apply for more than one award but you must submit a separate application form for each one.

For the Access & DEIS Travel Awards you must be nominated by a teacher or Access Programme Administrator rather than applying directly. The forms for this and instructions on what is required are available on the relevant award's page.

The deadline for application and nominations for the majority of the Travel Awards is 6pm on Sunday April 1st 2012.