EIL Intercultural Learning

There are many interesting projects available in the categories listed below. The projects given here are an example of the projects in each category. Our goal is to match the skills and expectations of the participants with the needs of the local projects. Our volunteer coordinator in the field will suggest a project for you once they have your application. They are well placed to match your skills and interests to the right placements.

Teaching

While public schools in Turkey are free of charge and primary school is mandatory, education is a core issue to be dealt with. 60% of Turkey's population is younger than 26, therefore projects in teaching and education are much needed by the public. Although primary schools are mandatory, many children still could not get a proper education due to lack of teachers and schools in rural areas as well as cultural problems. Volunteers are needed to help ensure the education of young children.

EIL-Turkey is in cooperation with some village schools and poor schools of urban areas in projects concerning the development of school programs, construction of sports areas and courses on language. You can volunteer in a construction project for a village school or/and volunteer as a teaching assistant of a primary school teacher. Moreover, volunteers are needed to work to help with the education of orphans and street children.

Baris Manco Daycare Centre. The main objective of the project is to look after and educate the children of the staff of the Bakirkoy Municipality following up to contemporary curriculum in daily basis for all year long. It is a community based and non-profit day care center which has a contemporary point of view about pre-school and primary school children's education. The service has been providing with an utmost care of educational and hygienic standards with a reasonable fee on 350 m2 since 1999. There are 4 classes for 3-year-olds, 5-year-olds, 6-year-olds, and study-class for elementary school children and total number of the students is 80. In addition to the 4 pre-school teachers, a nurse, a cook and a psychologist who work full-time, there are also Arts and Crafts and English Language course teachers, and a dentist who work part-time.

• Volunteer tasks: Volunteers are welcome to assist the teachers to teach English, music, painting, handcrafts.
• Working hours: 8:00am - 16:30pm during the week days.

Children's Friends Association. This association has established a home for homeless children who have not been registered as orphans at state such as children with missing parents and children whose parents/relatives reject to look after them. The children live in association's building and go to state schools. The main objective of the organisation is to give disadvantaged children a safe, happy living atmosphere, to enable them to continue their education and have professions. Volunteers are welcome at the association during school term September to June and they may work as educators on language/computer training, sports teaching, music, drawing, handcrafts, ceramics etc.

• Volunteer tasks: Volunteers are welcome at the association during school term September to June and they may work as educator on language/computer training, sports teaching, music (teaching to sing, introducing instruments); drawing, handcrafts, ceramics etc.
• Working hours are flexible depending on the school schedules.

Kadikoy Public Education Centre (KHEM). The center has been serving effectively on general public education since 1932. The center holds courses on 62 different subjects and all the courses are free of charge. The courses are on career, technical and adult education in general. They aim to give public professional courses to help them find jobs or establish their own business, try to preserve Turkish traditional music, folkdance and handcrafts, to help young people learn foreign languages. They organize exhibitions on handcrafts; give performances on choir singing, folk dancing. The folkdance teams enter competitions in abroad.

One of the most interesting courses of KHEM is Ornamented Glassware Workshop. It's aimed to teach and produce traditional and modern designs of glassware with designs of ancient Anatolian civilisations, and Turkish-Ottoman. The products have different selling points and the profit goes to a special project which is educating women and wounded veterans to have professions who have no social benefits, education or income.

• Volunteer tasks: Volunteers are welcome as assistant to educators. The volunteer could work supplementary teacher especially in language classes (English, German, French, Italian, Russian, Arabic, and Turkish Ottoman. Volunteer will attend the courses to learn the special techniques to ornament glass and also help the staff to produce in glassware workshop.
• Working hours: The center is open all day from 9am-9pm. The working hours will be scheduled according to the courses. The glassware workshop is open Monday- Friday 9am - 4pm.

Welfare/Teaching

Turkish Red Crescent Society (KIZILAY) is the fourth biggest aid organisation in the world with the second biggest capacity of helping people all around the world. It has 584 functional branches all over Turkey. Kizilay accepts all kinds of donations like food, money, clothes, buildings and welcomes volunteers. This organisation is involved in all kinds of community service projects related with general social welfare issues. For example helping people in disasters, day care centres for children, nursing homes for elderly people, delivering medicine and food support to people with no social security, first aid, HIV/AIDS training, youth and health camps etc.

Istanbul Children's Association has an established house for homeless children who have not been registered as orphans. Some have parents who are missing or family who reject to look after them. The children live in this house and attend school. Volunteers are welcome, especially those with languages, computer skills and sport skills.

Etiler Rest House and Dispensatory. The purpose of this project is to provide physical and psychological care to people over 60 in the Istanbul Rest House and Dispensatory. The centre provides Social Services, Psychological Counseling, Health Care, Technical and Administrative support. Volunteers are required to accompany and assist patients in their daily activities as well as assist the staff of the centre in their daily duties.

Deniz Feneri Light House Association. The Light House Association aims to help disadvantaged people by providing food, clothes, health services, fuel and professional development services to those who need it most. Volunteers are needed to help prepare monthly food aid or any other aid boxes and help deliver them to families.

Environment

Turkey holds a unique geographical position: it is also the genetic center or "diversity center" for a large number of plants. It is at the crossroads of the Mediterranean and Near East gene centers. Because of its position between Asia, Europe and Africa, Turkey has flora and fauna comprised of elements of all these continents. The 120 species of mammals living in Turkey reflect its central geographic location. As in any rapidly developing country, Turkey's enormous population growth destroys habitats and displaces many species of animals. Turkey's concerns about biodiversity often take a backseat to the more pressing issues of development and growth. Booming industrial production also led to higher levels of energy consumption, imports, air and water pollution, and greater risks to the country's environment. Therefore, Turkey's most pressing needs are for water treatment plants, wastewater treatment facilities, solid waste management, and the conservation of biodiversity.

The TEMA Foundation (The Turkish Foundation for Combating Soil Erosion, for Reforestation and the Protection of Natural Habitats) is one of the biggest environmental NGO's in Turkey. TEMA Foundation's primary goal is to raise public awareness about the dangers of desertification resulting from widespread soil erosion within Turkey.

Volunteers can assist on reforestation projects, rural development projects and environmental education projects.

WWF - Turkey/Sea turtles. The main aim of the project is to enchance the conservation of Turkey's biodiversity and promote the sustainable use of its natural resources. Main principals to be independent and non-political, to use the best available scientific information to address issues and critically evaluate all endeavours, to build concrete conservation solutions through a combination of field-based projects,policy initiatives, capacity building and education work, to strive to build partnership with other organisations, governments, businesses and local communities, to run operations in a professional, cost-effective manner applying funds according to the higgest standards of accountability.

Volunteer's task:

• In Istanbul: Mainly office based work like updating content or design of the webpage; tidy up to archieves of photos and videotapes; searching in Internet. Working hrs: 5 hours per day, 4 days per week.
• In Adana:Typical work day starts at 5am until 11am, the other shift is between 21:00 - 24:00. One day off per week. The task involves lots of walking along the 22km.beach.Volunteer tasks include marking turtle's nests, preserve them,help green baby sea turtles to find their way to the sea when they come out of the eggs.Volunteers will stay in shared tents(supplied by the WWF) with other volunteers (local&international), will share cooking and other chores in camp. Camping site is an secure place under the supervision of Enviroment and Forestry Management. Volunteers are free to bring their own tent or sleeping bag if they wish.

Social & Welfare

Six Dot Foundation for The Blind. The main objective of the Project is rehabilitating the blind, help their adaptation to community life as independent individuals and make them productive members of the society. Main philosophy of the foundation is to strengthening the adaptation of the blind to society. To achieve their goal they are educating blind people from all over Turkey between the ages of 18-35. They offer room board to 35 students at one time. They are taught "Braille Alphabet", using "Walking Stick", Basic Math's using abacus, Computers and three-dimensional writing, workshops (plumbing, packaging, assemblage, macramé, knitting, chair weaving, and key making). Arty crafts (evil eye beads, flower stands, newspaper holders, bags, belts, lamps, stools and chairs), Clay molding training. Personal management in daily activities like cooking, ironing, painting shoes, shaving, making bed, conception of time, house keeping, Planting in Green House, Massage training (classical, relaxing and sports massage), operating telephone central, operating call center training.

• Volunteer tasks : Volunteer will educate blind according to his/her specialty so volunteer should know how to teach blind or have similar work experience.
• Working hours: 9 am - 5pm including lunch break, weekdays. Tutoring is usually on one to one basis therefore working hours could be flexible.

Schizophrenia Friends Association. The main objective of the project to educate patients and their families about the illness, help patients to be social. To overcome stereotypes in the society, help patients to socialize . They have separate courses for patients and their families in the center. Also there classes in singing, painting, folk dances. Folk dance teams have attended int. competitions. They organize daily excursions and summer camps.

• Volunteer tasks: Educator (music, drama, drawing, language, handcrafts, dance). Males (25+) only, should have experience or willing to work with this special group. They also need somebody to cook for them.
• Working hours: 11am-6pm weekdays (including lunch break)

Respect of the History. This project is covering improvement works for 12 villages by building new roads, painting, restoration of building like schools, museums, establishing cultural centers and playgrounds, landscaping to improve the conditions of the villages in Gallipoli peninsula to show respect to history and gratitude the soldiers who have lost their lives in the area, by both restorating work and educating the local people to protect their historical heritage.

• Volunteer's task: Volunteers are welcome to work in any area of their choice to contribute to the project. They can work in development works or can teach English, handicrafts, help landscaping.
• Working hours: Flexible hours and days according to the workplace and task.

Kizilay - Turkish Red Cresent Society. The Red Crescent Society (KIZILAY) is the fourth biggest aid organization in the world with the second biggest capacity of helping people all around the world which was founded in 1868. It's joined to International Federation of Red Cross Societies in 1930. It has 584 functional branches in all over Turkey. Kizilay accepts all kind of donations like food, money, clothes, buildings and welcomes volunteers. The mission of Red Crescent is to help people without discrimination of race, language or religion. The international symbol of reversed red crescent represents neutrality and immunity during a war. This organization is activated in all kinds of community service projects related with general social welfare issues.

Bayrampasa Kizilay is one of the big branches of Red Crescent in Istanbul. There is Bayrampasa Medical Center serves like full capacity hospital to the local citizens with very reasonable prices or free depends on patients' income. In addition that diagnose and health care unit, there is a Cookhouse as well. Bayrampasa Cookhouse serves hot meal for almost 600 poor and some homeless people once a day free of charge. All facilities have been built by donations.

• Volunteers tasks: Welcoming guests and patients for directing them to the right department; accompanying and helping to patients any time they need for instance during their medical tests etc. or in general helping to the kitchen staff to prepare and serve lunch.
• Working hours: 9:00 am-12:30 pm and 13:30-16:00 during the week days

Rest House & Dispensatory in Etiler. The purpose of this volunteer project is to provide physical and psychological care to people over 60 who get their salary from The Pension Fund for Civil Servants of The Republic of Turkey in The Istanbul Rest House and Dispensatory. There have been 5 main departments which are providing Social Services, Psychological Counseling, Health Care, Technical and Administrative support. There are suits, double and single rooms for 582 pensioners. The capacity of health care unit is for 45 patients. The facilities are kitchen, two dining halls that is one for the people on diet, TV rooms on every storey, concert hall, library, hairdressers for females and males, tailor, launderette, cafe in rose garden.

• Volunteer tasks: Helping the staff in daily basis such as serving in dining hall, having conversation and keep accompany to pensioners, reading to them, playing musical instruments, escorting them during the excursions which are arranged by social service as a monthly schedule to the cultural centers, movie theatres, theaters, concerts, sightseeing tours in Istanbul or nearby cities.
• Working hours: 9:00 am-12:30 pm and 13:00-15:00 during the week days

Deniz Feneri - Light House Association. The Light House aims to help the needy people carries on its work until to reach the last needy person in the world in the context of fairness, neutrality, openness, responsibility, modesty, confidence, sincerity and universality. The Light House according to its foundation criteria contributes the needy people in the fields of food, cloth, cash, health (consultation, treatment, operation, MR, hearing aid etc.), circumcision, house staff, fuel, profession courses.

• Volunteer's task: Helping to prepare monthly food aid or any other aid boxes and help deliver them to families.
• Working hours: Monday to Friday 08:00 - 17:30; Lunch break 12:30 - 13:30

Women Empowerment

Woman, Environment and Culture in Biga. Their main philosophy is to increase local women's capacity and involvement in economic development processes to improve the quality of their lives and their communities. The women in the community have taken courses in cooperation management, wood painting, jewel making. It's been established a dairy production unit. They have produced and serve traditional local food. They run two restaurants and have a standpoint now. They have opened a children center to expand early childcare and education services to low income families, which is under threat of closing down because of not sufficient funds. their next project is a fish selling standpoint in market place.

• Volunteer's task: Volunteer expected to work/help various works of the cooperation; for example, food processing, packaging, selling or help in the cooperation restaurants, help to improve the conditions of dairy products center by building stools, tables etc. assist/teach handicraft workshops or teach English.
• Working hours: Flexible hours and days according to the workplace and task.

Woman Coordinator Centre. The main objective of this project is to organize activities and educational programs to help women to recognize their adaptation problems in big city life, to give scholarships to female university students. Center has departments such as education, archive and library, establishment coordination, social aid and workshops, and sub-departments working closely with other departments. They organize educational, vocational programs to women, give financial aid to students, help and assist in health problems, give food and clothing to needy families, help women in prison and their children, assist them to find psychological help 7/24 in emergency. Workshop has recyling and hometextile production sections. They have yearly fair where products of both sections are on sale, and the profit from the sales to support the other projects.

• Volunteer's task: The center collects mainly clothing donations from people. The volunteers are expected to work in classifying the clothes, washing, ironing, packaging and delivering them to the needy families with the center's cars accompanying staff.
• Working hours: Monday to Friday 08:30 - 17:00; Lunch break 12:30 - 13:30