Philippines
Hagonoy, Luzon - Health Education Hagonoy is a semi-urban municipality approximately 1.5 hours from Manila. Volunteers will work with the Municipal Health Authority to raise awareness and support action to tackle common health problems in the area.
The purpose of this programme is to continue and widen the awareness raising activities in schools, providing workshops and activities for students, teachers and parents, as well as advocating for local administration support for the campaigns. Volunteers will also work to set up and support health clubs in schools and youth groups for young people to get involved in spreading health messages and taking action in their communities.
Volunteers do not need to have expertise in community health issues, as they are working under the guidance of Dr Pajela, Municipal Health Chief, and other medical staff across the municipality. Volunteers are expected to bring enthusiasm for promoting good health and activating local young people - working together to find effective ways to get the messages across to the community, as well as measuring the effects of this work in order to be able to encourage other municipalities to take a similar approach to tackling health issues in their communities.
Caro'od Watershed, Bohol - Environmental Education
Bohol is an island state in the Visayas area of the Philippines. Caro'od covers both semi-urban and rural areas, reaching from the source of the river in the hills, to the coast. Volunteers will work with the Caro'od Watershed Management Council, made up of local authorities and environmental protection organisations, to raise awareness and support action to tackle environmental issues in the area.
All people living in the watershed area are affected by, and affect, the Caro'od river system. The purpose of this programme is to promote understanding of the connectedness of the communities in this area and activate local young people to get involved in environmental protection. The water system also affects livelihoods of local people, such as agriculture and fishing. This video on You-Tube, produced by VSO Bahaginan will give you an insight into the community and issues:
Volunteers will undertake awareness raising activities in schools, providing workshops and activities for students, teachers and parents, as well as advocating for local community support for the campaigns. Volunteer will also work to set up and support environment clubs in schools and youth groups for young people to get involved in spreading environmental messages and taking action in their communities. Volunteers do not need to have expertise in environmental issues, as they will be working under the guidance of members of the Caro'od Watershed Management Council.
The host home experience by April May Caparas
When I was told about the set up of the programme that I’d signed up to, I was a bit hesitant and anxious because the programme requires us, the volunteers, to live together in a host home for twelve weeks so that we can fully 
immerse ourselves in the community to initiate change and create a bigger impact. I felt really worried and I wondered if I could handle living with someone from a different country. We would have loads of differences and a clash of culture and beliefs.
The programme began, and I started to realize that although we grew up on different sides of the world, we still have lots of similarities: the love for fun, knowledge, music and service, the need to belong in a family unit and the enthusiasm to initiate change. I am sure that we have surpassed our differences with friendship, a bridge that connected us and made us cross each other’s paths. On that bridge, we have exchanged stories and experiences of our own cultures. As the programme continues to unfold, I have left my anxiety and fear. With my new friends, I’ll walk on a path that will help my community develop and make a positive difference.
Mealtimes can be so much fun in the Philippines, especially when you have some friends to share it with and the most important is the presence of a loving family. You don’t need to be blood-related to become a happy family, all you need is an open heart. Dinner time in my host home during the Youth Action Programme is my highlight of the day, aside from group meetings and activities of course. Dinner is the time where all of us from the host home sit together and talk about almost anything. Funny stories, serious conversations, informative broadcasting of events, jokes, plans for our lives and other snippets about ourselves. These are the topics shared at the dinner table. It’s like a haven after a day of work. During that time, me and my counterpart exchange culture and belief. That’s why every night after dinner, I feel like I can handle the exciting tasks that I have for the next day.
Thoughts on experiencing a new culture by Alex Muir
How do you prepare yourself to spend three months in an exotic country, living in a host home? That is a question that is bound to cross your mind before you depart to foreign climes. In truth, you can never really prepare yourself for the full experience of living in a different region of the world, living with different people, eating 
different foods; in short, living in a different culture. On top of all the expected differences there are those which crop up totally unlooked for: be they Tawas rituals, your own personal Jesus, unusual foods, different attitudes towards ablutions, the close proximity of all manner of insects to your sleeping area or just the sheer business of the streets, something will come at you from left field and take you completely by surprise. The results of such a surprise can vary from total delight to complete astonishment and everything in between, enhancing the sense of adventure around the trip. How you adjust to the changes and shocks that come your way while you’re on your placement is entirely down to you.
Fortunately, being a member of a team, there are people on hand to help you cross the cultural divide (as well as be equally surprised by some of your mannerisms). The counterpart system is such a good method of cultural exchange that the transition between cultures is as painless as it could be, at no time do you feel like a group of 
lost souls adrift in unfamiliar waters.
Needless to say, a willingness to try new things or being flexible or having an overriding sense of fun helps. You’re going to have to sing that karaoke song/eat that balut at some point on your trip so you might as well do it now and enjoy the experience (or at least enjoy it as much as you can). The mantra “I’ll try anything once” can be a very useful phrase and philosophy when living in, and exploring, a new culture.
