Why You Should Get Involved in Volunteering in 2018

We’re approaching the final months of 2017, yes, we can’t quit believe it either. Another year has gone by so fast, and we don’t know about you but we feel like it’s been one of our quickest yet! Perhaps it’s an age thing, the older you become the busier life seems to get and before you know it, it’s Halloween and then it’s the lead up to Christmas and New Year.

As we begin to reflect on the year behind us, we’re also beginning to put together our goals and aspirations for 2018, there’s nothing like being prepared right? It’s always good to set goal posts and have something to work towards. Whilst some New Years resolutions soon fly out the window (as if we thought we could live without sugar) some will remain and hopefully change our lifestyle for the better.

One resolution that’s already on all of our lists is to spend more of our time helping others by volunteering. We complain we never have enough time, but when you break it down how much of that is actually important? We probably spend around 2-3 hours a day scrolling on our phones. In fact we know it’s a little more than this due to the app we’ve all downloaded in the office!

We should all try and donate a few hours of our week to helping those in need. If however, you feel like you need to give more and want to really get stuck into some amazing volunteering (with a side of travel!) then we would recommend looking into Kidogo Adventure, a project that has recently been brought to our attention that we’re sure lots of our lovely readers will be interested in!

The idea for Kidogo Adventure began back in 2010 when founder Alice arrived in Nairobi to volunteer at a home for abandoned babies as part of her gap year. Having worked in Nairobi often on various different projects, Alice recently decided to leave her job and throw herself into the Kidogo Adventure full time.

Kidogo Adventure is a small, personally run project and enables volunteers to experience travel and adventure whilst offering valuable support to those in desperate need. Every ‘adventure’ is tailor made to you, and you can spend as little as one week helping out or up to six weeks if you really want to get fully immersed in the experience. The current placements are all centred around helping children and volunteers will be placed in a nursery, school or orphanage.

Whilst on your adventure, you will also get the chance to visit a number of wonderful community projects as well as the David Sheldrick Elephant Orphanage amongst others. For adventures of 2 weeks or longer there is also a thrilling safari included too. It really is a trip of a lifetime, and you’ll be giving back so much good as well as enjoying your very own adventure.

Among all the hard work you will also be able to earn valuable skills that you would otherwise not have the chance to develop. Your professional network of contacts will also increase and you’ll make friends for life! Volunteering is a valuable asset to any CV, and proof of partaking in such a meaningful cause will be attractive to future hiring managers. And best of all? All of this good work will give you a sense of worth and knowledge that you have made such a huge impact on the lives of those less fortunate.

There’s no better reason for planning a trip than for one that is based upon volunteering. So why not start looking into it? Do your research, and if you have any questions, a member of the Kidogo Adventure team would be more than happy to assist!

Start your volunteering adventure today…

You can find out more about the Kidogo Adventure here: https://www.kidogoadventure.com

You can find Kidogo Adventure on Instagram here: instagram.com/kidogoadventure/

Tilly-Jayne Kidman

Tilly is a graduate in fashion marketing and currently works in social media. She writes for various publications including the Huffington Post as well as her own fashion and lifestyle blog tillyjayne.com. In her spare time she's usually wandering around her home city of Cambridge, making travel plans or finding a new restaurant to try out.