Get involved to give a hand up for women and youth to create ripples of lasting change and break the cycle of poverty!
Volunteers are the unsung heroes of the charity sector and we applaud anyone who is willing to give up their time to “make change happen”. We have a number of ways individuals, corporations and professionals can contribute and help us make change happen in Africa.
Ways to Volunteer
We have a number of ways individuals can volunteer, regardless of where you are located!
CASE STUDY
Changing African Lives
George and Ben, two Ripples volunteers, were celebrating the Yam Festival in this picture with the Village Chief, Chief Nike Okundaye, (far left). At the Yam Festival, locals celebrate the new yam harvest by participating in a masquerade with the goal of leading the village chief out to participate in the festivities. At Ripples, we are immensely grateful for the work our volunteers contribute to ongoing projects, but we also want to give them opportunities to participate in local festivities and traditions. We believe that in getting to know a culture, you have a greater understanding of how best to work with it, and a more profound investment in its people.
As part of Ripples’ stakeholder farming initiative, women were given 2 hectares of land, along with seeds and training. In total, there were 70 female participants for the pilot project in 2018. Here, the founder and CEO of Ripples USA, Anne Toba (left), is pictured with Daphne and Tope, two Ripples volunteers. The three of them are surveying land in Nigeria before it is cleared for the Ripples Farm program. The idea to begin Ripples Farm, a project co-designed by Ogidi Ripples and the international Ripples Team, was introduced as a solution after a discussion with local women to address the provision of food and income, and to help farmers weather annual environmental crises.
FAQs
Ripples volunteers must be 18 years of age or older to work with our organization.
It is recommended that individuals interested in volunteering with Ripples are available for a minimum of two weeks.
All Ripples volunteer opportunities are unpaid.
There is no application fee to be a Ripples volunteer. However, if you are interested in traveling abroad with Ripples, there is a program fee (due in installments) which includes local transportation, food and accommodations. The first installment of 25% will be due 30 days after you’ve been accepted to the program.
The remaining 75% of the program fee is due 30 days prior to the designated departure date as listed on the website for your program month. This means that if you have an alternate arrival date for any given month, you will still be responsible for paying by the same deadline as those starting on the regular date for that month. You are welcome to submit as many payments as necessary leading up to this deadline if the program fee is paid in full on or before the deadline.
Volunteers will be responsible for arranging their own flights to and from the destination country/city as well as researching and applying for visas. Additional travel opportunities sought by the volunteer (outside of program requirements) will result in additional out-of-pocket expenses.
Once approved, you will receive an email from Ripples allowing you to make a secure payment online.
Volunteers will need to research visa requirements for the country/city they’re traveling to.
Ghana volunteers can visit the Ghanaian embassy website here: https://www.ghanaembassydc.org/visa/
Madagascar volunteers can visit the Madagascan embassy website here: http://www.madagascar-consulate.org/visainfo.html
Nigeria volunteers can visit the Nigerian embassy here: http://www.nigeriaembassyusa.org/index.php?page=visas
Ripples will provide an invitation letter for you to include with your application to the embassy of your destination.
Travel insurance is mandatory for Ripples volunteers and volunteers need to research and arrange for travel insurance on their own. Ripples staff will provide suggested travel insurance options for you to consider.
Volunteers are required to have health insurance that is covered in Ghana, Madagascar, or Nigeria. You will be responsible for arranging your own health insurance and covering any applicable medical expenses while you are enrolled in a Ripples Volunteer Program. Ripples staff will provide suggested health insurance options for you to consider.
We highly value an international culture at Ripples and encourage applicants from all countries.
Our prior volunteers have ranged from new international travelers to more experienced travelers. While prior travel experience is not a requirement to be a Ripples volunteer, those that have some experience living in another country are likely to adjust more easily to the local culture. With that said, the shorter timeframes for Ripples volunteers (starting from four weeks) lend themselves to an ideal first experience abroad.
Ripples volunteer opportunities are currently offered in Ghana, Madagascar, and Nigeria. Please know Ripples follows a security policy to determine whether or not we feel comfortable sending volunteers to certain locations given current events. However, we encourage you to research extensively to determine whether you feel comfortable going to a particular country, region or city. Ripples will never send you somewhere you are not comfortable. We want this to be a great experience for you!
Please be certain to check updated travel advisories and alerts during the COVID-19 pandemic.
EU: https://ec.europa.eu/info/live-work-travel-eu/health/coronavirus-response/travel-during-coronavirus-pandemic_en
UK: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/travel-advice-novel-coronavirus
US: https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/traveladvisories/traveladvisories.html/
Your first priority as a Ripples volunteer is to fulfill your duties as described in your work plan. Ripples has generally been flexible regarding short breaks for travel and sightseeing after the program duration has ended.
The program contacts at the Ripples offices in Ghana, Madagascar, or Nigeria will serve as your main contacts.
Housing is part of the program cost and is arranged for by Ripples to ensure volunteers have ample opportunities to connect with one another. All volunteers live in the community they serve, which helps foster ties and helps create the ideal cultural immersion experience.
You will most likely need a visitors visa for Ghana, Madagascar, or Nigeria, but please feel free to research the type of visa appropriate for your stay. Ripples can provide a letter of support for your visa application.
Vaccination requirements vary from country to country. In addition to completing basic research on this topic, you will need to contact your local travel clinic for more information on their recommendations for vaccinations.
We wish we could hire all of our amazing volunteers, but it’s just not possible. Volunteer positions do not turn into staff positions at Ripples, but if there is a position that becomes available, we would consider current or former volunteers as we would any other applicant applying externally.
Ripples can provide letters of recommendation that reflect the scope of your contributions.
Former volunteers are highly encouraged to stay in touch with us and keep abreast of the projects they worked on. Please reach out to info.usa@ripplesfoundation.org to stay connected with us!