Culture charity EIL Intercultural Learning launches €100,000 overseas learning fund
Cork-based EIL Intercultural Learning has invited young people to apply for a slice of its new EIL Explore scheme which will fund educational travel or volunteering abroad for 34 young people aged over 16.
Eco tourism in Mexico and high school exchanges in Japan are among the schemes which may be considered.
Daire Hickey, a co-founder of the Web Summit and a former board member of EIL, launched the scheme at Cork Airport yesterday and urged people to get involved.
“My involvement with EIL has taught me so much,” he said.
“It will support 34 people to go through amazing, challenging and potentially life-changing experiences.”
Formerly known as EIL Travel Award, EIL Explore offers participants a range of diverse experiences to travel, learn, and change.
It is hoped that they will bring what they learned abroad home and change their own communities for the better.
EIL helped fund Nicole Chatham’s volunteer experience in Oaxaca, Mexico, earlier this year where she worked with local youth groups on recycled arts projects, and blogged about her experiences.
She has continued to teach recycled art to youth groups and adults here since her return.
“I thought by volunteering abroad, I would in some small way impact on my host family, people in communities I have worked with, but since I have returned home, I have realised that all these wonderful, hard-working people have had a lasting impact on me as a person, and now I want to live my life and proceed with my future goals,” she said.
EIL is a non-religious, non-political association with branches in 26 countries. It has been designated as a Peace Messenger Organisation by the UN.
Applications for EIL Explore 2016 are open until February 9 next, and full details of the programme are available on www.eilexplore.ie or 021-4551535.
