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AFECT is a registered charity and your payment is legally bound by the law. We use secure payment methods.

 

CONSERVATION PROGRAM INFORMATION

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TEACHING PROGRAM INFORMATION

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Why is there a fee to pay at all?

Many of the projects receive little or no governmental support and rely on donations and fund raising. Many of our projects would not be without the funding and assistance from volunteers. Volunteers also create much needed local job opportunities for the Akha. The fee also covers accommodation, food and in country support from our project co-coordinators and our small administration costs. It also covers various excursions to local temples, rain forests, natural attractions and border trips to Burma and the Mekong River. What’s left goes directly into our humanitarian and cultural projects and is used to counteract the ill effects of tourism. Tourism has had an adverse effect on hill tribe culture and without regulation it has caused massive cultural erosion. Our ecology school and the volunteer placements are run as 100% non profit schemes to assist preserving what is left of tribal culture and to protect the deeply rich and pure tribal societies found in LAOS which are now severely threatened by tourism. Our funding is based on creating self automomy not reliance on charity giving.
For example we are currently making educational VCD films to organize community based tourism projects in LAOS - tribal co operatives who can benefit from tourism instead of being exploited by the unregulated tourism in Thailand. As a registered charity we are legally required to act in accordance with the law.

 

Why Volunteer with AFECT?

AFECT solely exists to help those in need. As a registered charity, we are legally bound that 100% of all monies received are used to promote our charitable objectives. We keep our administration costs to a minimum and provide full in country support for your stay.

 

We feel volunteering fulfills a need and helping those who are enslaved by unjust poverty can counter balance our privileged lives in the west, but here at AFECT your visit can reach deeper than that – ultimately your trip is a return to nature (the tribe is very close to the biodiversity of the rain forests) and nature in all its forms reconnects us back to our inner being. Your time at AFECT will be colorful, cultural and a very rewarding one.

Where does the money go?

We encourage you to question other volunteer organizations to compare our donation / fees to theirs. Ask where their ‘fees’ go because many ‘volunteer’ travel agents are in fact commercial companies exploiting the goodwill of giving and that’s something that can sour a trip.

 

These ‘placement’ organizations are companies that do not support the children, communities or advertised projects financially. For example agents were advertising our own 3 week program for £1200 / $2000 but we received just £100 / $165 – that’s 8.3% of the funds. In response to that we work directly with volunteers, ensuring a cheaper more ethic trip where you can stay longer and our relationship is a good one. There are very few independent cultural organizations in the world and AFECT is unique in offering a genuinely inspiring cultural experience that you will not find very often.