A deeper understanding of the rest of the world

Me to We Trips give youth the opportunity to explore diversity and contrasts while immersing themselves in the rich culture of our host countries. Our youth delve into local cultures and spend time getting to know their peers in different communities. We volunteer with local partners in all countries and get the opportunity to work on Free The Children development projects. Building schools, teaching, volunteering at health clinics or animal shelters are just some of the things that we do on a Me to We Trip.

Youth adventure highlights:

• Community development: Connect with children at Free The Children schools
• Cultural education: Ask questions of community leaders and local changemakers
• Leadership training: Hands-on workshops inspire confidence and empower youth with impacts long after they arrive home
• Group dynamics: Friends met on Me to We trips are friends for life. We’ve seen it time and time again!

Volunteerism and leadership are at our core

A youth trip with Me to We isn’t simply about making a difference abroad. To us, the most important commitment a participant can make is to change their world back home. Our trips are built from the ground up to incorporate leadership into service learning: participants accepted on to Me to We trips demonstrate a desire to make a difference, and significant time on all of our trips is spent setting goals and building personalized action plans. We also take great care to ensure participants follow through with their action plans by following up with regular phone calls and e-mails in the weeks and months after the trip is over. We ensure that your action plans are supported by our team here in Toronto and around the world.

Discover the community

Volunteer activities

Learn about Free The Children’s history and development in the area Walk the village to meet the local community Visit a local homestead Prepare a traditional Kenyan meal with a local family Walk with our Maasai naturalist to learn about indigenous use of game and plants Learn basic Swahili Visit an African market Train in the art of Maasai beading and weaponry Engage in cultural talks with a Maasai warrior

Build a school Implement a clean water system Plant trees Collect water with mothers and children Visit micro-finance projects Gather honey with local youth to assist and learn about alternative income projects Tour Free The Children projects Visit old school sites Assist in goat, sheep and cow shepherding

From our first trip of 12 youth in 1999, to our current participation of over one thousand annually, each of our trips has group dynamics at their heart. While we feel that the experience and learning that accompany participants’ exposure to such issues is invaluable, we also recognize that some of the best parts of our trips are the life long friendship that are made during the course of the trip.