East Africa Youth in Action Program Leader ~ Paradaise Today

Do you have a passion for and experience in Kenya and Tanzania?

Want to share that while leading a team from bus to hostel to boat to beach? Want to grow as an individual and as leader? Want to get back on the road and to do it in a cool, critical way? Operation Groundswell is a young non-profit organization looking for Program Leaders to run our East Africa: Youth in Action Programs!

To understand exactly who we are, check out: www.operationgroundswell.com.

Program leaders are educators, logistics gurus and local experts for groups of 8-12 students abroad on a trip of a lifetime! They organize projects and work with our local partners, facilitiate activities over a variety of pertinent topics in ethical travel and development, help lead treks and hikes and organize bin bag fashion shows and city-wide scavenger hunts!

The start date listed is the in-country date and is flexible, but PLs must be in-country two weeks before their program starts.

Roles and Responsibilities

During Program Lead-up (Oct/Nov-April, done remotely)

Starting in the fall, before the programs begin, Program Leaders work remotely in teams of two to plan their programs and organize their team. Most of our program leaders are students, work full time, or are already on the road. As long as you have internet acces, this work can be done from anywhere! Tasks include:

Assist with online marketing efforts
Interview and Selection Process for participant groups
Meet regularly (weekly or bi-weekly) with Programs Director
Serve as pre-program support and communication with your summer teams
Submit and plan a budget and itinerary for the program
Attend a four-day leadership retreat outside of Toronto, ON

On the Ground (May-August)

Teams fly out in May to do two weeks of "preconnaissance" before the participants arrive and the programs begin. On the ground, the responsibilities are listed below, as well as all of the other awesome, crazy things that come up in a summer abroad (with the support of their Co-Program Leader and OG HQ)! Tasks include:

Perform Risk Assessment and Regular Safety Checks
Organize logistics for team (accommodation, transportation, food, etc.)
Budget Tracking and Monitoring
Delegate Community Contribution Money
Organize volunteer projects with partners
Facilitate discussions and organized learning
Run activities and trips
Communication with HQ (blogs, regular check-ins)
Show your team a side of the city/village/bus system that they'd never see without you!

What's in it for you?

Operation Groundswell program leaders will:

Gain crucial and marketable leadership skills from our PL Training Program
Receive training in the Experiential Education model in action at our Leadership Retreat
Receive training in Interviewing, Marketing and Group management
Receive experienced support in budgeting, risk assessment and project planning and coordination
Have access to OG's partners and partnerships worldwide
Receive $1,000 Stipend upon completion of the trip
Receive Wilderness First Aid Training
Receive round-trip flights (if you don't live in your country of work)
Have in-country costs covered while running programming
Unlimited ugali.
Experience an opportunity of a lifetime and see the country you love within a whole new light.
Grow within the Operation Groundswell organization

Program Leader requirements:

Be over 18 years of age
Have a passion for social change and desire to work with international service organizations
Have intimate knowledge of your region (Ie. have traveled and/or lived there)
Have experience and/or competency dealing with emergency (medical and emotional/mental) situations
Display strong written and verbal communication skills (English)
Have sufficient local language skills to: hustle for group transportation, bargain for sweet deals, meeting with our partners and planning/budgeting projects, translating in community meetings or guided excursions (if applicable), dealing with any medical or general emergency.
Have a range of group leadership experience and ability to:
- Facilitate meaningful discussion and group activities, integrating OG's Core Curriculum and region-specific activities
- Create planned and spontaneous opportunities for learning experience
- Support conflict resolution and group cohesion
Be a bad-ass traveler/backpacker, think on the fly and get into the local scene with ease.

1) Fill out the Application Form

2) Please send an email with the following subject line: FirstLastname_PLAPP. The email should contain:

Cover Letter: Titled: FirstLast_LETTER. Why Operation Groundswell? What leadership experience do you have? What else would you like us to know about you? Please keep cover letters to one (1) page and for the love of Pete don't just reiterate your entire resume.
Resume: Titled: FirstLast_RESUME. List your recent and applicable work/volunteer experiences.
One of your favourite travel photos of yourself. (No, this isn't a part of our screening process! We get a lot of applicants and need to keep faces to names! )

Please address all emails to: jobs@operationgroundswell.com