About me

I am Founder Trustee of AVIF, an innovative online charity, with a promise to Invest in our Volunteers. We assist with sustainable development via online & onsite volunteering in rural Kenya, East Africa. Being virtual means negligible administration costs for worldwide impact. We believe in efficiency, honesty and transparency. AVIF doesn’t do bureaucracy or charge fees. If you have the commitment to travel to Kenya, we’ll take care of you & provide access to extensive details. We encourage you to do further internet research to ensure you are fully informed. Orientation is available in Nairobi & is recommended.

You’ll be fully immersed into rural communities. If you’re looking for a tourist’s view of the country then this is not for you. You may need to wash your hair in a river or cook over open fires. You will be living traditionally, in no less comfort than your hosts who wake at 4/5am to light fires to boil water. Recent events in Kenya have shocked us all but life is returning to normal since the 2 leaders signed the coalition government. The majority of our hosts are in rural areas and have been unaffected by violence, only economical effects like a tripling in basic food costs. The Kenyan Nation want life to return to normal as quickly as possible and now the new cabinet has been named it should do.Your attendance in the country will assist indirectly too, by boosting international tourism-confidence.

A great many people are still displaced in Kenya, without homes and jobs. Some of our hosts will be assisting refugees. There may also be refugee children newly attending our host orphanages. Regardless, these children will surround you with enthusiasm and an eagerness to learn ~ you can repay them by helping to provide a range of simple but effective concepts such as solar cooking & power, disease prevention, empowerment to women. After your visit, we use NABUUR to action specific projects, an entirely online system allowing anyone, anywhere to simply log on to contribute to the project.

We also work alongside the UK’s Development Education Association to provide continued training for all teacher volunteers, to introduce development education to your pupils around the world.

At the end of each program we organise an optional group safari from a base camp in Oropile, Maasai Mara or a climb of Kilimanjaro with our wonderful guide, Mary Kariuki.   Please visit the website www.avif.org.uk and Blog for full details of our work and the Summer Programme, running 25 July to 31 August [2008]. There is extensive information there but should you have any remaining questions please do not hesitate to contact us. You can also join us on Facebook to meet and chat with any of the volunteers who've already experienced Kenya and the work we do. Please look over the websites of our associated hosts, and the photographs on our Gallery or Flickr for an exact idea of what's involved.   Should you be interested in participating, please be aware that although AVIF does not charge any fees whatsoever, and endeavours to cover costs of the Nairobi orientation (if funds sufficient), you are responsible for all other costs; international airfare, inland flights for safety, visas, health insurance, medical insurance, vaccinations, as detailed on the website (Excel file available for download under "Costs"). Please send a full CV and photograph for application. Once confirmed you will be sent the informative Volunteers Handbook.   I look forward to hearing from you.   Asante & salamu ! Alison Lowndes Founder Trustee www.AVIF.Org.UK
VoIP & IM Skype : avif_volunteers_in_kenya Join us on FACEBOOK Bookmark our Blog here New Online Webstore HAVE YOU MENTIONED SOLAR COOKING TO ANYONE ? AVIF is a UK excepted charity able to claim GiftAid HMRC ref. XR99385
“We act as though comfort and luxury were the chief requirements of life, when all that we need to make us happy is something to be enthusiastic about.”   - Einstein