Latin America is full of stories of people turning their good intentions into action to make the world a better place…and we'd like you to help us tell them.
So, what are we looking for?
La Vida Idealist is a community powered blog, with its target population being English-speaking expat/travelers who are interested in nonprofit work abroad. (Please note that for the purposes of this project, "nonprofit work" means anything from volunteering to running your own organization and everything in between.) Go to
http://lavidaidealist.org to check out its tone, style and content.
The overarching goal of the blog is to fill in the gaps of support for this population. Entries therefore include: first-person narratives structured around a relevant theme, good ideas from Latin America that can be replicated in other places, innovative local organizations and projects to keep on eye on, musings on volunteering and community work in general, interesting anecdotes that go beyond the "I volunteered and it changed my life" theme, lessons learned + advice on navigating the tricky landscape of volunteering/working in a foreign country, insights into the local nonprofit sector and more.
We are actively seeking additional bloggers to add to our roster who can produce content (print, video, audio, or visual) on a regular basis. The position will start January 2010, and can last a minimum of 3 months, up to 6 months. While we welcome contributors from anywhere in the region, we would love to represent countries we haven't yet covered: Chile, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Honduras, Mexico, Panama, Paraguay, Puerto Rico, and Venezuela.
Specifically, we are looking for the following types of contributors in Latin America who have made at least a three month commitment to their post:
1. Social entrepreneur
2. Employee/Director of a nonprofit
3. Family of volunteers
4. Skilled volunteer (e.g. doctor, engineer, etc...)
5. Career transitioning volunteer
6. Volunteer coordinator at a nonprofit
7. Volunteer during study abroad
8. Older, retired volunteer
9. Younger volunteer (including gap year)
10. Couple volunteering together
11. Female volunteer
12. Prospective volunteer about to start their journey
13. Volunteering while working abroad (either via a short term work abroad program or an employee of a company/organization that has sent them abroad)
14. A volunteer who is with a program or volunteer-sending organization (though the blog will not focus on these types of programs, we would like to be inclusive of this viewpoint)
15. Photographer or photojournalist
16. Videographer
We are striving for an honest, compelling voice that isn't afraid to touch upon both the good AND not-so-good side of community work.
However, we will not consider anyone who promotes violent or illegal action, or any action against a person or group on the basis of race, origin, nationality, religion, language, gender, sexual orientation, or physical or mental ability nor advertises for a company, organization or product. Please also note that if you are critical of an organization, we encourage constructive comments only.
Who are we looking for?
Anyone with a proficiency in English who can tell a good story. You can work by yourself, with a partner or a team of your choosing. If you are already have a blog or are blogging, we are open to cross-posting if the entries fit within our framework.
How will we support you?
We'll work with you along the way if you so choose, from the initial pitch to the finished product. (Volunteers who choose to submit in a format other than print must have their own audio/video equipment.) Idealist retains the right to full editorial privileges.
In addition, you'll have:
• An opportunity to share your experiences and insights; help good ideas travel; and inspire people to take action in their communities
• The chance to hone your storytelling skills
• Widespread exposure of your work on a website affiliated with Idealist.org (which draws an average of 60,000 unique visitors per day)
