Amizade Global Service Learning, usually known simply as Amizade, is a United States-based non-profit organization that provides service-learning and volunteer opportunities for individuals and groups across the world [1]. Amizade (the Portuguese word for friendship) is dedicated to promoting volunteerism, providing community service, encouraging collaboration, and improving cultural awareness in locations throughout the world [2]. Since its founding in 1994, over 4,000 participants have volunteered and served communities abroad [3]. Amizade currently works with community partners in 11 locations in 9 countries among 4 continents [4].
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Amizade’s Mission:
Amizade programming is driven by a series of interconnected values:[6]
Beginning and the Early Years…
The founder and first executive director or Amizade, Daniel Weiss, obtained his Bachelor’s from the University of Chicago. While awaiting entrance into a PhD program, Weiss attempted to volunteer in Togo, but was denied due to political unrest. Weiss then applied to several international humanitarian organizations and was given the opportunity to teach English as a Second Language (ESL) and hold the assistant administrator position with Fundação Esperança in Santarém, Brazil [7].
Starting his PhD studies in 1993 at the University of Minnesota, Weiss simultaneously founded Amizade Global Service-Learning to continue helping the community in Santarém that he had grown close to during his work with Fundação Esperança. Amizade sought to connect volunteers with existing community-based organizations like Fundação Esperança that did not have adequate time or resources to fully utilize the skills of many potential volunteers. Weiss felt that connecting communities abroad with volunteers would benefit the community being served while also providing the volunteers with an enjoyable and educational experience [8].
After completing his PhD in 1996, Weiss devoted his full-time effort to Amizade. By 1998, Amizade volunteers had built an orthopedic workshop and a dormitory for APAE, built a vocational training center and a self-sustaining silk screening workshop for the Pastoral do Menor, a program, and constructed two additional dorm rooms and a children’s health clinic for Esperança, which serves a community of 20,000 [9].
Expansion in the late ‘90’s…
The late 90’s into the early 2000’s were a promising time for Amizade. The organization expanded through a series of successful university partnerships that allowed Amizade to expand its previous volunteer vacation opportunities to focus also on the potential value and transformational experiences for college and university students. This led to university programs where students engaged in service-learning curriculum and volunteering [10].
As of 2004, Amizade had worked in over 20 communities in 13 different countries [11]. Amizade has held annual water walks for women’s rights since 2007 [12] [13].
To fulfill its objectives, Amizade provides participants with five different kinds of volunteer programming: Service-Learning Courses, Group Volunteer Programs, Open Group Programs, Individual Volunteer Programs, and Faculty-Led Programs.
Amizade currently has 11 active sites in 9 countries that provide various opportunities for volunteering and service-learning programs [19].
| International Sites | Domestic Sites |
|---|---|
| Karagwe, Tanzania | Washington, D.C. |
| Jukwa, Ghana | Tuba City, Navajo Nation, Arizona |
| Santarém, Brazil | Crownpoint, Navajo Nation, New Mexico |
| Cochabamba, Bolivia | |
| Petersfield, Jamaica | |
| Puerto Morelos, Mexico |
Amizade boasts a strong safety record in providing over 4,000 volunteers with safe service and learning opportunities around the world in 20 communities in 13 countries. [20]