Palms Australia
Palms Australia recruits, prepares, sends and supports global volunteers who exchange skills with communities in countries in the Pacific, Africa and Asia.
Our volunteers give two years of their time, at the request of the local community who drive all projects, contributing to interdependent and sustainable development. The generosity of our volunteers means that a small donation to Palms Australia can achieve great things.
Over 50 years, Palms Australia has provided $200 million in professional and skilled mentoring to partner communities. In collaboration with our partners, this has meant:
- Educating over 65,000 students and mentoring over 1600 teachers.
- Providing 120,000 days of primary health services, including mentoring of local nurses and health administrators
- Mentoring over 2000 local people in trades and agricultural skills
- Training over 700 staff in the skills required for administration and management of community projects
- And we've done all this humbly, respecting the rights of local communities to drive their own development, without most Australians even having heard of us. This is why overseas communities still see a Palms Volunteer as one of the best ways to develop the skills they identify they need.
Volunteering, fair trade and beyond
Being a small agency allows Palms Australia to remain uniquely committed to our vision of a just, sustainable, interdependent and peaceful world. It also provides us with a unique flexibility to respond to the issues facing our partner communities.
Whether it’s through our long support and promotion of Fair Trade (for over 30 years), our innovative reverse immersions or short-term cross-cultural Encounters, educating for development in Australia or establishing cheap sustainable village radio systems in East Timor, everything we do empowers communities to improve their own world.
We are proud to say that our partnership with Sacred Grounds is another fitting piece of our commitment to global justice.
Can I Volunteer?
We welcome enquiries from Australians with qualifications or experience which might benefit our partners. We regularly receive requests for health professionals, educators, administrators, accountants, tradespeople, agriculturalists, community development workers and many others for 1-3 year placements.
We organise flights, accommodation, insurance, a small allowance and support before, during and after placement.
Call (02) 9518 9551 or visit www.palms.org.au