Right To Play - Sport for Development

Description: Right To Play is an international athlete-driven humanitarian organization using sport and play to strengthen communities and encourage the healthy physical, social and emotional development of children in the world's most disadvantaged areas. Volunteer-driven programs teach critical life skills and values, promote vital health education and empower individuals and communities.

Highlights: Right To Play implements two specific programs: SportWork and SportHealth. These programs are implemented by Right To Play's team of trained international volunteers working in close collaboration with local communities, and international, national and local partners. The focus of SportWorks is to enhance healthy child development and to develop community capacity. Teams of International Volunteers (RTP Volunteer Coordinators) assist communities to build the capacity and infrastructure to deliver sport and play within the community through RTP's program modules. SportHealth includes an additional component that leverages the convening power of sport to provide health education and encourage healthy lifestyle behaviours. Specifically, SportHealth reflects national priorities of the countries in which the projects are focused, for example in vaccination and HIV/AIDS initiatives.

SportWorks Program key objectives:
Holistic Child Development- Right To Play uses sport and play programs to promote the healthy physical, social and emotional development of children that is essential to the future of healthy communities and the re-building of civil society, on a local and global level.

Individual and Community Capacity Building- Working closely with communities, Right To Play assists in the setup of the networks and infrastructure necessary to support sustainable local ownership of sport and play programs. We also train local youth to be coaches imparting leadership skills, and ensuring sustainability of the life skills emphasized by our program.

Primary beneficiaries of SportWorks projects are refugee children and communities, as well as communities seeking to re-integrate large numbers of former child combatants. Right To Play works with UNHCR, UNICEF and other partner organizations to identify new project locations.

SportHealth Program
The SportHealth program shares the same two objectives as the SportsWorks program with an added element.

Social Mobilization to Reduce the Incidence of Disease: Right To Play uses sport and play to mobilize communities around key health issues in a fun and social way specifically to support national health objectives and campaigns (e.g. vaccination campaigns and HIV/AIDS awareness and prevention).

Primary beneficiaries of SportHealth projects are youth and children, national ministries and respective communities. SportHealth projects are developed and run in partnership with the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization (GAVI), UNICEF, the Measles Initiative, the CORE Initiative and numerous local partner organizations.

Qualifications: Right To Play Volunteers...

...exhibit a passion for sport and belief in the power of Sport for Development. Right To Play volunteers advance our commitment to Sport for Development, which evolved out of the evidence that strengthening the right of children to play enhances holistic child development and builds stronger communities. While volunteers do not need to be elite athletes, they do need to demonstrate a love of sport, have personal experience in sport and recreation and believe in the best values of sport.

...are available for a twelve-month period. This reflects the time necessary to adjust and become effective in a new community, given the degree of responsibility that volunteers are expected to assume within a project, and to build strong community relationships that provide continuity between volunteer project teams.

...are able to live and work effectively as a team. The hours may be long and the living conditions basic, offering little privacy. Flexibility, tolerance for differences and strong interpersonal skills are essential. Volunteers must have the ability and willingness to interact with people of all nationalities and cultures.

...have intercultural and community development experience. An ability to manage individual and community relationships should be demonstrated. Diplomacy and professionalism are necessary in maintaining relationships with government officials, partner organizations, refugee leaders, trained coaches and children. Supporting community empowerment involves building upon past initiatives and transferring responsibilities to strengthen key leaders, coaches and community structures.

...have direct experience in coaching and facilitation of training. Coaching and training, sport-related or other, provides a foundation for the capacity-building role of the Right To Play volunteer. Camp counsellor and other leadership experience are significant. A background in training coaches or in the training of trainers is a strong asset. The knowledge and skills used in developing training content, creating lesson plans and delivering workshops are very relevant to the Right To Play volunteer position.

Salary / Pay: $8000 USD/12 months

Experience Required: yes

Volunteers should have pactical experience in project management, international or intercultural community development, and generally be prepared for the challenges of working and living in a small team in an unfamiliar environtment.

Typical Volunteer: Right To Play Volunteers are passionate about sport and recreation for holistic child development and community development. Working as part of a project team they implement coaching and training facilitation with local coaches and community leaders to build community capacity for program delivery, or develop and deliver public health communications initiatives using the power of sport in the worlds most disadvantaged areas. Project Coordinators or Communications Coordinators implement projects in coordination with, and with guidance from, a Program Officer based from Right To Play Headquarters in Toronto, Canada or where possible, regional offices in Africa and Asia. Volunteers may arrive at the beginning, middle or end phases of a project with corresponding duties and responsibilities. If arriving in the earliest stages, a main focus will be to establish partnerships with local and international non-governmental organizations (NGOs), national government ministries, and UN agencies. If arriving after the project has been established, the focus will be to maintain partner relations and continue to implement programs to meet project objectives including trainer local coaches and community members to deliver Right To Play programming or building awareness for local initiatives.

Age Range: post college to retirement

This Program is open to World Wide Participants. This Program is also open to Couples and Individuals

Participants Travel to - Multi-Country Independently Or in Groups

Typically Participants Work in Groups of 2 to 3

Application Process Involves:

• In-Person Interview when Feasible
• Letters of Reference
• Phone Interview
• Physical Exam/Health Records
• Resume
• Written Application

Post Services Include:

• Alumni Network
• Exit DebriefingAbroad

Right To Play's Mission Statement: Right To Play is an athlete-driven international humanitarian organization that uses sport and play as a tool for the development of children and youth in the most disadvantaged areas of the world. Right To Play is committed to improving the lives of these children and to strengthening their communities by translating the best practices of sport and play into opportunities to promote development, health and peace. Right To Play engages and trains Local and International Volunteers who work with communities to implement our programs. Seventy seven International Volunteers were sent to the field in 2005, and together with Local Coaches, reached approximately 500,000 children and youth on a weekly basis

Year Founded: 2000