Dear all,

Many of you may be interested in these volunteer opportunities during
the Spring.  Two of the programs focus on refugee communities. Numerous
volunteer opportunities are available during the Summer as well. The
Unite For Sight International Opportunities Manual
and Application can be downloaded at
http://www.uniteforsight.org/WinterSpringSummer2005.pdf

Recent press releases about Volunteer Team Programs in Ghana and China
can be read at:
http://uniteforsight.org/ghanasuccessnews.php
http://www.uniteforsight.org/henanchinanews.php
http://www.uniteforsight.org/news/refugeecamps.php

Spring 2005 Opportunities: Thailand, India, Ghana, Benin, and Armenia
Summer 2005 Opportunities: 25 African, Asian, Latin American, and
Eastern European Countries

Spring Opportunities Include:

*Chiang Mai, Thailand
March 7 - 18 (optional extension to March 25)

A Unite For Sight Volunteer Team will teach refugees at the AEIOU
Program of Chiang Mai University about eye health and work with them to
start a new chapter of Unite For Sight. The AIEOU Program caters only to
Burmese refugees, IDP (Internally Displaced Persons), and legal migrant
workers who have run away from their native places. Once the semester is
complete, all of the students go back to their refugee camp or displaced
area.

Lodging in Chiang Mai will be $12USD per day for a private room with
shower, air condition, and TV.

*Bihar, India
March 6 – 16, 2005

A team of Unite For Sight volunteers will work with Dr. Satyajit Sinha
and three other eye surgeons at the A.B. Eye Institute in Bihar, India.
Unite For Sight’s volunteers will screen for cataracts and eye disease
and bring those with eye conditions to A.B. Eye Institute for diagnosis
and treatment.

The volunteers will stay in the A.B. Eye Institute’s air-conditioned
guest rooms.

*Hyderabad, India
March 1 - 30, 2005

Unite For Sight volunteers will participate in Community Eye Health
Programs in Hyderabad with the LV Prasad Eye Institute satellites. They
will screen for operable cataracts and bring those with cataracts to the
LV Prasad Eye Institute and rural satellites for surgery.

*Buduburam Refugee Camp in Ghana
Flexible Dates

In coordination with the local Liberian Refugee-run NGO “Self-Help
Initiatives For Sustainable Development” (SHIFSD), Unite For Sight is
designing a comprehensive eye health program for children and teachers
in the forty-three schools at the Buduburam Refugee Camp near Accra. The
first Unite For Sight volunteers will arrive at the refugee camp on
December 28, 2004 to distribute eyeglasses, screen for eye disease and
coordinate treatment at an eye clinic, implement eye health education
programs for children, and implement a Train the Trainer program for
teachers in the schools. The Unite For Sight volunteers will be trained
by ophthalmologists at the Christian Eye Clinic in Tema to screen for
eye disease and prescribe eyeglasses.

The Unite For Sight volunteers will stay at the Holiday Inn Hotel, which
is within walking distance of the Buduburam Refugee Camp. The hotel room
has a toilet and bath facilities, a television and a fan. The estimated
cost for lodging per month is $385 US. Less expensive rooms in the hotel
are available as well, but they lack toilet facilities and require the
occupant to leave the room to go to the toilet. The estimated
cost of meals per day is $4-6 US.

*Pobe, Benin
Flexible Dates

A Unite For Sight Volunteer Team will implement Phase II of its Pobe
program in cooperation with Project Bokonon (www.projectbokonon.org).
With only five ophthalmologists in the country of Benin, eye health
services are of tremendous need in the country. Volunteers will educate
the community about eye health, prescribe eyeglasses, screen for
operable cataracts and coordinate sight-restoring cataract surgeries.

Living and lodging expenses in Pobe range from $10-$20 per day,
depending on whether the individuals prefers to have a cook prepare
their food.

*Armenia
April 1 - June 1

The primary goal of Unite For Sight’s Armenia Program is to empower the
local community to improve eye health and eliminate preventable
blindness. Unite For Sight volunteers will screen the children for
treatable eye conditions, including refractive error, congenital
cataracts, xerophthalmia, trachoma, and conjunctivitis, and coordinate
and fund their care by ophthalmologists. Unite For Sight will also
screen for eye disease among the adult population and coordinate and
fund their eye care. While the children in the towns Stepanavan and
Tashir and surrounding villages will be taught by Unite For Sight
volunteers about eye anatomy and eye health, the teachers will be
trained in basic visual acuity testing and participate in seminars about
eye health so that they can recognize potential eye disease or visual
acuity problems among their students and refer them to a doctor for
diagnosis and treatment. The trained teachers will develop an ongoing,
sustainable relationship with the ophthalmologists at Garo Meghrigian
Eye Institute for Preventive Ophthalmology, Yerevan, Armenia. The
teachers will also be encouraged to include Unite For Sight’s
educational curriculum about eye health in their classroom.

Renting a flat will cost $200 USD per month. Living expenses, including
food, will cost $15-20 USD per day.

Sincerely,
Jennifer Staple

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