Armchair Volunteering

Many people would like to volunteer internationally to help advance women’s rights, but they do not have the time or funds to travel to another country for several weeks or months. Similarly, many local women’s rights organizations in Central Asia need volunteer assistance but do not have the funding or capacity to bring international volunteers to their offices.

However, with the widespread availability of Internet access and e-mail, international volunteering is now an option for both local organizations and volunteers. Although nothing can take the place of direct, face-to-face exchanges between people, the Alliance’s Armchair Volunteer Programs take advantage of the Internet and new Internet-based communication technology to help open the world to organizations in developing countries through long-distance volunteers. The Alliance currently has two Armchair Programs, our Armchair Development Program and our Armchair ESL Program.