Culture is one of the most obvious representations of a society and is manifested throughout daily life. Although in many impoverished countries, people may not always have books, movies, laptops and MP3 players, they still tell stories, make their own music and their own cultural entertainment. The stories, music and other cultural elements of a society are often the most fun and interesting way to absorb another way of life. This is one of the best parts of volunteering abroad is seeing how people live their lives and what they do for entertainment.
In this rapidly globalizing world though, culture converges, especially where people have access to technology. Here is a video of an Indonesian student named Azam, singing Mariah Carey:
It’s funny and fascinating to see that American pop singers have found their way into Indonesian schools.
My personal favorite part of other cultures is food. Who doesn’t love tasting new dishes the way they’re supposed to be made, not in a watered down, Americanized way? Many Muslim majority countries, specifically in the Middle East have great dishes consisting of lamb and goat with interesting spices and flavors. Skye, one of America’s Unofficial Ambassadors who is interning in Jordan and is keeping a blog, was lucky enough to have a dinner with some Sheikhs. At the dinner, he was serenaded and then ate some delicious Jordanian cuisine. Here writes:
After talking and taking pictures for awhile Sheikh Yusef pulled out the Arabic version of a guitar and began serenading us for the next hour. A number of the songs were quite interesting, especially since we didn’t understand anything except for when he said our names. It was an awesome time, and he even sang a song about my fiancee missing me in America which was hilariously awesome to say the least. After he finished singing and before we ate dinner I asked if I could sing them a song from my homeland in gratitude and I sang them the song “Shenandoah”, which I think they enjoyed.
After I sang we all sat done to an amazing platter of the Jordanian National Dish, mansef, with lamb’s meat. The traditional way to eat the mansef is to roll the rice into a ball along with the meat and the bread and eat it all in one big bite. Apparently the bigger the ball you make the cooler you are and the Sheikhs thoroughly enjoyed watching us try to make the balls. I actually made an instructional video for everyone to see but since my internet is so slow I don’t know when I’ll be able to upload it along with my pictures. The mansef was absolutely amazing and just as wonderful as it sounds. I was completely full by the end of the evening and had such an awesome experience it is hard for me to realize it actually happened.
Skye with his new friends
This is just one example of the amazing things which Muslim majority countries have to offer culturally. It is because of this that I recommend that anyone who volunteers abroad should try to take in some of the local culture. This could mean food, dance, paintings, sculpture, music, anything really, just see what the local people do. Culture is a common language which all human beings can bond over no matter this religion or nationality. If you’re interested in volunteering in a Muslim majority country, look into our directory. Research the many programs we partner with in countries all over the Muslim world. Pick a program you like or a country that seems like it may be culturally appealing. Please apply for the Mosaic Scholarship if you want to receive funding for your trip.
Earlier this week, Oxfam, one of the world’s largest aid agencies, released a report entitled “Growing a Better Future”. The in-depth report, which can be read here, describes the dire conditions of the global food market. It discusses rising food prices as a nearly insurmountable problem unless major global actions is taken. The report also cites the non-sustainable agricultural business models which lead to gross disparities between developed nations and developing nations.
Industrialized nations have huge amounts of excess food. People are obese and often up to 25% of food is wasted. The “Western” diet consists of lots of meat and animal products, all or which are an incredibly inefficient use of many resources such as land, water and grain. Meanwhile, developing nations are starving. In Niger, nearly half of all children are malnourished and 65% of people survive on less than $1.25 per day.
The report does put forth solutions though. Dismantling export restrictions, creating food reserves, major food aid reformations are just a few of the suggested resolutions. Many of them are great ideas, however there is another thing you can do, besides lobbying your local politicians to take actions. You can volunteer on the ground in a nation which is suffering through food crisis. A number of our partner organizations run programs which focus on improving farming techniques, making relevant technology accessible and educating farmers on the business aspects of their trade.
Volunteers for Peace has dozens of programs utilizing many different methods to try to alleviate food crises in developing, Muslim majority countries. They have an upcoming agricultural education project in Indonesia, opportunities for manual labor on farms in Turkey and even a program to make olive oil in Turkey.
Winrock International is an organization which specializes in agricultural assistance. They operate programs to increase crop yield, decrease cost, implement sustainable business models, make farms more ecologically sound and generally improve communities in any way possible through the reorganization of food systems.
Other organizations in our directory which have programs to help end food shortages in Muslim majority countries are ACDI/VOCA, BRAC, CUSO-VSO, Land O’ Lakes International Development and Volunteer Morocco. All of these offer unique opportunities to fight hunger, while also serving as one of America’s Unofficial Ambassadors. Look into them all and consider applying for the Mosaic Scholarship to get funded for your trip abroad. The global food crisis is a very real problem looming in all of our futures, do something to stop it while also experiencing cultural immersion in the Muslim world.
One of America’s Unofficial Ambassadors, David, gives insight into the volunteer work he is doing in Yemen. David is from Philadelphia, PA and is the managing editor at Yemen Today Magazine.
Find out about how you can volunteer to help in Muslim majority countries at the AUA Website.
Maggie Doyne, a former LEAPNOW volunteer, tells her amazing story about how she helped change the lives of others, as well as her own.
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