Cross-Cultural Solutions Joins the Year Out Group
Added: (Tue Oct 21 2008)
Pressbox (Press Release) -
October 21, 2008
Cross-Cultural Solutions has recently become one of only 35 organisations worldwide to be included as a member of the U.K.-based Year Out Group.
The Year Out Group is an association of organisations that provides support to people searching for year-out opportunities and the model organisations that provide them.
The new partnership is particularly timely as August research from the Year Out Group indicated that volunteering is participants’ top choice for how to spend their year-out.
Cross-Cultural Solutions will now be listed on the Year Out Group’s website and included in the annual Year Out Group booklet and brochure which are distributed to high schools, universities, and career offices across the U.K.
The partnership seeks to unite the Cross-Cultural Solutions mission of operating local community-led volunteer programmes around the world with a growing population of people who are looking for something worthwhile to contribute to during their year out.
Membership is both an achievement and an honour since the Year Out Group only offers membership to leading providers of year-out placements. The relatively small number of member organisations in the group reveals the high standards required for membership.
The mission of the Group is to “help young people discover and deliver their full potential” and member organisations must support the same goal. Several other measures must also be in place, such as having trained staff that provide professional consumer support, financial stability, updated organisational literature, and high ethical standards, including protecting the environment and respecting local cultures.
Cross-Cultural Solutions was founded in 1995 and now operates volunteer programmes in 12 countries across the world in partnership with sustainable community initiatives. As a non-for-profit organisation with no political or religious affiliations, Cross-Cultural Solutions brings people together to work side-by-side while sharing perspectives and fostering cultural understanding.
The Year Out Group was founded in 1998 as a reaction to the rise in year-out participants during the 1980s and 1990s. Besides support for members, the association offers guidelines and suggestions for young people, and their teachers, advisors, and parents on how to plan a successful year out.
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