Sadly, assistance for the developing world is more and more reliant on the contribution of the individual citizens of countries with “disposable incomes”. For such action to be sustainable, and be directed towards proactive wealth sharing rather than reactive emergency aid, we need to lose the concept of donor and recipient and place the exchange on a more equal footing. Both parties can feel a sense of contribution and receipt.
The mango is an icon we have chosen to represent the possibilities of simple sharing between very different societies at very different levels of development and in very different locations: Positive benefits of materialistic wealth traded for a chance to touch environments, cultures and truths that may be hard to encounter in western society.
This idea of equality echoes throughout all igoMANGO projects. We believe that volunteering should be accessible to all by offering flexible levels of involvement from full time live in placements to one off taster sessions and a lot in between. We have an equal opportunities policy that forms the basis of the way we work, and is reviewed regularly. We actively seek involvement of those people isolated from mainstream society and offer them support and guidance should they require it, by finding flexible levels of volunteer involvement partnered with more confident volunteers. It is a model that works.
Connecting Science with Society
