Our organisation
Full Circle is a registered charity in the UK (no. 1101133) and US (501(c)3 status under IHCenter) dedicated to inspiring adults around the world to volunteer in stimulating assignments overseas and discover the power of volunteering.

Our mission
We want to unlock the volunteer in everyone.

We give adults around the world the chance to volunteer abroad and do something beyond the norm.
We guide volunteers to choose the right project for them, and help make it all happen.

Role of Full Circle
Inform volunteers about quality voluntary work overseas
Guide each volunteer to choose the right project for them
Ensure every volunteer has a great experience
Spread the word about the power of volunteering

Our methods
We go further to understand projects' needs and volunteer potential through a structured evaluation and consultation process (in order to facilitate successful volunteer placements). We learn about volunteers' needs, skills and experience and find voluntary assignments that bring out the best in them, whether they want to go for a new experience, career break, skills development or personal journey. We provide guidance pre/during and post assignment and offer practical travel and fundraising advice. And every project is researched in the field by our organization and current volunteers so that we can become truly involved in helping volunteers throughout the whole process.

Our philosophy
The start and end of everything we do at Full Circle is to uphold our philosophy of what makes a good project. Our project partners have been chosen because they meet the Full Circle Standard, this standard requires projects to:

1. Demonstrate a genuine need for international volunteers
2. Offer stimulating and organised volunteer assignments
3. Provide suitable volunteer accommodation
4. Have a reliable local support system
5. Have access to good emergency care
6. Be located in a (politically) safe environment

Our history

Elizabeth StarkeyFull Circle (FC) was conceived by Elizabeth Starkey in 2002, after 10 years of experience volunteering and travelling around the world. Elizabeth formed Full Circle to give other people the opportunities that had so inspired her.

"I find volunteering abroad irresistible because I love to travel with a purpose. I grew up with a strong family concept of giving back, but it was only on my gap year while teaching in China with GAP Activity Projects, that I understood about the power of volunteering. It helped me define my sense of self but also enabled me to really make a difference in the lives of our students (due to my encouragement, one farmer's son ended up studying accountancy in UK and now has a prominent job in Shanghai).
Ever since then, I've volunteered whenever I could. During my first university summer, I taught English to children of leprosy patients in Karachi, Pakistan. Later while working for an advertising agency in New York, I volunteered with NY Cares and helped paint schools in Harlem. On a career break, while also planning my wedding in Nottinghamshire (UK), I volunteered for the Jericho Project and helped HIV homeless people of Harlem. And when I returned to NY after my wedding, I got a job with a gun-safety programme and began helping mothers of child gun victims from all over America.
I believe that volunteering abroad is one of the most inspiring and fulfilling experiences that people can have in their lifetime, and that everyone (not just the gap year student) should be given the opportunity to do it, regardless of one's responsibilities or constraints at home. So I took the opportunity to start an international volunteering charity, Full Circle." -EMB

 

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