Richmond Vale Academy

I did my service period at Richmond Vale Academy. The activities and workshops were good and full of learnings, together with practical work in the farm. I had the opportunity to work as a team with incredible people from the USA, France and Costa Rica, we lived in the community for 4 months and we worked together with different communities in the Island, developing environmental workshops, we restored organic home gardens which some teams before us built, we built 14 new ones and created a Children Club, in which we had activities as sports, arts, healthy food and music. In general was an incredible experience for me, I learned different new things and it was full of growth.

It was unforgetable experience, environment, culture, people i met, every detail that i learned about living sustainable life and had chance to practise these lessons during programme, every day was another adventure. We were active enough to experience every detail equally. So with help you can learn how to build a garden. School was very safety, very well programmed. The only thing i struggled was working 6 days and only off day was sunday so i needed more time to explore in the island. Holidays during programme was not enough for me.

I'd highly recommend the program to anyone interested in learning more about the climate, world politics, permaculture, sustainability, volunteering. I believe this program is a chance to learn so many things which could alter your course of life. In my opinion this program is more about learning and growing personally rather than helping the local communities even though you do have a period where you go and do things which may influence someone else's life. But don't think it is not worth it or that it's some kind of voluntourism - it most definitely isn't. It is very highly concentrated program which firstly teaches you so many things which you later pass on to others. The learning part is very important as it puts many things into perspective which in the beginning may not be thought about (by the volunteer) - approach and understanding of your position is crucial to making an impact. The progress is slow but consistent which makes it way better than something that looks good at the moment but does not make a lasting impact. Some key points:
1. You work a lot. 6 days a week, sunday is off but you do get some holidays to travel around (it's really enough to even see visit neighboring islands and countries). The program is very structured and you have many responsibilities which are necesary to make the whole thing work.
2.You have a really good time. Besides work you have a wonderful community and endless opportunities to enjoy your time there. The place is magical - I've traveled the world quite a lot but St Vincent is a pure gem. Richmond Vale Academy is an example to others where you will be living at and supporting with your work - you'll learn by doing and if you have the right mindset then you'll enjoy every moment.
3.Manage your expectations - the impact you will make on the local community may be big but also may be small - you are not here to save the world, you are here to continue the work that's probably been started by someone else and to lead by example - your support may be influential if you have the right attitude and understand your role in the program.
4.Don't rush things and learn. There is a very big need for action in the beginning when you start the program and are ready to give everything you have to offer to help the others. However, without completing your training you will not be able to be a real help as you are not familiar neither with the problems nor the culture - don't try to be a saviour (they will teach you about that).

My life 5years after the program: the knowledge I've gained has changed (or rather formed) my path of life. I never came back to the corporate work (wanted to escape the system of control), moved out of the capital city to a small village, built my own house (they do teach you that you can do everything by yourself - you just need to start and keep going), I'm as happy as I've ever been. I was there with 5 other friends from my country (and we were a group of 20-30ish in total, many young guys from Germany as well taking a gap year) and ALL 5 of us are going for the same - living with nature, out of the city, healthy, sustainably. I know others were impacted as well, many chose life path which somehow connects to helping others (though I cannot comment more as I met only a few of then after the program). The program does mess your head a little bit and does show you the cruel reality of the world and the possible future looking at the current course of our world politics. But having this knowledge helps you to make informed decisions on your life (though sometimes it gets really depressing to think about the horrors of the world). It's like taking the pill which shows you the real world, not the matrix.

This review would be short but detailed. Six months of a roller coaster of emotions but all good emotions majority of the time. First two months consisted of getting to know everybody and getting a grasp of the program which was very educational because we learnt from each other...even our" different type of teachers" shared (not just about gardening...personal stuff that they helped with if they could). we had friends who couldn't handle or just wanted to be back home with what makes them comfortable, and others who stuck around for the long fight and became victorious in the long run. All in all, teams alongside mine were really into it.
Next two months was where we had to get deeper into what we learnt and show that we understanded ...it was to show that our first two months wasn't a waste of time...that's where the real challenge came in... all the fun u might be having. This brings u back to reality...saving the earth isn't a game. There were survivors and sacrifices which all turned out to be a good thing eventually. Then the last two months (the best months) was in the communities where those who survived could show and teach their learnings to people outside the program...we made gardens, adventures, memories and even mistakes yet we still made friends to this day...even though the teams has been dispersed (all friends and home garden owners still have contacts in case)...the gardens are still there to show other upcoming teams presented at rva just what the academy is capable of and what they can learn and achieve along the way!.

People, nature, climate was incredible. Compared with my country Turkey, Saint Vincent had super cool climate. Rain, sun , blue and green always with me. And it was the first time I swum an ocean. Helping to people and of course Nature feels little bit cleaner as a human. I made unforgettable friends from this project. We still keep in touch with those friends who come from other countries. During all Richmond Vale Academy process I felt like I can do anything in this world and none of us is alone.