Diocese of Dili
Dili Diocese has identified particular challenges for the youth of Dili, including the need for programs to provide hope for young people looking for education and livelihoods. The programs include training in useful skills for employment, including computing, financial management, English and other office skills. A request was placed with Palms Australia for a volunteer who could both assist with delivering youth programs and contribute to more efficient and effective program design and management.
John Chang
Palms Australia recruited John Chang, a Business Consultant from Sydney, to volunteer for Dili Diocese for 1-2 years.
John has diverse administrative experience, involving accountancy, financial planning, consulting on strategic business decision-making and as a Migration Agent and Justice of the Peace.
In addition to John’s business skills, he is also fluent in Bahasa Indonesia, one of the main languages of Timor-Leste and a particularly useful language for working with youth who, born during the years of Indonesian occupation, have little understanding of Portuguese.
John’s placement costs are partially supported by AusAID’s volunteer fund, but Palms Australia needs your support to cover the remainder of the costs. Please use the donation link on the right hand side of this web-page to contribute.
Orientation Course #92
August 29, 2011
Palms’ “classics” such as simulation exercises, scenarios, field trips, Telling the Story from All Sides, Culture Shock, Physical Health, Language Learning and the always popular Returnees Day were joined by new sessions on Program Design, Monitoring and Evaluation and Personal Security.
Twenty-one participants attended, anticipating placements in Ethiopia, Uganda, Tanzania, South Africa and Timor-Leste, with others still discerning their options.
Female and male; recently graduated and recently retired; health, administration, technology and education professionals; the diversity of perspectives and the interactions between them enhance the content for participants and make each course a learning experience for Palms’ staff.
There is something very rewarding about watching such a group interact, sharing their own expertise while working through Palms’ cross-cultural program, refined over 50 years.
That Palms Australia can still attract professional volunteers of such a high personal calibre, with such enthusiasm for our vision of a just, sustainable, interdependent and peaceful world, is testimony to all those who have contributed to shaping and furthering that vision over many years.
Write to John Chang
All fields marked with * are required. Please do not use this form to ask volunteers about volunteering. For more information on the opportunities available, contact the Palms Australia office using our online enquiry form or call (02) 9518 9551.
By entering your email, you will kept informed of any new information about John Chang's placement, including commUNITY newsletters and appeals. You will not receive other communications from Palms Australia unless you have communicated with us in another capacity.
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Donating online offers you a completely secure and easy way to support our work.
To donate to support John Chang's placement in Dili, please use the form below. If you would like to make a general donation to Palms Australia, please use our dedicated donation page.
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Recurring donations will be deducted on a regular basis, until Palms Australia or Paypal is notified to stop. Upon clicking "Donate", you will be forwarded to an external site, hosted by Paypal, to securely transmit your credit card or paypal account details. Please check the form on the next page to confirm the transaction details are correct. In this instance, Palms Australia does not handle your credit card details but will receive notification of your contact details.
Your donation will be placed towards the costs of sending and supporting John Chang as a volunteer in Dili. In the event that monies are raised above the amount required, Palms Australia will use them to support the placement of other volunteers. For more information contact Palms Australia.
If you have selected to alert the volunteer of your donation we will send them a note with your name, email and (if selected) the amount of your gift.
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You can download and print a donation form and return it to us by post/fax with your cheque, money order or credit card details.Donate by Phone
Or call us on (02) 9518 9551 to make a donation by phone. THANK YOU FOR SUPPORTING OUR WORK!Timor-Leste
Population: 1,108,777
Area: 15,007 sq. km.
Median Age: 21.5
Literacy: 58.6 %
Languages: Tetum, Portuguese, Indonesian, about 16 indigenous languages
A brief history of independence. mid 1500s – Timor colonised by Portugal 1859 – Portugal cedes West Timor to the Dutch 1942-1945 – Japan occupies East Timor 28 November 1975 – East Timor declared independent from Portugal 7 December 1975 – invaded and occupied by Indonesia. It is estimated that 100,000 to 250,000 were killed [...]