Global Leadership Adventures

I'll never forget the experience I had with GLA this summer. I've never had an experience quite as incredible, fulfilling, and life-changing. Every morning, we had the opportunity to work at a school in a rural village in Costa Rica (about an hour away from our home base): a one-room schoolhouse with kids aged 7-12. These kids were some of the happiest kids I had ever met, even though most of them lived with almost nothing. In the afternoons, we had the opportunity to explore the rural town that we lived in for three weeks and learn about the culture of Costa Rica through lectures from locals and the Costa Rican Red Cross. We even had the chance to play sports against the local high school, which was really fun. On the weekends, we got to go camping on an isolated beach and go surfing, as well as ziplining, horseback riding, whitewater rafting, tubing, and to a natural hot springs! The mentors on the trip were extremely warm, welcoming people that encouraged us to push outside of our comfort zones, all the while keeping us safe and comfortable. I would highly recommend a GLA trip to anyone, and it's an opportunity one shouldn't pass up.

Travelling to Ghana with Global Leadership Adventures, was one of the best decisions I have made in my life so far. Being from Bermuda I was a bit skeptical about going, however GLA was completely supportive and safety was definitely a number one priority for us students, as well as staff. The numerous service projects involved volunteering at local schools in 'our neighbourhood' of Anloga. Another student and myself were exhausted by the end of the day, since we had been entertaining/teacher 60, 5 year olds. I know have great respect for my teachers and parents. What I loved most about being on a GLA programme is that we were all completely immersed in Ghanaian culture. Since we were living in a village, the rest of the students and GLA mentors were able to bond in an 'authentic' environment. Our local mentors gave us the best tours that were always filled with laughter. Also meeting people from all over the world (that were my age!), whilst volunteering in Ghana, was amazing. It just enhanced the diversity of the entire trip. GLA was very accommodating and nurturing if we were home sick, as well as supportive of our ideas at our service projects and in our leadership discussions or lectures. All in all it was the best three weeks of my life, and I wish I could have remained in Ghana for the entire summer. I would recommend Global Leadership Adventures to anyone who is a high school student and is interested in REAL community service abroad. There is a balance of service combined with adventure and leadership which makes the programme unique and worthwhile. Their programmes truly appeal to me because they are advocates of the empowerment of youth, especially when it involves impacting the world in a positive approach.

This past summer I went on a GLA trip to the Galapagos Islands. It was easily two of the best weeks of my life. I learned a lot about conservation and the importance of preserving endangered animal, plant and marine life. I also got the opportunity to make friendships with students from around the world which is something I will value forever. The opportunity to experience new cultures, meet new people and witness the insurmountable beauty of the islands is something I would recommend to any fellow high school student in a heartbeat.

Experiences come and go, and everyone finds some that are life-changing and impactful at some point. My time at Global Leadership Adventures was and continues to be one of those experiences. I'm Jonathan Timothy Su, a fifteen-year-old sophomore attending San Marino High School in San Marino, California, and I spent my summer in Beijing, China, on a Global Leadership Adventures program. The program was so great that I'm sitting here at my computer, finding it a challenge to even put my experiences into words. The bottom line--if there were a word even stronger than the strongest of words to describe a great, phenomenal, unforgettable experience, that would be the word I'd use to describe my experiences. What I especially love about Global Leadership Adventures programs is that it's not a mere vacation to a foreign country, but also a service-learning trip. During my program to China, I liked how we got to not only experience the urban life of Beijing, but also the rural life of Mentougou. Many of my friends who travel to China extensively only see the city, so seeing the rural district of Mentougou was a treat for me and an experience that others may have never had. For the community service portion of the trip, we taught English to locals in urban Beijing and rural Mentougou as well as worked on the farms in Mentougou. Before I participated in Global Leadership Adventures, my service included selling concessions at a school musical or building a float for Pasadena's annual Rose Parade, but the feeling of volunteering in China was totally different. I felt like I had truly impacted people as I saw the joy and excitement in their faces from having us there to teach them. The best part of the program was meeting new people from all around the world and not only learning about China, but about students' lives and where they come from. Before the trip, all of my friends were tightly packed in the "Los Angeles Bubble", but now, I can say that I have friends from all over the United States and abroad. Even though it's been about half a year since the program ended, I still have fond, lasting memories from the trip, and I love sharing my summer experiences with others. I would without a doubt participate in another Global Leadership Adventures program sometime throughout my remaining high school career.

I went to Ghana with GLA for three weeks as a student and I can honestly say that it changed my life. Being able to go to Ghana was such an empowering and eye opening experience for me. I learned so much about the world and myself. GLA gives you such and enriching experience. I got to live in a village among real natives and get a first hand understanding of the culture. I got to work in various schools building bricks and teaching kids english and math. On the weekends I got to travel around Ghana seeing all of the important sites and places that make Ghana what it is. I made a lot of amazing friends, I got to experience a whole other way of life, and I got to give back to a very loving community. Overall my GLA Ghana trip was everything I thought it would be and more. I highly recommend going on a GLA trip!

In July of 2010, soon after i turned 17, i embarked on a 2 week long journey that was safe, satisfying, and rewarding. The best way to describe it is to post the reflection of the trip that I wrote on my last day in Quito, Ecuador: "'I am not entirely sure what to expect, but whatever this trip ends up being I'm sure it will be interesting.' This excerpt from my GLA journal sums up most of our begining feelings about the trip: curious, expectant, unsure; however, these two weeks in the Galapagos, Ecuador have turned out to be much more than interesting, so much more that mere words can hardly do it justice. The journey encompassed facing our fears, meeting new people, and experiencing different cultures. From those afraid of heights being able to jump off of high cliffs into water, to people even in fear of not bathing for 4 days-we all faced and conquered difficult tasks. The beautiful Galapagos Islands will always plead our return as it holds many fond memories and life-altering experiences." I can assure you that these are the experiences you don't want to miss.

Choosing Global Leadership Adventures as my summer program was one of the best decisions of my life. All my expectations for GLA were met, and the experience went above and beyond what I had ever hoped for. I learned a lot about ecology and sustainability and did a lot of valuable community service work, but at the same time I had a lot of fun exploring the natural environment and learning about the culture of the location. I made incredible and lasting friendships, and everyone -- from the group leaders, to the other students --were extremely friendly and genuinely aspired to spread a positive influence across borders. It inspired me greatly to be more active in my community, and I am currently enrolled in the GLA China 2011 program.

This GLA program involves a lot of dedicated hard work that me and my fellow students put towards teaching English and helping farmers in the Mentougou District. This trip is centered Around volunteering but you also have a chance to dive into what China really is. I really value the impact this trip has had on me and I can say that it definitly was a life changing experience.

This past summer I went on a Global Leadership Adventures program to Johannesburg, South Africa. It was an absolutely amazing experience. I did community service work with small children from Kliptown, tutoring them in English and reading as well as with High schoolers my age. I learned about, and was fascinated by the culture and history of South Africa. The two weeks I spent in South Africa with GLA were the best two weeks of my life! I made new friends and memories that will last a lifetime.

Hello I'm Adam, a sophmore at Nashoba Regional High School. I went to Asia for the first time through the China trip provided by GLA. There I experienced both the city of Beijing, and it's bread basket in an unforgettable way. In the city we saw temples, monuments, olympic structures, visited the forbidden city, eat REAL Chinese food, and got to know some of the cities inhabitants. Along the way I developed friendships with people all over the States and the world. I am still in touch with many people from the trip, and the friendships developed are not ones that can be made in school or through a sports team. After a week we took a bus from the city to the country side where we lived with the farmers who inhabited the land. There we did community service through teaching the local children english, and a few of their parents. We also cleared fields after the harvest so they could plant another crop. The community service was my favorite part of the trip because not only was it a lot of fun, but we had a goal which would benefit the poor community surrounding us. I highly recommend this program to any teens who are interested in travel and service. Hope I helped, Adam

I taught on the Global Leadership Adventures program. I can vouch that it is a well-run program with a serious focus on exposing high school students to global issues through community service and meetings with leaders at the community, national, and international level. I particularly appreciate the fact that there is such an international student body - although the majority of students were from the US, it was refreshing to have students from Africa, Asia, Europe and Latin America also participate. It is truly a program of young global leaders.