Global Youth Service Day 2018 | Small Steps, Big Difference

We all are busy running towards something or for something – whether it’s after getting good grades in school or college or getting your work done at office or taking care of home and much more. We get busy doing our work, but we forget about our community.

AFS India is happy to share that the theme of this GYSD Project is about building your community by taking steps to make difference. If we’re able to create a friendly ambiance in our neighbourhood, we can work towards creating a stronger bond. If we look after each other and care for our community, we’d create a world of understanding, care and love.

For this GYSD 2018, we’re asking each of the volunteers of AFS India to pick at least 10 activities from below and execute them. These activities are thought with the aim of building your community better so that we can look out for each other and create a better world around us.

Please choose at least 10 activities from the list below. You may choose more than 10. There is no limit.

1. Give 10 hugs to people you want to appreciate and thank.

2. Listen to a life story by a senior citizen. Reflect.

3. Invite a friend to tea or coffee.

4. Invite a needy or underprivileged person for dinner or lunch at a restaurant or at home.

5. Give a flower to someone who is sad.

6. Distribute candies at a local school.

7. While traveling, give your seat to someone in need.

8. Call children of your locality and make something beautiful.

9. Make sweets at home and give them away.

10. Say Thank You to people who are there for you in everyday life.

11. Notice one problem or challenge and find a solution. Take help if needed.

12. Pick up garbage and put it in dustbin

13. Talk about and celebrate diversity in your community. Appreciate the differences that you’ve with people of different religion and more.

14. Talk to your parents and find about your ancestors. Know their story. Reflect.

15. Make a new friend.

16. Read books to children.

17. Get involved with projects that inspires you and with no direct personal benefit. (Idea: Find your interest. Join a NGO or club. Give time)

18. Give one book to a friend. Write why you’re sharing that book in a paper and give to a friend.

19. Form a book-club in your neighborhood. Start the tradition of reading and sharing books.

20. Have a neighborhood pot-luck. Invite neighbors. Share traditional food and celebrate diversity.

21. Teach your talent. Take one class with kids, students or even with seniors and share your talent.

22. Collect stationary packets and give it to 10 needy students of your community. Thank their parents for educating them.

23. Find dark-spots in your area and put up a light for safety. Additional lighting along poorly lit streets.

24. Adopt a ‘grand friend’. Write them letters. Read to them. Visit them.

25. Help someone to fill up an application form related to their need.

26. Gather toothbrushes, pastes, combs, shampoo, razors etc. and give it to homeless people.

27. Take one child who is homeless from your community for a movie at theatre after taking permission from guardian.

28. Offer to repair or alter clothes for people who are homeless.

29. Teach a senior how to use a computer or the Internet.

30. Start a social media page about your community. Share the beauty of your surroundings. Take photos.

31. Put a signage wherever needed.

32. Have a Listening Booth. Let people of your community come and talk to you about anything and everything. Give your ears to someone in need.

33. Adopt a Tree. Make sure you take care of the tree, give water and look after it.

34. Walk to some destination you could rather than driving. Observe your surroundings. Take photos and share on your social media.

35. Visit one place in your city that you didn’t before.

36. Screen a movie ‘outdoors’ call children of your community to watch with you. Add popcorn.

37. Make a list of good nutritious food and share with your neighbour and friends. Remind them to eat healthy.

38. Adopt a pothole and raise funds to repair it.

39. Make bird feeders for public places.

40. Teach 5 people about conserving water. Share the steps of doing it.

41. Prepare a home-cooked meal for the residents of a nearby homeless shelter.

42. Raid your closet and attic to find toys and clothes to donate to a homeless shelter.

43. Make “Thank you” card and share.

44. Start a neighbourhood watch program.

45. Make “Get Well Cards” for people in local hospital and share.

46. Write letter to armies serving us and thank them

How to do the activity?

Choose your Activities

From the above list, choose your activities. Start planning. Involve friends if you want. More activities can bring larger impact, so if you’ve time, do more and involve your siblings as well.

Need Funds?

If you think, you want funds to do the activity at larger scale, we would request you to idea with us. Depending on the activity chosen, we will allocate the budget accordingly.

Start Executing!

Start working on activities. For each activity:

Take photo of activities once it’s done or when you’re doing it
Share a final report of how many activities you did before 2nd May 2018
Share impact stories of how you feel doing these activities

We’re happy to announce that we’d giving special prizes to volunteers at individual level for getting involved in the activities. Plan and execute highest number of activities to get special prize.

Once you share report, photos and impact stories of the activity before 2nd May 2018, we’ll be getting back to you with your prize.

Wishing you all the best! Create a powerful #AFSeffect.

For any inquiries, please write to Aadil at [email protected] or call @ +91-9971148406