Srishti Foundation – Canada is offering three International Youth internships this summer, in 3 locations across 2 countries – India and Trinidad & Tobago.

These are unpaid internships and offers opportunity to youth and young adults to contribute their time to a larger movement of serving humanity, while engaging in self-development. Interns spend the duration of their internship working with NGOs in the respective communities. They seek to serve and engage in a transformative experience that empowers them, as they strive to make an impact in their chosen field.

Since its inception in 2016, we have had 16 interns serve as part of this program in Kerala & Himachal Pradesh. They have since been involved helping fundraise and implementing projects to address issues they worked on, in the community, during their internship. This has helped the interns bring closure to their work from studying the issue, collecting data, coming up with possible solutions and then implementing the best suited solution i.e. being truly part of the solution.

Who can apply:
1. University students (18+ years of age)
2. Be able to participate for the full duration of the internship program.
3. Be a resident of USA or Canada.
4. Possess strong enthusiasm to make a difference and willingness to serve.
5. Be able to adapt well to situations, a new environment and people.
6. Be respectful of local communities, their language, culture & traditions.
7. Be able to participate in Sadhana & Seva activities at the hosting Ashram.

Locations : Three locations, Two Countries.

1. Attapady, scenic area in the tropical forests and hills that the borders the two provinces of Kerala & Tamil Nadu, in Southern part of India.
2. Sidhbari, set in the scenic foothills of the Himalayas, near Dharmashala, in the province of Himachal Pradesh, Northern part of India.
3. Couva, Trinidad & Tobago – the beautiful sun soaked Caribbean island off the coast of South America

Areas of Work : Health, Education, Women & Youth Empowerment, Community Development projects.

Timing : 4 weeks between May 2024 & August 2024

Duration : 4 weeks (1 week orientation followed by 3 weeks of field work)

Location #1 : Attapady, Kerala, India.

Please scroll down further for info on Himachal Pradesh & Trinidad Internships

Partner NGO: Swami Vivekananda Medical Mission (SVMM). More info

Areas of Work : Health, Education & Tribal Empowerment / Community Development projects.

Accommodation: Arsha Vidya Gurukulam, Anaikatti, Tamil Nadu (11kms away from Attapady – transportation is provided). The accommodation set in a scenic setting, is clean, modern and well kept and hosts international students from all over the world, for their own programs. Clean, hygienic and healthy vegetarian food, prepared with love and Seva is provided at the Ashram. The Ashram also has a Reverse Osmosis Plant that provides clean drinking water. Also a very secure campus. For more info, visit https://arshavidya.in/

Language skills : Comprehension of Malayalam or Tamil, since work entails interaction with local communities in the villages.

Project Descriptions, Roles & Deliverable :
In the role of a community social worker, interns will be assigned to one of the ongoing projects involving creation of self help groups and resolution of community development issues. Interns will also have an opportunity to –

• Follow Doctors of the hospital as they go about treating patients.
• Teach English at the local school.
• Experience life at an Ashram and attend lectures there.
• Trek into Tropical Forests, especially the famed Silent Valley National Park and watch wild life.

Cost : Each intern pays equivalent of CAD $700 (total) in Indian Rupees to SVMM ($350) & Arsha Vidya Gurukulam ($350), during their internship in India. This includes accommodation, food and local transportation during the internship. Interns pay for their own travel to India and getting to the internship location and return.

Number of spots : 4

Inspiring testimonials & Picture Albums of a few of our past interns @Attapady

• 2016 – Chetan Nambiar (Ohio State University) Report  & Pictures
• 2017 – Rohan Harikumar (University of Toronto) Report & Pictures
• 2018 – Anjana Rajendran (University of British Columbia) & Shefali Panicker (University of Western Ontario) Pictures & Video report (below)
• 2019 – Rudra Krishnan (Wilfred Laurier University), Medha Krishnan (University of Western Ontario) & Trisha Ravichandran (University of Ottawa) Video report (below)
• 2020 – Remi Laurence, Brooklyn College, NY, USA.
• 2021 & 2022 – Internship paused due to COVID-19
• 2023 – Nikita Manoj (The Wharton School of Business, University of Pennsylvania), Malavika Nair & Gaurav Ranjit (University of Western Ontario) Pictures  & Report

Location #2 : Sidhbari, Himachal Pradesh, India.

Partner NGO: Chinmaya Organization for Rural Development (CORD). More info

Areas of Work : Health, Education, Women Empowerment, Community Development, Community Livelihood project & Self Help Groups.

Accommodation: Interns will stay either at the CORD Training Centre or the at the Chinmaya Ashram. The accommodation set in a scenic setting, amidst the foothills of the Himalayas, is clean and well kept and hosts international students from all over the world,. Clean, hygienic and healthy vegetarian food, will be provided. More information will be provided during information sessions during the recruitment process.

Language skills : Comprehension of Hindi is essential, since work entails interaction with local communities in the villages.

Project Descriptions, Roles & Deliverable :
CORD Training Centre will assign the intern volunteer to a suitable programme, based on their
interests and background. However, because CORD’s rural development programme is made up
of many integrated components, Interns & Volunteer must be open to learning about a wide
variety of topics related to development in order to fully understand and benefit from the internship with us. Your work may involve 4 to 5 days a week traveling to the villages, from Sidhbari which may not be easy, because distances can be far. This will include using public buses, walking (sometimes even trekking) to villages. It requires an interns to be willing to adjust to rough circumstances.

The program areas that interns will work on maybe any of

1. Work with Community Based Organizations in villages like Mahila Mandals (Women’s group), Yuva Mandals (Youth Groups), Balavihars (Children Groups), Up-Gram Sabhas (Sub unit of General Village Council in one of the wards of the Panchayat). The Up-Gram Sabhas of the various villages in the Panchayat (Unit of Local Self Governance a group of villages under it) will ultimately culminate into an active and strong Gram Sabha (General Village Council of all wards under a Panchayat).
2. Work with Panchayati Raj Institutions (Local Self Governance Units) at the village level.
3. Work in Community Based Livelihood (CBL) programs through Self Help Groups (SHG).
4. Work in Community Based Health, Hygiene and Sanitation programs
5. Work in Community Based Inclusive Rehabilitation (CBIR) and Management of Disabled Persons.
6. Working to create awareness regarding natural resources management in CBOs and
   villages.
7. Work on Social justice and informal/formal legal assistance programs.
8. Work on community initiatives on social issues to end all forms of discrimination.

Cost : Each intern pays equivalent of CAD $650 in Indian Rupees to CORD directly, during their internship in India. This includes accommodation, food and local transportation during the internship. Interns pay for their own travel to India and getting to the internship location and return.

Number of spots : 4

Inspiring testimonials & Picture Albums of a few of our past interns @Sidhbari

• 2017 – Kusha Sareen (McGill University) & Aarushi Vasudev (University of Western Ontario)  Report & Pictures 
• 2023 – Diya Shah & Lakshmi Nair (Wilfred Laurier University) & Siya Katoch (Georgia State University) Report & Pictures

Location #3 : Couva, Trinidad & Tobago

Partner NGO: Chinmaya Mission Trinidad.

Areas of Work : Education & Community development projects.

Accommodation: Interns will stay at the Chinmaya Ashram in Couva, Trinidad, which is a 45 minute drive from the capital city of Port of Spain. The accommodation is comfortable, clean, well kept and hosts international students and visitors to the Caribbean island from all over the world, Simple, hygienic and healthy vegetarian food, will be provided.

Language skills : English.

Project Descriptions, Roles & Deliverable :

• Educational & Admin Support for summer school students at Chinmaya Vidyalaya.
• Creation of Educational Resources & Materials for students at Chinmaya Vidyalaya
• Admin, IT & Social Media support at Chinmaya Ashram.
• Support Social development projects run by Chinmaya Mission in the various communities in the Island,

Costs : Suggestion donation of CAD$ 500 paid directly to Chinmaya Mission Trinidad, when onsite, to cover accommodation, food and local transportation for the 4 week duration of  the internship. Interns pay for their own air travel to Port of Spain, Trinidad and return.

Number of spots : 4