Exchanges, Youth
041 - CANADA.DEPARTMENT OF CANADIAN HERITAGE.KATIMAVIK
1-888-525-1503
| 2100 Pierre-Dupuy Avenue, Wing 2, Suite 3010 | Fax: (514) 868-0901 |
| Cite du Havre, Montreal, Quebec H3C 3R5 |
Ages Served: Youth ages 17 to 21 years
Katimavik's mission is to foster the personal development of our nation's young people through a challenging program of volunteer community work, training and group interaction. Katimavik is Canada's leading national youth volunteer-service program. This national program allows Canadians ages 17 to 21 to develop their leadership skills, learn French or English, discover Canada's cultural diversity, participate in environmental projects and adopt a healthy lifestyle. Katimavik participants live in groups of eleven people for 9 months. Each group lives in three different regions of Canada, two of which are English-speaking and one of which is French-speaking. Each group is made up of one person from British Columbia and the Yukon, two from the Prairies, Northwest Territories or Nunavut, four from Ontario, three from Quebec, and one from the Atlantic provinces. The ideal group is composed of a nearly equal number of men and women.
In each host community, youth are involved in volunteer work projects 35 hours per week and guided learning activities. Katimavik's community partners offer a variety of projects. Some projects require physical labour and others do not.
Here are some examples of current work projects that are making a tremendous difference for others:
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Social and humanitarian work with the elderly, the mentally handicapped and the underprivileged
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Involvement in sustainable development projects: landscaping, recycling used materials, environmental protection awareness activities
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Working on administrative projects: archiving, website development, organizing events
Katimavik covers the cost of transportation, food, lodging and program activities for the duration of the nine-month program. Participants receive a daily allowance of $3 and a bursary of $1,000 after completing the program.
