MDG #2 - Achieve Universal Primary Education

Nuwakot, Nepal - International participants are invited to join a Religious Youth Service project painting a school in the Nuwakot district of central Nepal, June 1 to 7.

Portland Parish, Jamaica - Seventeen young people from six nations assembled on August 3 for 13 days of service-learning on Jamaica's northeast coast, organized by the Religious Youth Service. Participants cleaned classrooms at an elementary school in Buff Bay, repaired and replaced a picket fence, and did landscaping. No repairs had been made for the previous five years, and a facelift was much needed.

Baan Dadthongchareon, Thailand - A Religious Youth Project in an agricultural community in northern Thailand from March 15 to 19 promoted understanding, friendship, and harmony among participants. The 70 Buddhist, Muslim, Christian, and Catholic youth worked together to improve a children's playground, build vegetable and fruit gardens, repair the road inside the school compound, and build a water drainage system.

Lumbini, Nepal - The Universal Peace Federation opened its service project at a primary school in Lumbini, the birthplace of the Buddha, on December 1, the same day the government of Nepal launched a campaign to promote tourism and development of its key Buddhist shrines.

Bangkok, Thailand - UPF launched "Peace Volunteer Thailand" with a mobilization of young people cleaning up flood damage at a Muslim school in Bangkok on December 8. This project at the Tha-It Suksa School in a traditional Islamic community brought together Muslim, Christian, and Buddhist volunteers.

Kochi, India - Based on the theme of ‘Together for Tomorrow’, a Religious Youth Service International project at the ACS School in Kochi, India was held August 9-15, 2011 with the participation of 26 people from five countries: South Korea, Mauritius, Sri Lanka, Malaysia, and India. The core topics RYS-Kochi project focused on were sustainable development and environmental awareness.

Saptari, Nepal - UPF-Nepal organized an International Day of Families celebration at a school in Saptari on May 16. A special feature of the event was awarding scholarships to deserving students.

Banting, Malaysia - Under the theme ‘1 Community for Peace Service,’ a small town 55 km from Kuala Lumpur was the venue for the Multicultural Youth Service project December 4-11, 2010. Forty youths from all over Malaysia plus two from Thailand and Singapore came together for a period of eight days for the Religious Youth Service experience.

Anse-la-Raye, St. Lucia - Three days after the passage of Hurricane Tomas, 15 volunteers arrived in St. Lucia from the USA and Canada to do service projects in the community. Little did they know that their presence would be doubly appreciated as they cleaned up storm damage at the Anse-la-Raye primary school.

Kingston & Portland, Jamaica - Ms. Georgia Pearson and members of the Portland, Jamaica Religious Youth Service club took part in an international service program in cooperation with youth from the US November 1-22. Local club members joined the international team as they worked in Kingston, the capital, and Portland, on the northeast coast, giving schools a facelift, and taking part in a campaign to prevent dengue.

Chacheongsao, Thailand - Government officials, Ambassadors for Peace, Muslim leaders, and students welcomed volunteers with Religious Youth Service who are helping to renovate the Prachanukhro School.

Kingston, Jamaica - Religious Youth Service alumna Jorja Pearson hosted 11 young people from the US in Jamaica for a service-learning project at the Avocat Primary and Junior High School near Portland.

Phnom Penh, Cambodia - Almost a year ago, students from the Southeast Asia Children Charity Community “Together We Share” program began raising funds to send a team of students to Cambodia to help less fortunate children. Through fundraisers and door-to-door solicitations, they raised over US$5,000 for Cambodian children and traveled to Cambodia where they helped build school facilities in two communities.

Antigua, Guatemala - Twenty-seven young people assembled in Antigua, Guatemala, on July 1 to learn skills critical for peacemaking and reconciliation in a collaborative project of Global Peacemakers and Religious Youth Service. Participants in the ten-day project heralded from El Salvador, Honduras, Guatemala, Cuba, USA, and France and did light construction work at a school, including building a support wall to protect it against future mud slides, as well as leveling an area for building another classroom. Partner organized United Initiatives for Peace donated sports equipment to improve recreational opportunities for youth.