Back to Basics - WC's Mission, Vision, Approach and Programs

What would you say are the defining values of World Camp? What values do you hold that you associate with World Camp? In recently answering that question, I came up with the following responses:

Belief that improved health and education are the bedrock to increasing people’s choices and freedoms
Malawians know what kind of solutions will work best in their communities
Belief that access to information and skill-building empower individuals and communities, enabling them to gain control of their futures
Young people are open-minded and quick to pick-up new skills: they are an important demographic to work with
Conveying all the above in supportive, safe, and open environments will increase the impact of each element as well as create positive outcomes of its own.

While this list is not exhaustive, it does touch on some of the central tenants of our work, how we approach change, and our values, mission, and vision.
As you may have seen on Facebook or our website, we recently updated our mission statement. While we don't see this mission as a departure from our previous work, it shows how we're growing as an organization.  Our new mission statement is, “World Camp improves access to quality health services, education, and resources through community-driven initiatives in Malawi.” We hope you like it and see your own passions and desires in it.

While our primary sector of focus may be health, we are working toward improving health through education, capacity-building, community-driven programs, and creating supportive environments where individuals can grow. We believe these elements can reinforce each other and will enable our partner communities to take their health and well-being into their own hands.
While not all year-round programs address health through all four elements, each one does address health challenges through at least one of these elements. Not sure you remember the details of the programs I’m referring to? Here’s a little refresher on each and how they’re tackling health challenges in Malawi.
Camp Hope is a residential summer camp and year-round support program specifically designed for Malawian youth living with HIV. It confronts health issues by providing direct medical care while also preparing youth to better care for themselves. The environment is incredibly supportive and informative. World Camp provides year-round support to campers from the Malikha Zone – this provides ongoing psychosocial support and capacity-building.
MediServ is an international medical volunteer program that provides much needed medical interventions to Malawian patients and hands-on training of Malawian healthcare providers. Western-trained surgeons and support staff travel to Malawi and work in the primary public hospital in Lilongwe, providing surgeries and emergency room procedures. MediServ volunteers work hand-in-hand with Malawian medical staff, increasing local knowledge and capacities.
World Camp Clubs are student-run after school clubs supported by World Camp in our 11 partner primary schools. These clubs address challenges in their communities while also providing a venue to build the capacity and confidence of youths. Further, World Camp Clubs serve as a way to extend the learning day so that club members can learn more about health and life skills topics. World Camp Clubs and World Camp collaborate to undertake community improvement projects that are intended to touch the lives of all community members.
I’m very proud of what we were able to achieve in 2014 and believe this year is looking to be even more impressive. Internally, World Camp staff and Board of Directors have been working intensely to sharpen our focus and refine our programs. I’m excited that all this work is beginning to manifest and our impact is growing. Stay tuned!

- Emily Stallings, Managing Director