Volunteering With Refugees Abroad

Want to be a part of making human rights a sustainable reality for thousands of refugees worldwide?

Volunteer with Asylum Access!

Why Do Refugees Need Help?
Asylum Access is reaching out to thousands of refugees all over the world. Traumatized by what they have already endured, often unable to speak the local language, and sometimes possessing nothing but the clothes they wear, refugees who have just fled to a new, unknown country, are especially vulnerable to violations of their legal rights. Many face immediate deportation directly into the hands of a government that threatens to torture, imprison or kill them. Many more are summarily imprisoned in the country to which they have fled. Without assistance, most of these refugees are in no position to assert their internationally-recognized rights to a safe haven, basic fairness, and a chance to rebuild their lives.
What is Asylum Access?
Asylum Access makes refugee rights a reality by providing: (1) on-the-ground legal counsel and representation for refugees in Africa, Asia and Latin America, and (2) advocating for refugee rights worldwide. We envision a world where refugees are seen as people with rights not just people with needs.  Our refugee law projects are staffed by volunteer U.S. lawyers and law students (and, occasionally, other highly-qualified individuals) who provide direct legal counsel, representation and advocacy under the supervision of a local project director.  Instead of merely providing humanitarian handouts, Asylum Access helps refugees assert their rights to safety, empowering them to seek employment, send children to school, and begin rebuilding their lives.
Work in First Country of Refuge.      Asylum Access is the only U.S. nonprofit that gives refugees the tools to assert their legal rights where they need it most: in their first countries of refuge. Asylum Access was founded to make legal advocacy available to the thousands of refugees who would otherwise face detention, deportation, torture or death — and to help these refugees to assert their rights to work, send their children to school, and begin rebuilding their lives, free from fear.  Asylum Access addresses a critical unmet need in the world’s most vulnerable population. Refugees fearing persecution or fleeing civil war usually land first in a country near their own — in today’s world, primarily somewhere in Africa, Asia or Latin America.
What Does Asylum Access Do?
Asylum Access’s legal aid program gives refugees the tools they need to navigate the unfamiliar systems of local and international law. Legal aid can include legal information, advice, representation and/or related assistance to refugees seeking to assert their legal and human rights, including rights to live safely, work, put children in school, move freely and access social services.
What Can You Do?
Make human rights an on-the-ground reality. Make a real difference in real people’s lives. Change the system. Be part of the solution — an innovative, effective, sustainable solution that empowers refugees to rebuild their lives. Volunteering at an Asylum Access project in the global south is the experience of a lifetime. Our refugee law projects are staffed by volunteer U.S. lawyers, retired and practicing, law students and Paralegals who provide direct legal counsel, representation and advocacy under the supervision of a local project director.  Asylum Access provides all volunteer legal advocates with an intensive training in international refugee law and refugee legal advocacy. Volunteers must cover their own expenses and commit to living and working in the global south for a period of three months or more.
Volunteer in the U.S.  Asylum Access’s work is only possible with the help of our dedicated volunteers in the U.S. and other parts of the global north. Volunteers can help Asylum Access with on-line research, communications, community outreach, event planning, donor relationships, graphic design, one-time volunteer opportunities and much more. To volunteer, send a resume and an email describing your volunteering preferences to volunteer@asylumaccess.org.
Volunteer Internationally.  Asylum Access is looking for volunteer lawyers and highly-qualified law students who can commit to spending 3 months or more in Africa, Asia or Latin America, providing legal counsel and representation to refugees seeking asylum or other legal status. Volunteer legal advocates receive an intensive training in international refugee law, and practice before local offices of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees or local refugee status adjudicators. Volunteers may also have the opportunity to engage in policy advocacy at a national or international level. All volunteers are responsible for their own travel and living expenses.
Asylum Access is currently recruiting volunteer legal advocates for its ongoing refugee legal aid projects in Ecuador and Thailand.  Asylum Access also expects to open other offices in Africa, Asia and Latin America in 2008 and beyond.
What are the Basic Requirements to Volunteer?
Requirements for the Legal Advocate Position are as follows:
•    Previous international experience
•    Attorney, law student, experienced paralegal or equivalent
•    Experience working with clients in a public interest setting OR experience working with refugees or other survivors of trauma
•    Ability to cover all travel and living expenses in the global south.  Upon acceptance, information about potential funding resources will be provided. 
•    3 month minimum commitment For Ecuador, fluency in oral and written Spanish is also required. To apply, please send a cover letter, resume, and writing sample to Executive Director Emily E. Arnold-Fernandez at volunteer@asylumaccess.org . Please specify your countries or regions of interest and the dates you are available.
For more information about Asylum Access, check our website:  www.asylumaccess.org
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