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#8743 International Hostel Charity Network

There is a culture surrounding the globe (my data pool consists of Bay of Plenty, New Zealand, and Moab, Utah) of young able-bodied, unmarried youth with ideas of changing the world in a hippie-like fashion. Basically these guys and girls got time on their hands which
is why they are traveling the world, living in cheap hostels. IHCN takes this wealth of untapped man-hours and connects it with the many under-staffed charitable organizations that could use them. Basically, IHCN has a recognizable logo that these gruffians (my word, make sure I get credit when it hits dictionaries) recognize in the many different countries they visit. There is some sort of expectation, like donate a morning as you're passing through, and essentially everyone gets in on this way to change the world. Guys talk about it, girls talk about it, hostel owners talk about it and possibly offer discounts for people who participate in it. And as folks talk around the crappy table eating ramen they say things like "did you help out at that orphanage in Peru?" or "I made some amazing friends at the Beer Can Clean-Up in Milwaukee". It makes them feel good, because they want to change the world and any visit feels more substantial when you've offered service there. It's a relatively short time that you could wedge in between sky-diving and spelunking and it would give you something to remember and talk about for years to come.
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