What do these three things have in common: exploration and adventure in the outdoors, leadership skills development, and community connections? They can all be found in abundance in JUMP! Foundation’s brand new holiday program offering – JUMP! Adventures, which has launched this month with camps now open for registrations!
JUMP! has been providing incredible experiences for young people throughout Thailand, Asia and the globe for over a decade. With a vision to make transformational learning accessible to all, JUMP! programs work with young people to enhance their skills, provide a real-world context to their leadership capabilities and broaden their world view through the lens of global citizenship and sustainability.
“JUMP! has traditionally worked with school partners to design and deliver incredible experiences for students on campuses, in amazing field locations across the globe and, most recently, online through our JUMP! Connected programs for schools”, explains Craig Smith, Southeast Asia Partnership Director based in Bangkok. “JUMP! Adventure programs are something new with them being directly available to young people aged 8 to 15 years during their school breaks. Therefore, by signing up to one or more of our camps, participants can expect to meet a whole bunch of new like-minded peers from several different schools, meaning it won’t only be core memories being formed, but new friendships too.”
What exactly can participants expect from a JUMP! Adventures camp then? Craig explains: “We have two types of camp on offer – overnight camps and Bangkok-based day camps – with options available for both if you fall into either the 8-11 or the 12-15 age bracket. Our overnight camps take place at partner locations within just a couple of hours drive from Bangkok, and promise to immerse campers in the beautiful Thai countryside where they will have room to relax and have fun. While our day camps may see campers remain within Bangkok and the greater Bangkok area, JUMP! ensures that participants will discover some of the best urban areas of greenery, nature and tranquillity that exist. Across both types of camps, participants will be thrilled by exciting, challenging outdoor activities from biking, hiking and kayaking, to obstacle courses, raft building and outdoor cooking! Through these, participants will grow their awareness of their own capabilities, learn to support their fellow campers and reflect on their achievements and learning.”
But of course, when we think of developing young people’s skills for today and the future, it is important to consider what challenges they face, and what skills they will most likely need as future leaders. “As is seen across all JUMP! programs, JUMP! Adventures weave together what we call the four pillars of development: Personal Growth; Cultural Engagement; Community Building & Global Citizenship; and Ecological Literacy”, says Craig. “Young people today are more aware than ever about how fragile our communities, habitats and ecosystems are and the threats they are up against. Therefore, it would be a disservice to them if the learning experiences that we offer didn’t give space to explore these issues. It is for this reason that we are conscious to combine the more person-centred pillars with the societal, global and sustainability pillars, helping young people to grow into conscientious, well-rounded individuals. What this looks like in practice is our camps connecting participants with wild places and nature through emotionally engaging activities; introducing them to local, community-led conservation initiatives; and meeting the inspiring leaders involved.”
If you like the sound of this, you can find out more about JUMP! Adventures here and book your place on one or more camps today!
