The History Of International Volunteer HQ

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We want to inspire the idea that volunteer travel can happen anywhere and that, regardless of where you are in the world, you can stop and do something positive while you’re abroad.

Dan Radcliffe | Founder of IVHQ The IVHQ Story

Meet Dan Radcliffe - a young man with a lot of ambition who grew up on a farm by Mount Taranaki in the beautiful land of New Zealand.

In 2006, Dan returned home from a volunteer trip in Kenya feeling somewhat dissatisfied with the experience. He’d spent a decent chunk of his savings to go volunteering and felt there was a disparity between what he’d paid and the actual cost of hosting him. He also felt the whole thing was poorly organized and didn’t make as much of a genuine impact within the community as it could have. Thus, the seeds of IVHQ were planted.

When he returned to New Zealand, Dan took out a loan from the bank to register IVHQ and build a website. He then returned to Kenya to meet with local organizations and formalize a program that would deliver long term value to the community. He also headed to Nepal, Thailand and Vietnam to screen, select and train local teams.

On July 26, 2007, International Volunteer HQ was launched online from the Radcliffe family farm in New Zealand. Dan was determined to make volunteering abroad more responsible, affordable and accessible for all - as well as ensuring it addressed the most pressing issues of the local community.

While IVHQ is still based in New Zealand, we are now made up of a bunch of dedicated and passionate people from all over the world, including Argentina, Canada, the Czech Republic, South Africa, the UK ,the USA, Poland, Switzerland, China and more.

Meet IVHQ’s local teams

"When I have struggled to know what I wanted to do, I have tried to push myself outside of my comfort zone - it was always a good way of learning a bit more about myself. So I decided to head for Africa and do some volunteer work."

Dan Radcliffe | Founder of IVHQ

Proudly serving you out of New Zealand since 2007

We are no longer based on a farm, but we do still strive to provide trips that are ethical, high quality and meaningful.

New Zealand is a world leader on issues such as sustainability, social justice and cultural respect. We are proud of this heritage and feel fortunate to operate out of a country that both inspires and reinforces our core values.

We have brought together tens of thousands of people from 150+ countries around the world to make a difference on our volunteer programs and we now operate in 40+ countries across the globe.

Get in touch with the team Mt Taranaki, New Plymouth, New Zealand

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