Volunteering for charities on overseas trips has become a rite of passage for many. These trips are often organised on a budget, are lengthy and physically strenuous, attracting a younger traveller with more time than money.
Secret Sisterhood Philanthropic Journeys are recreating charity trips by creating upmarket, insight travel experiences for successful women who want to connect more closely to their philanthropy.
Less than 7% of philanthropy is given directly to issues affecting women and girls.
Jacquie Love, the founder of Secret Sisterhood and Philanthropic Journeys, believes that the biggest impact can be made as a collective.
“We have seen that donating as a group is a very successful way to give back, as you can see your money going further,” she says. “We are taking this one step further by meeting with the organisations who are making a difference and seeing first-hand the work that they are doing. Philanthropy can sometimes be an unconnected and remote experience, without real human interaction or understanding. Philanthropic Journeys expects to change that.”
Secret Sisterhood is committed to increasing this percentage, through their Philanthropic Journeys, by introducing successful women to effective and inspiration NGOs who work on the ground with women and girls in developing countries. By visiting these NGOs who are doing extraordinary work and meeting with women and girls in developing countries who are experiencing injustices and difficulties, Secret Sisterhood hopes to encourage and inspire participants to give more to women’s causes.
With the current trips scheduled to Cambodia and Thailand, Philanthropic Journeys are structured so that participants make a measurable impact. Every trip requires the participant to donate $10,000 towards the NGOs that are visited. The donation is combined with the other participants so that as a team, $100,000 is given towards significant initiatives such as educating thousands of the most vulnerable girls and their families about how to prevent sex trafficking in their rural villages.
“The participants experience a life-changing week, learning and networking with other like-minded women and change makers. By the end of the trip we are inspired and united as a team and have made a huge contribution to the lives of women and girls,” Jacquie says.
The Secret Sisterhood focuses on four main areas of gender inequality including violence against women, human trafficking, girls’ education and helping to empower micro-entrepreneurs in developing countries.
About Jacquie
Jacquie founded the Secret Sisterhood after a charity trip to India in January 2017. There she learned about the millions of girls from age 11 that are lured from their village families, promised jobs in the cities and enslaved for life as prostitutes in the red-light districts of Mumbai and Delhi. She heard first-hand from rescued girls of the atrocities they had been destined to endure and felt it was time to do something about it. After creating a social enterprise that sells jewellery and gives 90% of the profits to charity, she was inspired to create a similar life-changing travel experience for women who are wanting to learn more about how they can make a difference.
