Back Volunteer Community Advocate (VCA)

Innovative Human Rights NGO Seeks

Volunteer Community Advocate (VCA)

About Asylum Access

Asylum Access believes it’s time to put power back in the hands of people who have been forcibly displaced from their home countries.

Our unique combination of legal empowerment, policy advocacy and global systems change creates conditions in which refugees can live safely, move freely, work legally and go to school. By supporting refugees as they assert their rights, we help restore their power and agency. Our work transforms the traditional approach of endless humanitarian handouts to a sustainable solution that honors refugees’ freedom, dignity and autonomy, and empowers them to make choices about their own lives.

Asylum Access’ global team and family of local civil society organizations advocate to make human rights a reality for refugees throughout Africa, Asia and Latin America. Our national organizations are led and staffed primarily by community members in those countries, and there is strong mutual trust and respect between us and our clients. On the international stage, we work with established institutions to shift the global system to better uphold and promote refugees’ human rights. We can help catalyze and lead systemic transformation because, uniquely among NGOs in the refugee response sector, we focus exclusively on rights and governance.

Department Description:

Founded in 2007, Asylum Access Thailand (AAT) is a non-governmental organization and forms part of the Asylum Access family. We work to make human rights a reality for refugees and continue to strengthen access to existing protection mechanisms through direct legal assistance, information dissemination and community outreach programs for our refugee clients. We believe all refugees deserve a fair chance at a new life. Since most refugees cannot go home and very few are resettled, we find ways to help refugees live safely, move freely, work and attend school while they are in Thailand because when refugees can begin rebuilding their lives, communities thrive.

The Community Outreach Team to implement AAT’s empowerment and capacity building projects on Democratic Collective Actions (DCA), Community Based Social Support (CBSS), Know Your Options (KYO), Employment Law and Safety (ELS), and Refugee Empowerment Group (REG) projects, etc.

Volunteer Program Highlights

Refugee Rights and Empowerment Training and Professional Development – Throughout your work with us, Asylum Access Thailand will support you with a series of tools to maximize your programmatic work and your understanding of refugee rights and community legal empowerment. Regular training and debriefing sessions will offer you the chance to enhance and process your experience and share insight about cross-cultural communication skills..

Community based work experiences - Rewarding work experience in supporting urban refugee communities from multicultural backgrounds. VCA will experience in group facilitation and training of the refugees in their own community.

Joining our Network – Access to Asylum Access’ Alumni network which may present opportunities to obtain work experience in the field of refugee or human rights. After working with us, you will be connected with an ever-growing network of refugee advocates around the world, which circulates job openings, research opportunities, refugee news, and more.

Position Description

Asylum Access Thailand (AAT) seeks applications from well-prepared candidates who are ready to commit themselves to spend 6-12 months as a Volunteer Community Advocates (VCAs) based in Bangkok, Thailand. VCA will normally be based in the Bangkok office (see Important Note below). . They will be directly supervised by the Community Outreach Team Lead.

VCA works primarily in supporting the Community Outreach Team in an Asylum Access Thailand office to assist refugees either directly or indirectly through the range of activities outlined below. At the discretion of the Director, VCA may also engage in other projects related to the development or growth of the local office or special initiatives designed to enhance respect for refugee rights locally or regional.

Key Responsibilities:

• Conduct a need assessment and facilitate a forum/discussion/ or training in various refugee communities to develop a community work plan in response to the refugees’ need and to fill out the gap.
• Identify the resources, capabilities, and capacity of refugee community members and support the successful implementation of community outreach projects in response to AAT Theory of Change.
• Organize the training and capacity building to refugee communities in the specific area of your expertise, such as SGBV, Domestic Violence, Child Protection, Psycho-social support, and etc.
• Observe each training/workshop and be able to provide reflection feedback to the teams for better improvement of community outreach activities.

Preferred Qualifications:

• University degree in Political Science, Social Science, Social Work, Community Development, Social Administration or a related field is preferred.
• Have a good understanding/or strong passion for the refugee context. Background of working with people from a multicultural environment is an asset.
• Must be flexible and able to work under pressure to meet deadlines and changing priorities.
• Ability to volunteer with AAT at least 6 months of full-time service work;
• Fluency in English. Able to communicate with other refugee community languages is advantageous.

Required Qualifications

• Interest in international human rights and/or refugee rights and/or related topics
• Ability to work with diverse individuals and groups. Candidate should be culturally sensitive
• A positive personality with demonstrated capacity to handle living and working in an ad-hoc environment, where difficult situations may arise unexpectedly;
• Professional Written and verbal English is mandatory
• Basic working knowledge of Gmail, Google Drive, Google Calendar, Microsoft Office.

Salary and Benefits

Please note that all Asylum Access Volunteer positions are unpaid; we are happy to work with successful applicants to arrange for funding or school credit where available. For Foreigners, AAT will be responsible for government and legal service fees in obtaining visa and work permit only. Details and orientation on required documents and procedure in applying for visa and work permit will be shared with successful candidates.

Hours and Location of Work

The Volunteer Community Advocate is expected to work for 35-40 hours/week, based in our offices in Bangkok, Thailand. Candidates should be aware that some activities require them to travel into the local communities where the refugees live around Bangkok areas.

Important Note

Due to the COVID19 situation and various lockdown restrictions in place, all AAT staff and volunteers will be working remotely until further notice.

Asylum Access is an equal opportunity employer. We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees. We value the expertise of those who have experienced displacement, and encourage people with such lived experience to apply.

For more information about our organization, visit www.asylumaccess.org.