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:

Established in 2007, Asylum Access Thailand (AAT) is dedicated to providing friendly, effective, and comprehensive support to the many refugee communities that live in Bangkok and throughout Thailand. We help refugees navigate the complex asylum process and connect them to further assistance from local partners. Our team also supports refugees to undertake training and start their own initiatives to benefit and strengthen their communities. 

Department Description:

The Community Engagement (CE) Team implements AAT’s empowerment and capacity building projects. Through a variety of trainings and workshops, leveraging the skills of forcibly displaced people, the CE team aims at strengthening a comprehensive community-based support system. Current efforts focus on livelihood opportunities for forcibly displaced people, access to mental health and psychosocial support (MHPSS) services as well as on the establishment of refugee-led advocacy. 

Highlights of our Volunteer Program

Refugee Rights and Empowerment Training for Professional Development: Throughout your work with us, Asylum Access Thailand will support you with a series of orientation session to maximize your understanding of refugee rights and community legal empowerment. 

Community-Based Work Experiences: You will be part of the Community Engagement (CE) Team’s programmatic work that aims to build capacities among members of refugee communities. By co-coordinating workshops, trainings and empowerment activities, you will gain profound practical work experience in supporting urban refugee communities from multicultural backgrounds.

Joining our Network: Asylum Access Thailand works together with several other refugee advocates on making rights for refugees a reality. Through your volunteer position you will get to access a network that regularly circulates job openings, research opportunities, news, events and more.

Position Description

Under the guidance of the Community Engagement Coordinator, the Volunteer Community Advocate (VCA) supports to facilitate community empowerment and capacity building activities within AAT’s Community Engagement (CE) Team.  

Key Responsibilities:

• Conduct research to lever the impact of activities in line with the objectives of the CE team.
• Identify additional resources, capabilities, and capacities for the successful implementation of community empowerment projects, in response to the refugees’ need and to fill out existing gaps.
• Support capacity building in refugee communities, in the specific area of livelihood opportunities, Mental health and Psychosocial Support (MHPSS) and/ or policy advocacy.
• Observe CE activities and provide reflection feedback to the team for improving community empowerment activities and identifying gaps that need to be addressed.

Required Qualifications:

• High interest in international human rights, refugee rights and/or related topics,

• Previous work with individual and/or groups of diverse cultural backgrounds,

• High motivation to support community empowerment and capacity building activities,

• Prior experience in creating social media content,

• A positive mindset and can-do attitude,

• Ability to adapt to a new working environment quickly and delivery high-quality results, even within a limited timeframe

• Flexibility and ability to work independently and in a team,

• Solid IT skills, especially Google Workspace (Gmail, Google Drive, Google Calendar) and Microsoft Office,

• Good written and verbal command of English,

• Full commitment to AAT’s policies and practice with respect to the protection of vulnerable individuals and the code of conduct,

• Ability to volunteer with AAT for 6 to 12 months (full-time, 40 hours).

Preferred Qualifications:

• University degree in Political Science, Sociology, Social Science, Social Work, Community Development, or related fields

• Good understanding of the Thai refugee context

• Fluency in Thai or refugee community languages (i.e. Khmer, Jarai, Vietnamese, Chinese, Urdu, Tamil, Somali, Arabic)

• We explicitly welcome people with a personal migration biography who fulfill the requirements of the job description to apply.

Hours and Location of Work

The Volunteer Community Advocate is expected to work 40 hours/week. Wok location is our office in Bangkok, Thailand. Candidates should be aware that some activities require them to travel to local communities in the Bangkok metropolitan area.

Preferred starting date: N/A

Application Instructions

Please submit a motivation letter and resume through AAT’s BambooHR application portal. In your cover letter, please describe your reasons for applying, relevant qualifications, and how volunteering with AAT fits with your career attempts. Please also state the dates you can be available.

Important Note

All VCA positions are unpaid. However, AAT provides a small stipend to cover transportation and lunch. AAT is happy to work with successful applicants to arrange for funding or school credit where available. VCAs are responsible for expenses incurred relating to obtaining their visa. AAT is responsible for government and legal service fees in obtaining the work permit only. Details and orientation on required documents and procedure will be shared with successful candidates. 

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.