volun-tourism in southern thailand

I’ve just spent a month with the NGO 'Andaman Discoveries' and it was the best month of my life!! They're based on the North Andaman Coast and do eco-tourism with villages that were destroyed by the tsunami. In fact it was the villagers who came up with the idea after having lost everything and realising they were in need of finding a new way of income and sustainable livelihood. I did a mixture of things, from jungle hikes and snorkeling off deserted islands, cooking with my home-stay family, orchid and mangrove conservation, soap making and batik work shops etc etc... Then I spent two weeks teaching in the local school. They do so much other cool stuff as well but it depends how long you want to stay and what you decide to do with your time. You can stay for anything from one day to a few months, unlike some other organizations like this which make you commit for a long time an pay a shed-load!! That’s another great thing is you get to choose your itinerary yourself so you can have as much work and as much play time as you want!! It's like nothing I've ever done before. I really felt like a part of the community- they take you in as one of their own and the interaction is like you'd never get in any of the popular destinations like Phuket and some of the other islands. I'm going back next year to teach again and revisit the villagers. I really recommend it for anyone really- single travelers or groups, families...apparently the youngest volun-tourist they ever had was 7, and the eldest who is coming back for a second time is 73!! So if you’re specifically looking for something interesting to do this holiday, or you’re in Thailand and fancy a change for a day or two, go see them coz they’re wicked!What's best is that 80% of all incom generated goes directly to the villagers. Everyone should do it, it's the best thing ever!!