I had this ideas for years but never had the tools nor the capacity to make it happen. Somehow, my interest for Python led me to a bootcamp in web app development which re-ignite the flame. Finally, I am going to bring it to life.
Since September, 2014, I had been exploring - understanding myself through observing, learning, experimenting and above all, living. Often, I felt the purpose of my trips was merely to deliver a message or receiving one. Probably all of us are just messengers in our own ways.
The majority of people, either youtuber or developers, freelancers or employees of big companies, wants something in common: travel more! Watching youtube videos is fun but being there is much better. Online courses are great, convenient and often cost less or nothing. But on-site study is still the best way to learn, in my opinion, more effective and more fun. Sharing in person at this digital era has a special charm.
Many interesting websites are out there, already serving travelers from kayak to airbnb, from tripadvisor to lonelyplanet, from workaway to nomadlist. There are also many platforms for international volunteers but often they are not free. Nonetheless, I am not aware of any platform dedicated to serve this special need to share and communicate among travelers and locals, free of charge.
Therefore, I want to provide a FREE webapp that allow travelers to share a few words with the locals, in the form of a talk, a lecture, a speech, a workshop. Local organizations like NGOs, schools, communities, or co-ops could help to make this happen.
A key point is that, I want this space to be completely free to everyone. A common space for people to give and receive whatever they prefer. A place to connect and share.
Basically, this web app is a free space for travelers to indicate their availabilities when they travel and what they would like to share, e.g. a talk or a workshop; and local organizations around the world to indicate their interests and needs, plus their capacity to host a sharing event.
For example, Martin is a Java developer working in Apple who is passionate about teaching programing to children. He is traveling to Southern India with his family for 2 months. Martin registers in this website and updates his profile. When he has a travel plan, he shares his travel dates and destinations online. For instance, a local NGO in Pundicherry, Tamil Nadu could host 50 people in their meeting room and the local community they support would love to bring in a tech person for a talk. Through this web app, Martin and the local Indian NGO could easily find and contact each other. Some children living around Pundicherry might have a new hobby or even a new direction in life after this free talk.
On the one hand, travels could use this platform to spread his/her ideas and share a few words with the local people. On the other hand, the participants of the event have the rare chance of meeting the speaker face to face. Especially for remote locations and under-served communities, a talk or a workshop might plant a life-changing seed. It is a way of bring together the travelers and the locals.