This month the Executive Director led a small group on a two week educational tour of Timor-Leste, travelling from its most western (and most isolated) province of Oecusse, to the hills of Maliana, Ainaro, Maubisse and Alieu, and Venilale, all communities where Palms partners work. They met local teams, saw community-led development up close, and had the chance to test a few of their own assumptions about how change actually happens.
Why do we do this ?
The annual Palms Encounter Tour introduces potential volunteers and their supporters to Palms’
development approach by meeting volunteers and partners and seeing the local context firsthand. I was privileged to be able to lead the tour for the second year.
Participants rated the 2026 tour to Timor Leste 4.6/5 for improving understanding of global mission and development volunteering. So our primary purpose has been met. On top of that I am thrilled that we scored a perfect 5/5 for learning about Timorese culture and history. For that, I offer thanks largely to the people we met and our excellent driver and local guide, Gido.
The tour introduced eight tour participants to 13 partner organisations, covering a number of key development sectors .
Education
Predictably, education emerged as a dominant theme given Timor‑Leste’s young population and the continuing post‑occupation need to rebuild the education system in the country. There was a strong, palpable demand for English and vocational training across communities.
Some of the key partners were met with were:
- Teacher training colleges (Jesuit and Marist) — currently hosting Palms volunteer Wendy and seekingmentoring in financial administration.
- Salesian vocational training school — seeking an English teacher.
- Encouragement House (rural student boarding home) and Alieu youth organisation — both seeking mentorsfor youth English and Microsoft skills.
- Parishes in Ainaro and Maubisse — seeking school teachers.
- Community Learning College in Vemasse — seeking English language and agribusiness mentors.
Community development and economic empowerment
We visited several local development initiatives:
- Ahisaun (disability support) – seeking fundraising and business development mentoring.
- Reloka (nature‑based community development) — currently hosting our permaculture mentor Andie
- Balibo Community Learning Centre — demonstrating ongoing community education and skills work, following Palms’ significant mentoring contribution for over a decade.
Health sector engagement
We visited health partners including the Jesuit Social Services clinic at Kasait, where nursing volunteer Marion is based. We also began scoping potential dental mentoring following interest from an Encounter participant.
Learning moments and reflections
The current public policy space is buzzing with discussions on regional security and Australia’s role. So it felt particularly appropriate now to make this small contribution to improving our regional literacy through the tour. As they walked intently through the many museums we visited – most participants commented that they had never heard these perspectives in formal schooling, or mainstream media. It demonstrated the many-layered nature of the impact of Palms work.
Next steps
The strongest outcome reported by participants was a deepened desire to build long-term relationships with Timor-Leste. My hope is that desire – paired with the clear needs our partners identified – gives us concrete opportunities to match volunteers and mentors to placements that will make a lasting difference.