• Start Date: 1 Nov 2023
• Duration: 3 Months
• Country: Laos
• Assignment Type: Remote
• Partner Organisation: Vientiane Time Newspaper

We’re looking for a Copy Editor Mentor who can volunteer remotely (from home) for 3 months. Join the Australian Volunteers Program to contribute to sustainable development across East Asia. 

About the Partner Organisation: 

Vientiane Times, the first English newspaper in the Lao People's Democratic Republic, officially launched as a weekly tabloid in April 1994. By 1996 the newspaper published twice weekly on Tuesdays and Fridays, expanding to Monday to Friday in 2004 and adding a Saturday edition in 2007. The newspaper, serve as a key information provider for local and international audiences, covering a wide range of domestic and international news and provides information reflecting government policy and socio-economic development in the Lao PDR. Vientiane Times is part of the Lao Press in Foreign Languages, a specialised agency of the Ministry of Information, Culture and Tourism. The press agency is managed by a board of directors and manned by over 60 staff, including reporters and administrative officials. 

We need native English speakers to teach journalists how to write in engaging ways that place a strong focus on the reader, rather than simply doing a piece of dry translation. And we need good reporting practices to be instilled to maintain the newspaper’s reputation once the volunteers have completed their assignments. Apart from an English copy editor.

About the Position: 

• You’ll be editing and proofread the hard copy and online content of the Vientiane Times, transfer editing and proofreading skills to Lao editors and teach journalists to write newspaper-style English.
• You’ll need journalism degree and able to work outside of normal office hours.
• You’ll gain experience working with Vientiane Time Newspaper the national English language newspaper in Laos.

We actively support and encourage people of all backgrounds and abilities to volunteer internationally and aim to make the program as accessible and inclusive as possible. - Find out more

Allowance: $79

Allowance figure is per month, allowance figures are $131 (full-time), $79 (part-time).

Special requirements

• Federal Police Check must be completed during application
• First Aid Certificate is required
• Video response interview must be completed as part of this application

A position description is attached.