Bermudian students will travel to Borneo for an experience of a lifetime.

The students are teaming up with Raleigh International Bermuda.

The organisation was re-launched in Bermuda by Michael Spurling.

The first part of the programme lasts ten weeks when the students will be in Malaysia doing community work. When they return to Bermuda they are expected to lead a group that will help the community or environment.

At the launch at Government House, Governor Sir John Vereker said his involvement with Raleigh International began a long time ago.

?In my last job we talked a lot about doing some useful things out in the Third World,? he said. ?And I was absolutely delighted when Michael Spurling came along and said he would like to have a Raleigh International in Bermuda.

?All experiences show that in every society there are lots of youngsters who have such incredible energy, which can be harnessed for the community, and who are looking for an opportunity to go out and discover their potential by helping other people and facing some challenges.

?Everybody benefits from doing that and indeed there are some people in this room who have done it and have benefited from it.?

London-based chief executive officer Christine Kent said Raleigh International operates out of six different countries.

?One of which is Sabah, in Malaysia, where our young Venturers from Bermuda will be going,? said Ms Kent.

?Raleigh?s purpose is very simple. It is to unlock the potential that we know exists within young people.?

Mr. Spurling said the organisation was planning to send up to 13 Venturers to Sabah, on the northern side of Borneo, at the beginning of July.

?When they are there they will get involved in building schools, clinics and community projects,? said Mr. Spurling.

?They will (also) be involved ... in an environmental project and adventure training where they will be trekking for two weeks climbing Mount Kinabalu and they may take part in white water rafting and even getting their dive certificates.

?When they go there they are not going to be comfortable.

?They will be sleeping in hammocks, under tarpaulins and mosquito nets. All of their possessions will be right there.?

Mr. Spurling said Raleigh International are preparing the young Venturers with a training programme on Paget Island.

Later this month Raleigh International personnel will be on the Island giving students a briefing on how to take care of themselves in the jungle.

Sending the Venturers away is an expensive undertaking, Mr. Spurling said.

?Each venturer is costing around $12,000,? said Mr. Spurling. ?So that is quite a bit of investment, but I certainly think it is worth it, as the exposure to other cultures will do them a lot of good.

?We have the support of Government and the private sector and we have raised just over $90,000 to date, excluding what the Government is putting in for three students and we have just enough to send eight.?

Education Minister Terry Lister thanked the sponsors and said although his department was not putting any funding into the students going away, they were supporting it.

?We are supporting it with the students and the National Training Board when they return,? he said.

?I feel very confident that what happens to these young people from start to finish will be a tremendous benefit to them and to us.?

Lady Vereker, patron of Raleigh International Bermuda, said the Island was investing in its youth and she was very proud that this ooportunity had been taken.

?After all, the health and the strength of a community is in its young people.

?I know how important it is to give every young person the very best education they could possibly want. This goes beyond the classroom, it goes into the art galleries, into the theatres, sports fields, into conservation and into travel.

?Travel brings us a sense of tolerance and it brings us into contact with people whose life experiences may be different.

?I envy all the excitement in learning about other people and how they live. It will be a rewarding experience for as long as you live ? whatever your ambitions are.?

CedarBridge Academy?s Erin Butterfield is hoping for a life-changing experience from her travels.

?I hope to get a new outlook on life, expand my horizons, and just gain a new experience,? she said.

Berkeley Institute student Tashae Wennica Harvey, 17, said she first heard about the Raleigh International Bermuda at her school.

?I am hoping that I get picked because it will really broaden my horizons and it is an experience of a lifetime and not many people can say that they have been to Malaysia to do mission work.?