A life-changing overseas experience

As part of the truly international experiences we offer at Dulwich Pudong, students have many opportunities to travel far beyond the classroom, not only in miles but in perspective. We caught up with a group of 18 students who this summer embarked on a transformative journey to The Peace Centre (TPC) in Uganda.  

Founded in 2015, The Peace Centre in the village of Bukinda in south-west Uganda provides a caring home and an education for up to 40 orphans. Dulwich Pudong’s relationship with The Peace Centre stretches back to 2014, when students first travelled to Bukinda to help build the children’s home.  

Annual visits have become a tradition, enabling students to support projects that make a tangible difference while building friendships that last a lifetime. This summer’s visit was no exception. Over the course of three weeks, students poured their energy into teaching, painting, mentoring, and sharing life with the children.  

Learning through service

For our students, the days at The Peace Centre were full and purposeful. Students taught science, sport, and reading at local primary and secondary schools, bringing concepts like electromagnetism and temperature to life with hands-on experiments. They donated magnetism kits, shared pencils and erasers provided by peers back in Shanghai, and led physical education sessions that got children running, laughing, and learning together. 

Beyond the classroom, the group rolled up their sleeves for practical service. They helped refresh The Peace Centre campus with bold new murals, fetched water from standpipes, harvested sweet potatoes, and learned to do laundry by hand. These everyday tasks, ordinary in Uganda, proved extraordinary lessons in resilience, humility, and the realities of daily life for many families. 

Creative connections 

The trip also provided rich opportunities for creativity and cultural exchange. Students organised kite-making, macramé, t-shirt cyanotype printing, and lantern-making workshops, each activity sparking joy and imagination among the children. They launched a Camera Project, equipping young people with digital cameras and empowering them to tell their own stories. 

Evenings often ended with ‘Devotion’: spirited sessions of singing and dancing on the lawn. These moments of shared joy dissolved cultural boundaries and left a deep impression on everyone involved. 

Perspective-shifting encounters 

Among the most moving experiences were the home visits, where Dulwich students saw where some children once lived before finding refuge at The Peace Centre. And during a community outreach day, meeting families in need, carrying water uphill to an elderly neighbour, and providing flour, salt, and soap to another household underscored the challenges faced by many local people. These encounters were eye-opening, often harrowing, and gave the students a profound understanding of why The Peace Centre’s work is so vital. 

Equally impactful were the sponsorship introductions facilitated by The Peace Centre’s social worker, Racheal. Eleven children were matched with sponsors during the trip, ensuring every child now has someone supporting their education. Witnessing the sheer joy on the children’s faces during these moments was unforgettable for our students. 

Shared celebration 

There was no shortage of celebration. Students and children competed side by side in a mini-Olympics, cooked pasta feasts, decorated cookies, and sang karaoke together. A highlight was the trip to Lake Bunyonyi, where students, staff, and children revelled in a day of laughter and togetherness. 

The final Sunday was particularly poignant. Marking The Peace Centre’s 10th anniversary, the wider community came together for church, performances, shared meals, and heartfelt exchanges of gifts and letters.  

Lasting impact 

While the projects and activities were important, what lingered most for the Dulwich Pudong students was the human connection. They left Uganda with priceless friendships, deeper empathy and resilience, and a stronger sense of global citizenship.  

The trip also reinforced the power of long-term partnerships. What began over a decade ago with the building of a home has grown into an enduring relationship of trust, respect, and shared growth.  

The Peace Centre trip is a reminder of what education at Dulwich Pudong truly means: academic excellence balanced with compassion, action, and global awareness. For those who went to Uganda this summer, it was more than a journey. It was, in every sense, life changing. 

In their own words