Jamie’s Cricket Without Boundaries Brazil Project October 2026

Hi all
This October, I’m heading to Pocos de Caldas in Brazil to volunteer with a charity called Cricket Without Boundaries, a charity that uses cricket to deliver life-changing health and education programmes to young people across the globe.
The charity has been running youth development programmes for many years in Uganda, Kenya, Rwanda, Nepal, Jordan, Lebanon, and now Brazil. The work in Brazil is alongside Cricket Brasil and is delivering cricket-based youth development programmes with a focus on the key challenges they face:

• Exposure to drugs and gang-related violence
• Family instability and lack of support
• Bullying and racism in schools
• Limited access to safe spaces and structured activities

These challenges are deeply interconnected and without positive alternatives, many young people are vulnerable to negative influences and limited future pathways.
Cricket in Brazil has developed in a unique way. Rather than being driven by elite systems, it has grown through state schools, community programmes and social development initiatives.  Today, thousands of young people, many from lower-income backgrounds, are engaged in cricket each week. In places like Poços de Caldas, cricket has become a meaningful part of community life and identity. Cricket offers a place to belong, a positive peer group and a structured environment with clear values.
Cricket Without Boundaries does far more than grow a sport. It creates safe spaces, builds life skills, and opens new opportunities for young people who often face significant challenges in their daily lives. Most importantly, all Cricket Without Boundaries programmes creatively link the game with messages on health and social issues that matter to those communities. This helps inspire a network of young leaders who can create positive change long after we’ve flown home.
What CWB Volunteers Support
CWB volunteers work alongside local coaches to deliver programmes that combine cricket with youth development.
1.      Coaching in Schools and Communities
2.      Life Skills Through “Cricket Para a Vida”
3.      Community Festivals
4.      Developing Local Coaches and Leaders
5.      Creating a “Safe Haven”
Whilst the trip will no doubt be an amazing experience it certainly won’t be a holiday. For two weeks, myself and a small team will be working daily alongside local coaches, visiting multiple schools and communities and coaching over a thousand kids giving many their first experience of organised sport.
Those of you that know me well will know that Cricket is a massive part of my life. I have been playing for nearly 40 years and have volunteered at my local club for many of those, my time now sees me volunteer as ‘Head Groundsman’ (how did that happen??), both of my boys play and I now find myself working in the game with Cambridgeshire Cricket.  So, for a game that has given me so much I see this as the perfect opportunity to give something back through a sport that I love.
I’ve set up this page to raise important funds to support the work of the charity. Just to be clear I’m covering my own travel costs, so all donations will go straight to the charity to support:
• Equipment for schools and community sessions
• Training and developing local coaches
• Running sessions and festivals
• Expanding into new communities
Every donation, no matter how small, will help Cricket Without Boundaries continue creating opportunities for young people who need them most.
If you can spare anything to support the charity, I’d be incredibly grateful. Thank you for reading.