Theme park offers the thrill of... brick-making

Habitat for Humanity relies on volunteer labour

The latest theme park in the US state of Georgia is not aimed at the usual holidaying hedonists.

Instead of rollercoasters and fast food, the most the Global Village & Discovery Center can offer is "brick and tile making, as well as other fun activities".

And it may be the only theme park in the world whose facilities are deliberately built to look shabby and squalid, rather than getting that way by accident.

But the Global Village, which opens on 7 June, has a serious point to make.

Backed by Habitat for Humanity, a Christian charity, it aims to teach wealthy Americans how the world's poor really live.

Building excitement

The main theme of the Global Village is housing; Habitat for Humanity specialises in providing low-cost houses in developing countries.

Its centrepiece is a painstakingly recreated slum, reflecting poor housing from Africa, Asia and Central America.

Visitors will be encouraged to help build new houses for the village, to purchase and inscribe their own personal brick, or to sign up for volunteer work overseas.

Despite the lack of overt excitement, Millard Fuller, the founder of Habitat for Humanity, expects the Global Village to attract up to 70,000 tourists in its first year.