Volunteer Work in Latin America
Dedicating time as a volunteer overseas is a wonderful opportunity to make a useful and lasting contribution to local communities, learn about a new culture, and make contact with people tourists never get a chance to meet. You will encounter new situations to stretch and challenge your perceptions and understanding of the world around you and will undoubtedly come home a changed person.
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“The experience I had volunteering was amazing. I made close friendships with some of the children, and it was especially rewarding when the more difficult children were even coming up to hug me.” KC, Orphanage, Costa Rica |
All our volunteers begin with an intensive language course for at least 3-4 weeks because we believe that language skills are an essential element of the whole experience. Being able to understand the language of the country where you are volunteering enables you to become more integrated into the local environment, and this in turn means that you are able to make a more positive contribution. Your time at our language school also gives you the opportunity to acclimatise to your new community and visit potential projects before your placement starts.
You can volunteer for just a few hours a week or full time, depending on the location of the placement, your language level and the availability of placements in the country. You can work from 3 weeks right up to 9 months, depending on the project and the time you have available. Typical social projects include helping young children in orphanages or old people in community centres. Other placements may involve working in a school teaching English or on an environmental project in the rainforest. Click here for an overview of the types of projects available in each location.
Recent debate in the national press has questioned the validity of volunteer work programmes. Well, we know for a fact that our volunteer work partners in Latin America overwhelmingly agree that the contribution made to their communities is very much appreciated, and that on some occasions the projects simply could not survive without overseas volunteers. Some of our past clients have also organised fundraising events at home to help finance their volunteer trip abroad, which has then contributed toward raising awareness of the particular country's issues. Click here for advice and fundraising ideas.
2010 Volunteer Work Fees
Please add the Volunteer Work arrangement fee of £250 + VAT to the below figures to estimate the total cost of your stay. The arrangement fee is due on enrolment and contributes to the cost of researching placements, visiting the country and specific volunteer work programmes, as well as covering general communication and administration costs. If no placement is found for you (which is rare) the arrangement fee will be fully refunded.
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4 week language course + half board homestay accommodation |
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Argentina |
£1,365 |
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Bolivia |
from £900 |
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Brazil |
2010 information coming soon! |
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Costa Rica |
2010 information coming soon! |
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Ecuador |
from £900 |
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Peru |
from £900 |
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Venezuela |
2010 information coming soon! |
NB. All prices are approximate, as they depend on the volunteer project and accommodation options available close to the project e.g. for social programmes based in the city, shared apartment accommodation may be available for volunteers or, for work in nature reserve projects, accommodation may be available in the nature reserve lodges.
For full details of all current volunteer work projects available in any of the above locations and fees and a volunteer application form, please contact us.
Please note, at the same time as sending us your completed application form and the arrangement fee of £250 + VAT, we will also ask you to take a language proficiency test and to provide a copy of your CV (in English). Remember, if no placement is found for you (very unlikely), the arrangement fee will be fully refunded.
