Give Back to ecoDestinations: Voluntourism Opportunities
Participating in voluntourism activities (tourism activities involving various types of volunteering) is a great way to enjoy off-the-beaten-track travel experiences, and at the same time give back to the communities, people and the destination you are visiting. Responsible voluntourism can help you make a difference through travel, and enrich your trip with authentic and rewarding memories. Suggestions? Contact us at: ecoDestinations[at]ecotourism.org
>> Learn more about voluntourism and access online resources: The Power of Giving Back
>> Voluntourism stories from around the world: Your Travel Choice Blog
Featured Voluntourism Programs: Mountain Destinations
  
Global Volunteer Network (GVN): Fundraising Trek - Mount Kilimanjaro, Kenya
Hike one of the most beautiful mountains and prestigious climbs in the world to help support children in Kenya. There are an overwhelming number of children in Kenya in dire need of care and protection. Conflict and AIDS have also taken their toll throughout the country and contributed to the disintegration of traditional community structures.
Featured Voluntourism Programs: India
  
Grass Routes Journeys: Rural Village Volunteer, Kolkata – Visakhapatnam
Explore rural India, connect with community projects and make a REAL positive difference! Converge on India's cultural capital Kolkata; weave through bustling markets and join an NGO handcraft souvenirs. Explore the seaside temple town of Puri, meet traditional artisians and cruise Asia’s largest saltwater lagoon, Chilika Lake.
Indian Volunteers for Community Service (IVCS) - Experience Rural India, Amarpurkashi
IVCS' volunteer program offers the opportunity to visit local development projects and learn about the culture of rural India. With an emphasis on learning, the three-week program with IVCS is a great addition to independent travel itinerary and an introduction to the life in Amarpurkashi, a village in Northern India.
Featured Voluntourism Programs: Peru
  
Planeterra Foundation: Women's Weaving Co-op, Sacred Valley
Despite close vicinity to Cuzco and Machu Picchu, very few communities from the surrounding countryside benefit from tourism. Through the development of the women's weaving co-op, this project provides a viable economic alternative for the women of the local Indigenous communities.
Planeterra Foundation: Peru Street Kids Project, Cuzco
In partnership with a local organization called Inti Runakunaq Wasin (Quechua for "House of the People of the Sun"), this project works to support children and adolescents who live in extreme poverty. Travelers participating in the Planeterra voluntour can alongside staff and children at this project.
Planeterra Foundation: Stove Building Project, Cajamarca
Working with voluntour participants, this project helps improve the living and health conditions of local families by building a Peruvian cooking stove with a chimney so that the women no longer have to cook over an open fire and inhale the black smoke that it produces.
Featured Voluntourism Programs: Marine Conservation
  
CRRU: Join the Research Team on Field Volunteer Program
Cetacean Research & Rescue Unit (CRRU) in Scotland offers a number of unique opportunities each year for a seasonal corps of volunteers to join the research and rescue team in Gardenstown as contributing members to work on Whale and Dolphin Research, Environmental Education, Wildlife Rescue and Marine Conservation.
Kosrae Village Ecolodge, Micronesia
Kosrae Village Ecolodge offers divers the opportunity to make a contribution to the continuing health of coral reefs through several coral monitoring projects in collaboration with the Kosrae State Marine Resources. Kosrae provides training and logistical support for the divers joining the project survey team.
Koh Ra Ecolodge, Thailand
Working with volunteer divers, Reef Check Thailand has carried out a coral reef and marine monitoring programs for over six years, collecting data from reef surveys that describe and health and condition of key ecological features. In collaboration of Reef Check, Koh Ra Ecolodge offers a PADI specialty course "EcoDiver" certificate.
Project Costa Rica, Planeterra Foundation
Planeterra's sea turtle project is a science-based conservation program protecting female sea turtles, nests, and hatchlings laid on the Matapalo beach. The program has ensured the survival of the sea turtles with a large increase in the number of hatchlings in the area.
A New Kind of Green Travel, SEE Turtlec
SEE Turtles is a conservation tourism project that connects volunteers with turtle conservation projects, tour operators and conservation partners. Through unique group eco-tours, SEE Turtles works with turtle sites to support protection efforts, while increasing resources in communities to help residents thrive.
Leatherback Sea Turtles Project, Reefs to Rockies
Reefs to Rockies specializes in unique itineraries to adventurous locations, with the belief that traveling to diverse destinations is a process of discovery. Reefs to Rookies' Leatherback Sea Turtles project engages participants of the Leatherbacks and Caribbean Coast trip in volunteer work at a family-run research station.
Sea Turtles & Ecology Trip, Eco Teach, Mexico
Eco Teach's Mexico excursion offers the chance to encounter unique geography, ecological treasures, and stunning wildlife. The trip highlights includes: snorkeling with tropical fish, patrolling for nesting turtles and hanging out with crocodiles, and kayaking and swimming in the warm waters of the Pacific Ocean.
Sea Turtle Monitoring & Conservation, Osa Peninsula, Costa Rica
The Corcovado Foundation is dedicated to the conservation of the natural resources in the Osa Peninsula, Costa Rica, focusing on protected areas such as Corcovado and Piedras Blancas National Park, Golfo Dulce Forestry Reserve, Caño Island Biological Reserve and Golfito Wildlife Refuge.
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