Volunteer in
Ecuador
Volunteering in Ecuador
is a great way
to get to know people and become more involved in local life.
A
working holiday or voluntary post allows you to get off the tourist
trail and understand more about Ecuador's culture.
Volunteering in a developing country is not a soft option so
be
prepared for a challenge.
Volunteer positions vary
greatly.
Some are simply unskilled manual labour,
others specialist voluntary roles where professional skills
and
experience can make a great impact. Decide what you
want to gain from your volunteering and what you have to
give. Volunteers usually
take a while to settle in - you are likely
to 'take' more than you 'give' for the first 1-2
months,
unless you have very specialist skills (e.g. surgeons).
In developing countries
such as Ecuador, good job opportunities are limited, especially for
those with little education. Try to ensure
that
your fun volunteering experience is not depriving local people of work.
Look for sustainable volunteer opportunities, i.e.
you
bring skills or knowledge not available locally and you train a local
person to continue your work, or you help develop a marketing plan /
website / organic agriculture system, etc. which will have a lasting
benefit.
Volunteer agencies also
vary.
Some are charities wanting help with worthwhile
community-based projects. Others are commercial
enterprises profiting from your good intentions, though they may be
more professional and organised than some of the smaller charities.
Some volunteer programmes offer genuine opportunities to
develop
your skills, others just exploit paying tourists to get work
done for free. It's
your decision, but do ask questions first.
Find out where your money will go and what support
you
will get.
Recently there have
been doubts about some "scientific" type volunteer
organisations, which charge a high price to participate in
surveys of wildlife in beautiful overseas locations, recording animal
tracks in the forest or counting corals off a beach. Some
volunteers have found they are simply repeating the work of previous
tourists. A few gap-year volunteer opportunities have also
turned out to be
"manufactured", building schools for which no teachers are available or
working on spurious projects in which local communities to do not want
to
participate. Do your research carefully before choosing
your
voluntary placement.
You will probably have to
pay to
volunteer. If not, ask yourself why the organisation is
subsidising you rather than employing a local person. Is this
really best for Ecuador? Most volunteer opportunities in
Ecuador
will require you to cover the cost of your board and lodging (usually
at least $15 a day). Some charge a fee for
organising
your
volunteer placement, others ask you to do some fundraising before you
arrive. Charities might use volunteer fees to help
cover project operating costs.
Younger volunteers (and
their parents)
may be more secure with an organised working holiday programme from a
well-established
organisation, even though these are often rather stage-managed and have
limited benefit for local communities. Older volunteers with
more
life experience and professional skills may prefer a more authentic but
less structured placement with a small local charity or NGO, dealing
with genuine challenges and the often frustrating reality of daily life
in a developing country.
Gap year
volunteers with little
work experience can boost their C.V with a well-chosen working holiday.
Choose a volunteer placement in the same
field as your planned career, e.g. conservation, education or
business; or a voluntary post using relevant skills, such as
teaching,
web design or carpentry. Volunteering in Ecuador is a chance
to
practise speaking Spanish. Be
realistic - you won't change the world in a week, especially with no
language skills or work experience. Give
yourself enough time, be open to new experiences, stay enthusiastic and
positive and treat it all as a learning opportunity.
Volunteers need to speak
a reasonable amount of Spanish to be
useful and to get the most from volunteering in Ecuador.
Be
very
cautious about any agency or organisation which tells you you
do
not need to speak Spanish to volunteer in Ecuador. If you are
not
able to communicate with local people both your input and your
enjoyment will be limited. Either learn Spanish or
find a
volunteer opportunity in an English-speaking country.
Teaching English overseas
is a common gap year opportunity, but ask why the
students need to learn
English. If it is in order to emigrate to the USA,
is this really a positive step for Ecuador?
In
most cases, a few isolated weeks of random English classes in
a rural primary school will be wasted. Developing
basic
numeracy
skills would probably be far more useful to the children.
Before volunteering to
teach English
in Ecuador, to ensure this will genuinely benefit
your students, ask the volunteer agency about the students'
need
for English,
the long-term curriculum and who will continue your work.
For effective learning, students need continuity.
You
need to know what the students have already
learnt and to leave notes for the teachers who will follow you.
Short, focused English courses for specific needs,
e.g.
tourism or exportation, can be very useful for older students in
certain
areas.
Volunteers in a
group usually spend most of the time speaking their own
language and socialising with other volunteers. It
may be
fun, but interaction with local people is limited.
Solo volunteering is a tougher challenge but you will develop
language skills faster and
see more of the real Ecuador. Only you know which
volunteer experience is right for you.
So, learn some Spanish,
bear in mind your unique
requirements and abilities as a volunteer and research potential
voluntary opportunities with care. Then choose the best one
for you and for the communities and ecosystems of Ecuador.
Volunteer
in Ecuador
Tips for volunteers, information & advice for voluntary work in
Ecuador. Working holidays, volunteer opportunities overseas
and how to get the most from volunteering. No responsibility
can be taken for the content of external websites. Assess
potential volunteer opportunities carefully, based on your unique
requirements, before making your decision.
