Sustainable Agriculture and Community Engagement in Ecuador
ICJA - FREIWILLIGENAUSTAUSCH WELTWEIT EV
Fundación VASE Voluntariado para la Ayuda Social del Ecuador
Toacaso (Cotopaxi), Ecuador
Description
Volunteers will actively participate in the daily lives of local families through regular, hands-on agricultural and fieldwork. Activities include working the land, planting and harvesting crops, maintaining fields, feeding and caring for farm animals, and milking cows. This is a core component of the project, requiring willingness to engage in physically demanding outdoor work as part of the rural immersion experience. Further, spaces for dialogue will be organized between community members, the Despierta team and volunteers about their experience in relation to nature, for an exchange of ideas regarding Biodiversity and good environmental practices. The team will also prepare workshops and training for community members on specific topics that help strengthen their organizational and community processes. Another task is also to work in education activities with children and young people in the community.
Accommodation, food and transport arrangements
The volunteers will be housed in a house exclusively for them, with all the facilities, individual rooms (3) shared (3), full bathroom, dining room, kitchen, rest area. Volunteers will have access in the community to buy the products they need for them to cook every day. Regarding transportation, the volunteers can walk or take buses or community cars to go to work.
Training during the activity
Volunteers will receive pre-departure training online and on-arrival training in the host country. A knowledgeable mentor will support them daily, ensuring smooth integration into community activities. Mid-term evaluation training will occur after 3 months, followed by a final evaluation before departure. A follow-up meeting will take place 1-2 months after returning home.
Participant profile
You should be interested in engaging internationally and gaining insight into humanitarian work, want to experience intercultural exchange and create meaningful, lasting experiences while contributing to our local project in Ecuador. We are happy to receive people who are passionate about nature, proactive and creative regarding environmental conservation initiatives. A positive attitude, with interest in getting involved in community processes, cultural exchange, open to facing challenges, who likes to work as a team with community members. Good physical condition, knowledge or willingness to learn in photography and/or video and editing, in social networks, creative, communicative. We highly value knowledge in ecology, biology, botany, agroecology or similar. Eligibility: Candidates must be 18 to 35 years old, reside in one of the eligible countries (EU Member State, North Macedonia, Iceland, Liechtenstein or Turkey), have completed the compulsory Humanitarian Aid Volunteering training and not have participated before in individual Humanitarian Aid Volunteering. When adding together this new volunteering opportunity and any previous participation in EU volunteering programmes, the total duration cannot exceed 12 months.
Activity dates
A total of 26 week(s) during the period 01/09/2027 to 29/02/2028
Activity location
Avenida de los Shzris N371-27 y Naciones Unidas (Edificio Silva Núñez tercer piso), Toacaso (Cotopaxi), Ecuador
Activity type
Individual volunteering
Looking for participants from
Austria, Azores, Belgium, Bulgaria, Canary Islands, Croatia, Cyprus, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, French Guiana, Germany, Greece, Guadeloupe, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Madeira, Malta, Martinique, Mayotte, Netherlands, North Macedonia, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Réunion, Saint Martin (french part), Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Türkiye
Activity topics
Social challenges
Reception and integration of refugees and migrants
Citizenship and democratic participation
Environment and natural protection
Health and wellbeing
Education and training
Employment and entrepreneurship
Creativity and culture
Support to local Small and Medium Enterprise
Deadline for applications
No application deadline
Project code
2025-1-EACEA-VOLUN-101251374