Save Sea Turtles in Costa Rica with PRETOMA's Participant Program

  Costa Rica

• North Western Region: 
Nicoya Peninsula,  Guanacaste
• Central Pacific Coast: 
Punta Banco

Durations of Program: 1-2 weeks, 2-4 weeks, 5-8 weeks and 9-12 weeks
Typical Duration of Program: 1-2 weeks
Dates: June 2 - December 20, 2008

Description: Have you ever watched a National Geographic special showing hundreds of baby sea turtles fighting their way to the ocean amongst hordes of swarming seagulls and voracious crabs and thought, "why doesn't the camera man do something to help them?!" Well, volunteering on Costa Rica's Pacific coast with PRETOMA allows you to take action to help protect and preserve endangered sea turtles and their precious habitat.

Project Participant Program

For the average volunteer, PRETOMA's Participant Program offers a hands-on glimpse at real, on-the-ground, community-based conservation through stays of one week to five months. Project Participants are able to elect their dates of arrival and this program ensures placement in the conservation program of your choice (Projects open to participants include Punta Banco, Playa Ostional, Playa San Miguel, and Playa Costa de Oro). Prospective participants simply need to fill out a Participant Information Form (use email link at top of this page to request one!) and send it back to us via email in order to be placed with a project.

Volunteers

The turtle monitoring and conservation season at these sites runs from June through December (email us for specific dates and descriptions) of each year. Participants become immersed in the conservation project and the local culture, and speaking Spanish, while helpful, is certainly not a necessity (though you'll have plenty of opportunity to practice!).

The funds generated through these programs help provide an income for local community members and serve to sustain PRETOMA's various sea turtle conservation projects along the Pacific coast of Costa Rica.

Highlights: The Team

Two Field Coordinators, who are usually advanced students or graduates in a related field, manage research activities. In many projects, community members, who probably know the beaches and the turtles better than anyone, are trained as "local monitors" and help with night patrols and data collection. The local monitors and participants provide sufficient personnel to patrol the beach and ensure protection for the greatest number of nests possible.

Participants and coordinators come from all over the world to assist with PRETOMA´s conservation efforts. For most projects, we recommend a minimum stay of 2 weeks to really get to know the project and local community. However, in order to increase your chance of viewing an arribada in Ostional, we recommend a one month stay for that project. Working in such a tight knit and unique situation, team members often forge strong bonds with one another, leading to friendships that last a lifetime!

Accommodations

We offer several different accommodation options in our projects, depending on site. The majority of volunteers stay in each project's rustic Field Station or local cabins. In other projects, homestays and hotel stays are available. Please email us for information on housing options. It is important to remember that people living in coastal communities live and eat simply, and participants will do the same. Wherever you choose to participate, you will be part of the PRETOMA team and work with other participants from around the world and the local community to protect and monitor the eastern Pacific population of olive ridley sea turtles (Lepidochelys olivacea).

Prices & Payment

PRETOMA is a Costa Rican-registered non-profit organization. All funds generated are used to sustain PRETOMA's various sea turtle nesting beach conservation projects.
The following rates are per person for the station house and homestay options only:

    * 1 week - $330
    * 2 weeks - $550
    * 3 weeks - $760
    * 4 weeks - $970
    * 5 weeks - $1180
    * 6 weeks - $1390
    * 7 weeks - $1600
    * 8 weeks - $1810

$210 for each additional week.

Qualifications:
* An excellent attitude
* Desire to work hand-on with sea turtles on a beautiful tropical beach in Costa Rica

Experience Required: no

Age Range: All Ages Welcome

This Program is open to World Wide Participants. This Program is also open to Families, Couples and Individuals

Participants Travel to Costa Rica Independently

Typically Participants Work in Groups of 3-10

Application Process Involves:

• Written Application

PRETOMA (Programa Restauración de Tortugas Marinas)'s Mission Statement: PRETOMA (Programa Restauración de Tortugas Marinas) is a Costa Rican non-profit, non-governmental organization dedicated to the protection of sea turtles, sharks and the marine environment. Our sea turtle nesting beach projects on the Pacific coast of Costa Rica have been around for over a decade and have protected hundreds of thousands of adult and hatchling turtles, while generating important scientific information.

Year Founded: 1997