Conservation - Ideal for the hands-on person who enjoys the outdoors

  Venezuela

Santa Elena de Uiaren

Durations of Program: 1-2 weeks, 2-4 weeks, 5-8 weeks, 9-12 weeks, 3-6 months, 7-12 months, 1-2 years and over 2 years
Typical Duration of Program: 5-8 weeks
Dates: Throughout the year

Description: Conservation work is ideal for the hands-on, contemplative person. Do you enjoy the outdoors? How about trying your hand at tropical conservation? Helping to sustain small-scale, long-term conservation projects, you will work together with local grounds-work staff and possibly other volunteers. There is also potential for work in indigenous communities.

Conservation is a wonderful way to make friends, get some fresh air, exercise, and help preserve Venezuela's natural beauty. Do you feel the need to make a positive impact on the environment? Our conservation projects put you to work in stunning locations while surrounded by monkeys, toucans, parrots, butterflies and many other incredible species.

Carry out environmental conservation to protect the fragile Savannah ecosystem and the Pemon indigenous cultures side by side with local people and fellow volunteers. Help conserve some of the world's wild places, the La Gran Sabana national park and bio-reserve. Help clean the rivers and natural beauty spots in occasional cleaning events and preserve flora and fauna in this unique and fragile Savannah ecosystem. Also, help passing on that passion for the environment to the young generation. Venezuelan biodiversity is among the richest in the world.

Learn all about sustainable development and organic practices and use this knowledge to grow trees and medicinal plants and promote environmental conservation at the Peace Villages foundations grounds.

Conservation volunteers will help to sustain small-scale, long-term projects, working with local grounds staff and possibly other volunteers. There is also potential for work in indigenous communities.

Conservation is a wonderful way to make friends, get some fresh air, exercise, and help preserve Venezuela's natural beauty. All that is necessary is enthusiasm, self-reliance, patience and an open mind.

Highlights:
ACTIVITIES CAN INCLUDE:
* Gardening using indigenous techniques
* Footpath construction and maintenance in nearby forest
* Occasional trash collection projects inside the La Gran Sabana national park
* Nurturing plant seedlings and maintain tree nursery on PVF grounds
* Planting trees on our Community & Therapy Center grounds
* Maintaining the Peace Villages grounds and its small fruit and vegetable gardens
* Helping with ecological restoration and reforestation of the Savannah
* Photographing, recording and catalogue as many as possible of the native species of Flora and Fauna
* Assisting to build an educational trail for schoolchildren
* (MR) Teaching or assisting in programs for environmental education
* (MR) Helping develop a comprehensive species list of the existing wildlife in the Savannah park and biologic reserve

LOCAL HIGHLIGHTS
The town of Santa Elena de Uairen is the headquarters of the Peace Villages Foundation in Venezuela and the heart of La Gran Sabana National Park. The town has about 15.000 inhabitants and is at an altitude of 900m - 1000m (3000f - 3250f) with a nearly perfect climate (16°C / 45°F - 28°C / 79°F all year round). The town was founded in 1922 as a Capuchin mission, and grew in the 1930s with the establishment of gold and diamond mines in the region. Santa Elena is surrounded by breathtaking scenery, and a wealth of nature.

The region is one of the oldest geological sites on the planet where prehistoric flat topped mountains are like ecological islands with endemic species such as carnivorous plants and lots of other natural treasures.

You will find good shopping opportunities, restaurants, internet cafes, postal and telephone services, clubs, pool halls and nightlife opportunities, as well as a wide variety of tourist travel destinations. Santa Elena is also a good place to arrange adventure tours into La Gran Sabana and Mount Roraima in particular.

The area known as La Gran Sabana, "the Great Savannah" is located in the south-eastern corner of Venezuela, at the border with Brazil and Guyana. It is a high plateau, a land of wide open spaces (75,000 square kilometers), tropical forest, spectacular tepuys (flat-topped mountains), rivers and gorgeous waterfalls. It is also home to the Pemon aboriginals. It is unknown when La Gran Sabana was first occupied, but there are artifacts that demonstrate that indigenous peoples were occupying the Orinoco Delta at least 2 to 3 thousand years ago.

At the time of the arrival of the first Europeans. La Gran Sabana was inhabited primarily by Pemon aboriginals. The Guayana shield, located in La Gran Sabana, is the earth's oldest surface. It is estimated to be 2 billion years old, and was formed when South America and Africa were still part of the super continent Gondwana.

Besides flat plains, La Gran Sabana also features tropical regions, jungle and cloud forests, rich in palm trees, fern trees, orchids, bromelias and also animals including tapirs, jaguars, pumas, deer, anteaters, snakes, are all native to the different ecosystems of La Gran Sabana.

TREKS/TOURS
While Peace Villages is a volunteer based NGO, we recognize the importance of seeing other parts of La Gran Sabana and having a well rounded experience while you are here. Some trips can be done on weekends, otherwise we will help you to schedule tours so that you can see everything you want to in Venezuela, while still achieving your volunteer commitments with us.

It is always best to plan to be here for a longer period of time so you can fit in a tour and still feel satisfied with the impact of your volunteer work. Peace Villages Foundation is not a tour operator but a volunteer charity!

The Adventure Tours are organized and offered by local tour operators. If interested, we will help you to make contact with companies which use ecological criteria for enjoyable nature-based Adventure Tours throughout the beautiful and diverse Gran Sabana region, here in south-eastern Venezuela. Peace Villages also assists volunteers to self-organize their trip.

A cheaper method than booking organized tours is to organize a trip yourself. When volunteers are interested in this option, we can assist them to make the necessary arrangements. Volunteers then share the direct costs of a guide, porter, food and transport, instead of buying a complete package. Costs depend on the number of group participants to share with.

Hiring indigenous guides, drivers, boat operators, and hosts directly benefits local economies and, at the same time, adds an intimate and connected feeling to your adventure. Indigenous guides will enrich your Gran Sabana adventure tour experience with their knowledge, their kindness and their dedication and enthusiasm for these places.

Qualifications:
REQUIREMENTS:
All that is necessary is enthusiasm, self-reliance, patience and an open mind. No special skills are needed.

However, volunteers with experience are strongly encouraged to apply. Only specific activities marked with (MR) have minimum requirements.

AVAILABILITY: Throughout the year

VOLUNTEERING WITH PEACE VILLAGES
Volunteering is a great way to experience another culture, make new friends and learn new skills. The beauty in volunteering lies in the fact that you are not simply passing through as a tourist. You are interacting with the community, building relationships and making a positive impact. It is an experience that may well change your life! Volunteers are the driving force of Peace Villages' work, both through their volunteering and through their financial contributions.

We have various programs currently underway and run by volunteers, as well as the long term expectation of opening a large multi-faceted Therapy Center. Volunteers, through their donations and through volunteer work done on the Foundations grounds are helping us to create this center.

We encourage volunteers to form schedules which work for them, and to work in any combination of programs. Volunteers decide how many hours they want to work.

We recommend a minimum of 4 hours daily for 4 days a week. You may work as many days/hours you wish. We emphasize that we focus on excellence and not on quantity! All travel costs to Santa Elena, Venezuela must be covered by the volunteer.

Budget at least 35 ¬ Euro for in-country travel (including meals along the way) on top of whatever your plane ticket costs (likely at least 330 ¬ Euro depending on where you´re coming from).

Cost in US$: depends on length of stay

Most volunteers will spend less than Euro ¬ 60 a month on other personal expenses while here, but this depends on how you like to live.

Credit Available: yes

Experience Required: no

Typical Volunteer: A typical volunteer/intern needs to be enthusiastic, willing to learn, ready for a challenge and have a desire to take initiative. Friendliness, care, commitment and patience are among important qualities. We welcome individual volunteers, families and groups regardless of age, experience or background. You don't have to speak fluent Spanish as we provide full support and 24 hour back-up from our local staff. Volunteers and interns are the driving force of Peace Villages' work, both through their volunteering and through their financial contributions. Volunteering with us is a great opportunity to work side by side with locals, learn new skills, study Spanish, and immerse oneself in the Latin and indigenous culture. The beauty in volunteering lies in the fact that you are not simply passing through as a tourist. You are interacting with the community, building relationships and making a positive impact. It is an experience that may well change your life!

Age Range: 10 years old and up

This Program is open to American, Australian, Canadian, European, Kiwi, South African and World Wide Participants. This Program is also open to Families, Couples and Individuals

Participants Travel to Venezuela Independently

Typically Participants Work Independently Or in Groups of 3 to 8

Application Process Involves:

• Online Application plus Application Assessment
• Resume

Post Services Include:

• Alumni Network
• Exit DebriefingAbroad

Peace Villages Foundation's Mission Statement: Peace Villages Foundation support disadvantaged communities and their members in the process of achieving sustainable development, social justice and peace and promotes Culture of Peace through enriching cross-cultural exchange and voluntary community service for people of all ages, races and nationalities. We provide additional opportunities in humanitarian, educational, recreational and environmental fields and assist our beneficiaries to develop their potential and improve their own lives. Our vision is to share the values of peace, justice and tolerance, fundamentally focusing on the preservation of indigenous cultures and the empowerment of young people while valuing local knowledge and working with cultural sensitivity. Because local people know and understand what is appropriate for their own communities, we assist them in carrying out the objectives they deem important. Our Volunteer opportunities are truly the microcosm of a world where people join together giving priority to improving life for humanity and promoting a Culture of Peace as a practical way to both prevent and resolve conflict.

Year Founded: 2000