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International Teaching Positions

Children Related Internships

Amigos de las Américas

5618 Star Lane , Houston , Texas 77057 USA , tel:1-800-231-7796, or 713-782-5290, fax:713-782-9267. Amigos de las Américas is a non-profit organization that was established in 1965 to promote youth leadership development through community service projects, training, and summer volunteer work in Latin American communities. College students are welcome, regardless of national origin, race, ethnicity, religion, or gender. For more information, visit the website http://www.amigoslink.org/ and learn about the Correspondent Volunteer Program.

Amizade

7612 N. Rogers Ave., 3rd Floor, Chicago, IL 60626 USA, tel:(773) 973-3719, fax:(773) 973-3731, email: Volunteer@amizade.org , http://www.amizade.org/ .Amizade is a nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting volunteerism, providing community service, encouraging collaboration, and improving cultural awareness in locations throughout the world. Amizade programs offer a mix of community service and recreation which provide our volunteers with the unique opportunity to participate first hand in the culture of the region where they are working.  Past projects have included building a vocational training center for street children on the Amazon, building additional rooms onto a health clinic in the Bolivian Andes, and doing some historic preservation and environmental cleanup in the Greater Yellowstone Area.  Volunteers do not need any special skills, just a willingness to help.

Casa Alianza

SJO 1039, PO Box 025216, Miami FL, 33102-5216 USA, tel:(506) 253-5439, fax: (506)224-5689, email: info@casa-alianza.org , http://www.casa-alianza.org/es/news.php .Casa Alianza is a non-profit organization dedicated to the rehabilitation and defense of street children in Guatemala , Honduras , Nicaragua and Mexico . The Regional Office for Casa Alianza is based in San José , Costa Rica . Casa Alianza is the Latin American branch of the New-York based Covenant House, a leading advocate of children's rights in the region. Covenant House has programs also in 14 states of the US as well.

Explorations in Travel, Inc.

1922 River Road , Guilford , VT 05301 USA , Tel: 802-257-0152, Fax: 802-257-2784, email: explore@sover.net ,  http://www.exploretravel.com/ . Explorations in Travel arranges individual volunteer placements in Latin America and the South Pacific. Volunteers have the opportunity to work with conservation organizations, animal rehabs,   rainforest reserves, turtle conservation projects, animal shelters, and small schools. Volunteers must be prepared to travel to the site on their own. Language classes can also be arranged.

United Children's Fund

http://www.unchildren.org/ We are a US nonprofit organization that focuses on East Africa and specifically Uganda .  We provide volunteer opportunities for village development projects in rural Uganda .   Volunteers may choose their work program in child care, teaching, medical assistance, carpentry, participating in village seminars on village development, farming, animal husbandry, etc. The volunteer may work where she/he feels they can make the biggest difference.  We work with various colleges and universities where we agree to supervise a student and have the student submit a written report at the conclusion of their stay.  We also assist students in writing and applying for grants from their colleges and universities.

United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF)

Training and Staff Development, UNICEF Internship Programme, 3 United Nations Plaza, New York, NY, 10017, USA, (212) 303-7915, fax (212) 303-7984, http://www.unicef.org/ . Applications are accepted on an ongoing basis and internships are available during three periods: January to May, June to August and September to December

Volunteers for Peace

Contact: Peter Coldwell, 43 Tiffany Road , Belmont VT 05730 , USA (Tel: (802) 259-2759; Fax:(802) 259-2922. Email:vfp@vfp.org , http://www.vfp.org/ . VFP offers over 1500 short-term voluntary service projects in 70 countries. These International Workcamps are an opportunity to complete meaningful community service while living and interacting in an international environment. Most camps are limited to ages 18 and up, a few for ages 15 and up. Workcamps are scheduled for 2-3 weeks each May-Sept. A few are offered year-round. A $195 registration fee per camp covers the program including room and board. Transportation is arranged and paid for by the volunteer. VFP offers a free newsletter which provides a clear picture of what the program is about including over 30 photos of workcamp volunteers in action. Our website also offers plenty of information on our program as well as links to other voluntary service organizations worldwide.

Online listings for International Service Opportunities

International Hotspots

Volunteer Vacations

All of them require that you pay for your own transportation to the work site, but reduce the cost of your stay there because most of that cost (room and food) is picked up in part by a local organization. You live with a team, meet other vital and deserving people, work for four to eight hours a day, and enjoy a deep satisfaction in addition to savings. These are the ten programs that have volunteer vacations:

Council Exchange

Sends volunteers of student age (both undergrads and postgrads, mainly in their 20s) to work at projects
that range from protecting sea turtles in Mexico to building bird-watching footbridges in Quebec, restoring
chapels in Slovakia, assisting the elderly in Japan, cleaning dinosaur footprints in Spain, and making pottery
in Morocco, among 500 other various programs in some 25 countries. Most are in Europe; teams are made up
of 10 to 20 people; all lodging (in hostels, churches, or schools) and food are covered; and despite
the predominant student emphasis, all ages are theoretically welcomed.

Time Commitment: Two to four weeks
Cost: $300 for all programs (of any length), plus $40 for mandatory insurance. Price does not
include air or land transportation.
Requirements: Adults over 18 years old; some of the programs have foreign language requirements.
(633 Third Ave, New York, NY 10017, 888/268-6245, fax 212/822-2649, http://us.councilexchanges.org)

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Willing Workers on Organic Farms

Assigns its volunteer participants from all over the world (all ages, though most are young and earthy types) to learn farming techniques while helping to run a network of mostly family-owned organic farms in Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Europe, and Korea. You join a small team on each farm, pitch in with daily chores, and acquire firsthand organic horticulture techniques like pesticide-free planting and compost fertilizing. You can almost always count on some sheep-herding, sowing, harvesting, milking of cows, and making cheese and yogurt.

Time Commitment: Usually a few days, but can last up to a few months depending on your host farm.
Cost: A $30 membership fee, and then your half-day's work pays for a full day's room and meals. Airfare and other costs are the participant's responsibilities.
Requirements: A willing heart and strong back, without a minimum or maximum age limit.
(WWOOF Independents, P.O. BOX 2675, Lewes, UK BN7 1RB, http://www.wwoof.org)

Global Volunteers

A prestigious, is a favorite of middle-age academic and medical people (though all are welcome) who travel on one-to-three-week volunteer trips to 19 nations in Africa, Asia, Latin America, North America, Europe, and the Pacific, to perform such tasks as caring for children in orphanages in Ukraine, repairing schools in Tanzania, teaching English in Greece, improving water systems in Jamaica, or assisting with cultural festivals in Hawaii. All meals, lodging with locals, and in-country transportation is covered, and each trip includes free time to explore the surrounding country. Groups consist of up to 15 volunteers.

Time Commitment: One to three weeks.
Cost: Roughly $500 a week for U.S. trips, up to $2,395 for multiweek international trips (not including airfare). Student discounts available for some of the summer programs.
Requirements: No age or education required, just a willingness to be open-minded and in reasonably good physical shape.
(375 E. Little Canada Rd., St. Paul, MN 55117, 800/487-1074, FAX 651/482-0915, http://www.globalvolunteers.org)

BTCV Conservation Holidays

True to its name, operates nature-focused programs of volunteer activity, mainly in Britain but all over the world as well, at tasks like landscaping, building stone walls, restoring footpaths, and forestry. Trips in the U.K. are broken down into two-to-seven-day regular "Natural Breaks" or 10-to-14-day "Action Breaks," where the terrain is more rugged and facilities more primitive. Non-U.K. trips last from one to six weeks. Groups tend to be people in their 20s and 30s, but BTCV can place you with a group of your own age, if asked. Accommodations range from beachside campsites in Greece to Celtic roundhouses, and included in the price is all food, prepared communally and drawn from local and organic sources.

Time Commitment: Two days to six weeks
Cost: Ranging from $40 to $80 for a weekend, $290 for a week, and up to $1,745 for longer trips. Airfare not included.
Requirements: 16 years of age for British vacations, 18 years old for international holidays. Only a few trips require special skills.
(36 St. Mary's St., Wallingford, U.K. OX10 OEU, 011-44-1491/821-600, http://www.btcv.org)

Wilderness Volunteers

Works with public land agencies to promote outdoor volunteering in America's wild lands. Each trip is a week long, has 12 or fewer participants who camp in tents or in a dorm, and includes tasks like restoring streams, planting trees, repairing trails, or taking inventory of species on National Park, Forest Service, and other public lands. Guides do the cooking with the help of participants, and there's ample time to explore the wilderness you are helping to preserve. Groups vary in age, but tend to attract people from 20 to 60 who are active. Locations include Hawaii, California, Utah, Wyoming, Washington, Oregon, and Kentucky.

Time Commitment: One week.
Cost: $198 pr week (not including transportation to and from the park, and your own camping gear).
Requirements: 16 years old and up, and physically fit.
(P.O. Box 22292, Flagstaff, AZ 86002, 888/737-2888, http://www.wildernessvolunteers.org)

El Porvenir

Builds village water projects in now-peaceful Nicaragua. Volunteers in six-to-ten-person "brigades" join with local residents and bilingual guides to create wells, latrines, and community washing facilities. Apart from work, there's time to visit and converse with Nicaraguan organizations and groups. Lodging are modest hotels, and there's a recreational weekend at a beach thrown in as well. Participants' ages vary; churches and groups are common.

Time Commitment: One or two weeks.
Cost: $650 for one week, $750 for two weeks, including food, lodging, and land transportation (but not airfare).
Requirements: Physically fit (no Spanish language or construction experience needed).
(2508 42nd St. Sacramento, CA 95817, 916/736-3663, http://www.elporvenir.org)

Volunteer Nepal

Sends you to live with a host Nepalese family and teach in a community school. You also engage in a two-week culture and language orientation, lectures, a weeklong village trek, a jungle safari, a rafting trip, and two daily meals. Volunteers are of all ages, but skew towards those under 30.

Time Commitment: Two to four months.
Cost: $650 (not including airfare and lunches).
Requirements: Ages 18 to 65 with at least a high school diploma, and in good physical condition.
(507 Stackpole Rd., Durham, ME 04222, 888/339-0460, fax 208/728-7338, http://www.volunteernepal.org.np)

La Sabranenque

Works to preserve and restore the unique traditional architecture of the Provence region of France and several regions of Italy. Work includes construction and restoration of medieval stone buildings, castles, and ramparts. From March through October, volunteers labor at sites with experienced technicians, acquiring traditional Mediterranean techniques of stonecutting, roof-tiling, flooring, arch and vault construction, and masonry. Costs cover double occupancy in restored stone houses and home-cooked, family-style meals with your co-volunteers (groups are limited to 35 people). Volunteers of all ages.

Time Commitment: Two to three weeks.
Cost: $275 per week, not including airfare.
Requirements: Ages 18 and up, and physically fit. (No construction skills or knowledge of French or Italian is necessary.)
(rue de la Tour l'Oume, 30290 Saint Victor la Coste, France; 716/836-8698 in the U.S., http://www.sabranenque.com)

Sierra Club Service Outings

In both the U.S. and Canada, are short stints at clearing trails in Nevada, maintaining beaches in Puerto Rico, preserving historic sites in Utah, tracking dolphin patterns on Midway Island, removing invasive plants in California, or a hundred other useful tasks in the out-of-doors. Groups of 10 to 18 people, including a leader and cook, stay in accommodations ranging from tents to lodges. Participants are generally in their mid -40s to early 50s, and include retired folk. Some trips can be strenuous, but most are accessible to everyone.

Time Commitment: Trips are usually one week, some are ten days.
Cost: Most are $295 to $525 per week.
Requirements: Ages 18 and up. (Young children must be accompanied by a parent or guardian. Sierra Club also offers special trips for 15-to-19-year-olds).
(85 Second St. 2nd fl., San Francisco, CA 94105, 415/977-5522, http://www.sierraclub.org/outings)