Volunteer Internship F.A.Qs

In Lobitos

• What will my first day be like?

During your arrival day, you’ll be given time to settle down and rest from your travels. You’ll also get a tour of the house and facilities, along with a description of the rules that must be followed and health and safety action plans. You will take it easy on your day of arrival to rest up and begin your work on the following day.

• Are there any additional costs not covered by the program’s financial contribution?

All meals, accommodation, and travel for EcoSwell-related activities are covered by your financial contribution. Any extracurricular activities you choose to do, such as surfing, yoga, jiu-jitsu, eating out, or fishing, as well as any personal travel outside of EcoSwell-related activities, will need to be covered by you. 

• How much money should I bring per week

It depends on what you are planning to do while with us. Remember all meals are provided by EcoSwell, as well as your accommodation and project related transport. If you plan on eating out regularly, doing surf lessons, buying souvenirs, amongst other extracurricular activities, we recommend exchanging approximately S/400.00 per week. Once in Lobitos, we can assist you with currency exchange in Talara at more favorable rates. There is something you need to keep in mind: we can exchange money in Talara, not in Lobitos, and we only carry out this activity on Tuesdays of each week. However this is completely up to you and your spending habits, remember to have your money in CASH.

• Do I need to be fluent in Spanish?

Nope! You can join us even if you do not speak Spanish at all, most members of our team are bilingual (they speak English), and most of our work internally happens in English. Of course we recommend learning some basic Spanish so that you can easily communicate while travelling and when working with the locals and our team externally.

• Can you cater for dietary requirements/ restrictions?

Yes. We must know in advance what your requirements and restrictions are, as our kitchen team will need time to have the ingredients ready and cook them. Please bear in mind that you are coming to rural Peru, and the offer of dietary options aren’t as abundant as they may be in your home city. In general veganism and vegetarianism aren’t as popular here as they are in the more developed economies.

• How safe is the town where I’ll be staying?

Lobitos (for EcoSwell placements) and Magdalena de Cao (for Fundacion Wiese placements) are both quite safe and our dedicated staff will advise you on things you shouldn't do, places you should avoid. We are happy to say that our past volunteer interns have not encountered any significant instances where their safety was at risk.

• What should I bring?

Once accepted on to the program we will send you a Welcome Pack stating everything that you will need to bring!

• How much technology should I bring?

At the very least a Laptop to work from but please feel free to bring tablets, cameras etc. if you think it will help you with your work. Try to travel light nonetheless.

• How much do we engage and work with locals/community in person?

We have various projects where you can interact with the community, depending on what sort of volunteer internship you do, and you are always welcome to socialise and get to know the community in your own free time as well. In Lobitos, on Wednesday mornings, we carry-out planting days and boat maintenance days with local families and local fishermen, respectively. The focus is on getting to engage members of the local community whilst having a positive impact on the communities we serve, on top of the projects that you will be working on. In relation to the specific projects you will be dedicating most of your time to, the amount of exposure to communities does depend on its nature, and the stage the project is at when you join us.

• What are the limitations during our volunteering?

As a volunteer, you’ll become an official member of our team and a representative of our organization within the communities we work with. This role comes with significant responsibility, and we ask all participants to keep this in mind at all times. You’ll receive a code of conduct manual when you join, which must be followed throughout your stay. For safety reasons, certain locations or activities are off-limits, and naturally, any illegal behavior is strictly prohibited. Please note that failure to follow the code of conduct may result in immediate removal from the program without a refund.

• What type of tasks and projects will I be working on?

There are a variety of tasks you can help out with depending on what volunteering position you choose, please see our available positions page for more information. You will also be informed in more detail about this during your interview.

• What cultural differences should I watch out for?

You may be called a “gringo” however do not be alarmed as for peruvians this is a term of endearment for most western tourists. People may also stare and look at you longer than you are comfortable with, they may even ask to take pictures, but this is usually just because they are curious and want to be friendly. Try to not take offense, as you are in a different country with a different culture.

Extracurricular