About Reforestation Internship

The benefits of taking part in our programme are listed below:
- Gain unmatchable personal and professional hands-on experience working with a sustainabilty NGO
- Work alongside experienced & passionate professionals from a wide range of fields
- Enhance your CV and stand from the crowd - Live and work in a north Peru surfing hot-spot
- Open to all disciplines, ideal for those interested in international and sustainable development

The people of Lobitos remember that decades ago, their desertic landscape was once green. Without trees, and the shade they provide, the intense heat of Peru's northern sun makes it difficult to enjoy public space. Our qualitative research, and the direct demands of the women and the elderly, has led us to acknowledge the importance of green, shady neighborhoods for community development and community building. Greening is not easy in an arid land where lack of water is a main issue, and many public efforts to do so in the past have not been successful. This is why the "Green Lobitos" project, designed in early 2015 by our insightful intern Dave Smith, directly involves fishermen families, as well as public entities and private companies in a community initiative aiming to recover the peruvian dry forest sustainably through the application of permaculture principles. By slowly building trust through sensitization at a household level, EcoSwell has achieved the commitment of 32 leaders, mainly women, which have been empowered to raise environmental awareness in their neighborhoods by reforesting public space, utilizing in-house waste and water reuse methods. Together, they have planted and are consistently taking care of more than 70 seedlings, some of which have already grown into full-sized trees. During 2017, the number of families involved will scale up to 45, and the adopted trees will surpass 100. Project Impact - The project currently impacts the members of 32 fishermen families, raising their awareness on environmental issues and preparing them for climate change impact mitigation. It specially empowers women and children, as they are the ones who lead the greening efforts. The activities resulting from the project have reported as helpful for family self-esteem and in improving relationships between neighbors. In the long run, the trees will provide shade and protection from strong winds, increasing comfort inside their homes and in public spaces.
Average daily cost description

- Comfortable accommodation throughout your stay at the EcoSwell House with an office workplace and resources, fully-equipped kitchen, shared-bathroom and shared-bedroom depending on the amount of volunteers at a time, access to clean water, electricity and internet 99% of the time.

- Food (delicious, plentiful and healthy), we cover all your meals throughout your stay with us at the EcoSwell House (any meals you may have in restaurants are not included).

- Pre-departure logistics organisation and guidance.

- Transport within Lobitos and airport pickup from Talara.

- Constant one-on-one guidance and technical support from the bilingual (English & Spanish) EcoSwell Directors team to ensure positive work results.

- Firsthand experience on running a sustainable development NGO in a developing country - we are a small, dedicated team and you will be involved in decision-making processes with us since day one.

- Facilitation of local contacts, including community leaders and inhabitants, organizations, local government, universities, businesses and institutions.

- Vivential experience with the local population, constantly engaging the local community.

- Submergence into the EcoSwell lifestyle: daily world class surfing (all levels - surfing lessons and equipment rentals not included), exploring new beaches, yoga, library access, baking/cooking, personal development within other fun activities.

- Other activities, such as swimming with wild turtles, artisanal open sea fishing with local fishermen, within others are affordable and can be arranged but are not included in the programme.

*we require volunteers to stay with us for at least two weeks.


Accomodation info

Our accommodation has been rated as being very comfortable by our volunteers in comparison to what is available in the rest of the town.

We have an office workplace with office resources and large kitchen. You will have access to a shared bathroom and shower. We have a chill-out living room with a DVD player and cable TV (although you will probably find that you won't use it with all the other activities that we have going on - except for when Game of Thrones is on).

Depending on the number of volunteers you could have a room for yourself or share with another volunteer.

You'll have a fan in your room and clean bed sheets.

We have running water in the house and electricity, although sometimes there are power cuts throughout the entire town (these can last between 15 minutes to a day).

Costs
Two weeks (price per week $465) = $930
Three weeks (price per week $457) = $1,371
Four weeks (price per week $457) = $1,828
Five weeks (price per week $444) = $2,220
Eight weeks (price per week $444) = $3,552
12 weeks (price per week $402) = $5,076

Application Process

1. Submit your application by filling out the Application form and Proposal Form that is in the GiveGab "Documents" section and email them to [email protected]
2. EcoSwell will respond to your online application within 72 hours and send you an email confirming the receipt of your application.