Do you want to make a change to make the world a better place? If you answered yes, it’s pretty simple. Give back to the community. You don’t have to be rich to make a difference. Just share your time, skills and knowledge and you’ll be surprised how doing good can actually make you FEEL GOOD.
Being able to experience cultural exchange by doing meaningful work overseas is #goal. I encourage you to check the links below and find charities and organizations where you can share your time and energy.
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Workaway
Workaway was launched in 2002, it’s an international organization where you can volunteer as a “workawayer” to help an individual or a community with their projects. If you’re a budget traveler and want to learn about other people’s culture and language, I encourage you to lend a helping hand. It is also a great opportunity to learn a new skill and local traditions. Take a look at some of these lists; building a retreat house in Australia, teaching kids in public school in Peru, doing farm work in Ireland… Like I said, you don’t have to be rich to help. Just volunteer for few hours per day in exchange for food and accommodation. For more info, check their website at https://www.workaway.info/
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HelpX
HelpX or “Help Exchange” has a wide variety of projects like organic farms, homestays, bed & breakfast, sail boat, ranches business owners who invite volunteers to stay with them for a short period of time in exchange for food and accommodation. They operate worldwide; you can choose to volunteer in Australia, New Zealand, Canada and Europe including France. You can check the profiles of the host for free but if you want to have full access, you can sign up with them for 20 Euros for two years membership. If would be cheaper if you sign up as a pair, tag your best friend with you so you guys can travel and volunteer together anywhere around the world. You can check their website here https://www.helpx.net/
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WWOOF
World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms or simply known as “WWOOF” is great for people who wants to have the opportunity to travel in a countryside and support the organic movement. As of the moment, there are more than 50 WWOOF groups world wide. Just like Workaway and HelpX’s concept, you can get board and lodging in exchange of a day’s work on the farm. You can stay for one week, two weeks or even one whole year. This is perfect for travelers who want to experience a destination instead of relying on travel guidebooks by some author. If you want to join the organic movement, be prepared to pay. Obviously, there are costs involved in running these organizations and it’s gonna be worth it because you will learn a lot about farming. Please visit their site to check the list on each region http://www.wwoof.net/
These are just some of the thousands of volunteer opportunities where you can travel for free. I signed up with Workaway last February and my experience was life changing. I traveled with little money, ate good food, learned new things and met new friends whom I will cherish forever. I will write about my first Workaway experience on my next blog post so please stay tuned!
What if one opportunity could change your life? What would you do about it? Please leave your answers on the comment form below. =)
Hi Pinaynomad, your site is fantastic and so well designed – so I take my hat off to you. All great tips! Something everyone should consider once in their life! I think its important to remember that the volunteer experience often benefits the volunteer more than the organization.
Hey Maya! Thanks for dropping by and I’m glad you found it helpful. Yes I totally agree with you when you said volunteers benefit more coz of the experience. =)