Ideal Bite

Take a look at www.globalservicecorps.org Their trips are to Tanzania, Thailand and Cambodia working with locals on a variety of projects. Well run company with lots of history. Fun, meaningful and sometimes life changing! They are based in San Francisco (note to you Biter staff!).

With volunteer travel becoming increasingly popular and more and more organisations offering volunteer vacations and gap year programs it can be extrememely difficult to differentiate between those which are genuinely great and worthwhile opportunities and those which maybe are not. A good place to start is to take a look at www.ethicalvolunteering.org. This is an independent website which sets out the sorts of questions you should ask any organisation you are thinking of volunteering through to make sure the work you will be doing is needed and sustainable and that you will be adequately supported whilst overseas. Quest Overseas are gap year project and expedition specialists in Africa and South America. We work closely with local partners and the Quest Charitable Trust to ensure the work our volunteers do is worthwhile and beneficial. www.questoverseas.com

With volunteer travel becoming increasingly popular and more and more organisations offering volunteer vacations and gap year programs it can be extrememely difficult to differentiate between those which are genuinely great and worthwhile opportunities and those which maybe are not. A good place to start is to take a look at www.ethicalvolunteering.org. This is an independent website which sets out the sorts of questions you should ask any organisation you are thinking of volunteering through to make sure the work you will be doing is needed and sustainable and that you will be adequately supported whilst overseas. Quest Overseas are gap year project and expedition specialists in Africa and South America. We work closely with local partners and the Quest Charitable Trust to ensure the work our volunteers do is worthwhile and beneficial. www.questoverseas.com

I recently completed another week as a volunteer Site Coach during a workcamp for teens. The focus of the volunteer service at this camp was repairing 50 homes occupied by elderly fixed-income, disabled and poor families that were unable to repair their homes. It was one of the most uplifting experiences of my life (along with 4 or 5 previous workcamp trips). 400 teens can do wonderous things for a suffering community. These workcamps are organized all over the country (and some overseas) by Group Workcamps Foundation of Loveland, Colorado (970-292-4800 / 1800-385-4545). Group partners with local sponsors to organize both community service and home repair workcamps for pre-teens, junior high/middle school, and high school aged kids. The camps and worksites are well planned, and the kids have wonderful experiences both working with the families that they serve and serving with the people that they work. The evening programs are musically and inspirationally uplifting, and the kids and the adult volunteer staff and driver/chaparones make friends for life. As an added effort, this year the campers collected canned goods and staple foods for the local community food banks to help support the growing population of unemployed, poor, elderly and disabled people in the town. Our camp alone contributed over 2,100 food items, and nation wide the cout is already up to 75,780 pieces and growing. Workcamps are a great way for Moms and Dads of busy teenagers to spend some quality time with their kids, and teach them how to channel and focus thier energy, skills and spirits to help others less fortunate and less able to cope. I highly recommend the experience, the work and the best vacation ever!

Don't forget about Global Exchange, which takes people all around the world on "Reality Tours". They work on peacebuilding, ecological sustainability, fair trade, and other social justice issues! http://www.globalexchange.org Peace! Heather

Hi Biters, We're thrilled that the eco-mavens at Ideal Bite have given Earthwatch a shout-out--and hope people who've been our our research and conservation expeditions will chime in here with their experiences. A correction, though: currently the lowest volunteer contributions for our expeditions are $450 for a 3-day study of New York City's Wildlife (http://www.earthwatch.org/exped/burns_short.html) or, for a standard-length project, $1750 for getting to help save Puerto Rico's Rainforest. (http://www.earthwatch.org/exped/nelson.html) Anyway you look at it, though, Earthwatch is a great way to make a difference when you're looking to get away--for nearly 40 years, we've been the leading citizen science organization focusing on environmental research and conservation around the world. We'd love to have many Biters join us in the field and join the Earthwatch movement! www.earthwatch.org

A great organization that combines active outdoor adventures with volunteering is PLAY it Forward Adventures. These trips, which currently go to Guatemala, Peru, Tanzania, and Costa Rica are truly all-encompassing experiences. I have went on two trips and have been amazed and fulfilled by each. A sample itinerary in Guatemala, includes hiking and biking the outskirts of Antigua and surrounding volcanoes, as well as kayaking on the beautiful Lake Atitlan. A much better way to explore the country opposed to from the backseat of a motor vehicle! The service project towards the end of the trip is building a home for a family in need. This was done in 2 days with a blessing ceremony on the third that really showed the travelers how we had made a difference in these people's lives. Combining the adventure to explore the country and the giving back component to truly connect with the locals and immerse yourself in the culture makes this a life-changing experience. Check it out at www.pifadventures.com

Check out www.gvi.co.uk for amazing volunteer oportunities, I just came back from Mexican Caribbean conservation. Absolutely brilliant!!!

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Don't forget about Global Exchange, which takes people all around the world on "Reality Tours". games adventure games