🎓 Assistance in Education Development for Indigenous Communities – LO-CA

📅 Activity Duration:
A total of 52 weeks between May 1, 2025 – May 30, 2026

📍 Location:
Otavalo, Ecuador 🇪🇨

👥 Type of Volunteering:
Individual volunteering

🌍 Open to Participants from:
🇦🇹 Austria, 🇧🇪 Belgium, 🇧🇬 Bulgaria, 🇨🇾 Cyprus, 🇨🇿 Czech Republic, 🇩🇪 Germany, 🇩🇰 Denmark, 🇪🇪 Estonia, 🇬🇷 Greece, 🇪🇸 Spain, 🇫🇮 Finland, 🇫🇷 France, 🇭🇷 Croatia, 🇭🇺 Hungary, 🇮🇪 Ireland, 🇮🇸 Iceland, 🇮🇹 Italy, 🇱🇮 Liechtenstein, 🇱🇹 Lithuania, 🇱🇺 Luxembourg, 🇱🇻 Latvia, 🇲🇰 North Macedonia, 🇲🇹 Malta, 🇳🇱 Netherlands, 🇵🇱 Poland, 🇵🇹 Portugal, 🇷🇴 Romania, 🇸🇪 Sweden, 🇸🇮 Slovenia, 🇸🇰 Slovakia, 🇹🇷 Türkiye

🎯 Activity Topics:
✔️ Social challenges
✔️ Health & wellbeing
✔️ Education & training
✔️ Creativity & culture
✔️ Physical education & sports
✔️ Fighting discrimination (including gender discrimination)
✔️ Nutrition & subsistence agriculture
✔️ WASH (Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene)

⏳ Application Deadline:
🗓️ March 31, 2025 – 23:59

🌎 About the Project

The Cielo Azul project is based in Otavalo, Ecuador (2 hours from Quito). It collaborates with indigenous communities in rural schools, focusing on education for children and youth.

👶 Volunteers will work mainly with kids aged 4-10 years and assist in:
✅ Teaching subjects like English, computers, arts & crafts, and sports
✅ Helping with agriculture and environmental care
✅ Supporting the school garden 🌱 (harvesting veggies for lunch 🍲)
✅ Organizing free-time activities & workshops
✅ Assisting with daily family activities (as many families rely on agriculture 👨‍🌾)

🕒 Work Schedule:
⏰ 4 to 5 days per week from 8 AM – 1:30 PM

🔗 More info HERE

🏡 Accommodation, Food & Transport

🏠 Volunteers stay with a local family in the community for 3-4 days per week. Expect a simple lifestyle—most homes don’t have hot water, internet, or washing machines, but all basic needs are covered.

🚿 The remaining 2-3 days, volunteers stay in a shared apartment in Otavalo (for laundry, hot showers & rest).

🚌 Transportation is provided—volunteers either travel with a teacher or take a community car/bus.

🎓 Training & Development

✨ The LO-CA project offers:
📌 Digital skills training
📌 Project management, inclusion & diversity workshops
📌 Environmental & climate action training
📌 Human rights & sustainable local community development sessions

📍 Volunteers attend an orientation camp (3 days) & receive 10 days of Spanish lessons before starting their work. Mentors and teachers provide ongoing training & support throughout the project.

👤 Who Can Apply?

✅ Must-have skills for working with children (4-10 y.o.):
✔️ Patience 💛
✔️ Initiative 💡
✔️ Energy ⚡
✔️ Joy 😃

✅ Spanish Level: B2

✅ Volunteers will help with:
🎨 Planning & assisting in classes (English, math, science, art, etc.)
⚽ Organizing sports, music & outdoor activities
🍽️ Preparing & serving food with local families
🦷 Leading workshops & campaigns (e.g., dental care, sexual education, etc.)

Are you ready to make an impact? 🌍💙

Apply before March 31, 2025! 🚀