Requirements & Application

Volunteer Program

Eligibility

Volunteers must be 18 years or older.

Commitmen

  • Minimum stay: 1 week. Dates are flexible and depend on community availability and weather conditions.
  • Volunteers are expected to follow through with the exchange proposal they submit.
  • Daily participation is required, joining community members in activities such as fishing, hunting, traditional cooking, working with medicinal plants, and walking the forest trails.

Exchange Proposal

  • Applicants must submit an exchange proposal through a Google Form.
  • Each proposal will be reviewed and approved before participation is confirmed.

Costs & Logistics

  • Volunteers cover all travel expenses, including flights to the Amazon and local transport.
  • A contribution to the community is required. This includes accommodation in a simple riverside cabin and meals prepared with community-grown or gathered food.

Health & Preparation

  • Complex B vitamins are recommended to help reduce mosquito bites.
  • Yellow fever vaccination is recommended (though not mandatory).
  • Volunteers must bring their own medications and any necessary travel insurance.

Educational Focus

More than anything, this program seeks volunteers who can support education within the community.

We prioritize people who can teach both children and adults in areas such as:

  • Reading and writing
  • Spanish or other languages
  • Arts and creative expression
  • Mathematics and basic sciences
  • Environmental education
  • Digital literacy (if appropriate)
  • Practical skills such as hygiene, first aid, nutrition, or craftsmanship

Education is one of the community’s greatest needs. Volunteers who can share knowledge in a respectful, culturally sensitive, and collaborative way are especially encouraged to apply.

About the Volunteer Program

This volunteer program offers the opportunity to spend time in Cuyacocha, learning directly from the Sápara community while contributing something of your own.

Volunteers are invited to share a skill, a craft, or a practice as a way to create genuine exchange. If you don’t have something specific to bring, you are welcome to support the community in whatever tasks or needs arise.

Accommodation is provided in a simple riverside cabin built for visitors, close to the families who live in the community. Daily life follows the rhythm of the forest: preparing food from the chacra, fishing in the river, walking the trails, gathering plants, and taking part in collective work.

The experience is an invitation to live in close connection with the Sápara people, to understand their relationship with the Amazon, and to contribute in a way that leaves something meaningful behind.