Volunteering

As a volunteer you will stay in project station sharing a dorm with other participants, three traditional meals per day (vegetarian available). It is a wonderful opportunity to be immersed in a new culture and to develop Spanish language skills while becoming part of a community.

The project house has personal lockers on the rooms, electricity, fans and mosquito nets in the rooms. If you do not speak any Spanish, no worries, our staff is bilingual and will make you feel at home.

Safe drinking water, coffee and tea are always available at the station. Three full delicious local meals a day are provided daily by our local cooks. Typical dishes include rice, beans, plantains, fish, chicken and fresh fruit. Vegetarian & vegan diets can easily be accommodated.

Free from distractions and the constraints of daily schedules, meals here give us a chance to slow down and enjoy the fresh tastes and local flavours of Nicaragua.

Volunteers applying should enjoy manual work, handling wildlife, and working unusual hours as turtle nesting occurs during the night. No prior knowledge or experience is necessary.

• Good physical condition and ability to walk several kilometers per night if required. See “Special Considerations“
• Work in remote areas under very basic conditions.
  Keen sense of responsibility and desire to make a positive impact.
• Available for a minimum of one week.
• Conversational Spanish (preferred) is advantageous but not a requirement.
• Travel and medical insurance.
•  You must be at least 18 years old at the start of your placement. Exceptions can be made for under 18’s accompanied by a guardian or with a parental consent.

Nicaragua is generally a safe country, but travel to and work in rural areas where medical facilities are limited carries certain inherent dangers. Volunteers are required to sign a waiver to release our organization from responsibility for any illness, accident, or injury incurred during their stay in Nicaragua. It is strongly recommended that volunteers carry valid insurance to cover medical emergencies during travel abroad. We also suggest you bring a personal first aid kit

The idea of working to help save endangered sea turtles can seem like a very romantic getaway. However, the reality can be a quite different experience. When deciding if you want to volunteer, please remember that:

• Most of the work is done at night working between the hours of 7PM and 5AM. While on night patrol you may walk up to 10 km in the dark.
• There may be times when volunteers will be asked to work both during the day and at night. Work could include both a night patrol and daytime hatchery monitoring.
• Our projects sites are located in the tropics. This means it is hot, very humid and it rains frequently, sometimes heavily.
• Night patrols will take place during the rain.
• There will be some nights when there are no turtles nesting, but patrols will still take place. We cannot be sure when or if turtles will emerge to nest.
• There are mosquitoes and sand flies in the area (but not Malaria), you will get bitten!
• Local village should be considered an isolated location. Important: ability to tolerate basic living conditions and food.

Past comments from turtle volunteers include “The work was too hard”, “There was nothing to do during the day”, “Too many mosquitoes” and “Too hot, couldn’t sleep”.

Working with the turtles is an unforgettable and often a life-changing experience and we really need your help, however the experience is not for everyone.

Please think about these points before applying for your volunteering!

Still want to help us save endangered sea turtles? Download our Volunteer Form and sign up today!

• Headlamp or flashlight. It is important that volunteers bring a headlamp with a red light (or red light filter) in case you apply for our sea turtle conservation volunteering program. All night patrols to encounter nesting turtles are done using red lights as this light spectrum ensures our team not scare turtles before they have a chance to nest.
• A small backpack is very useful to have some tours and excursions.
• Long pants and long-sleeved lightweight shirts (better cotton) for field work. If you are applying for our sea turtle conservation volunteering program, dark colours are preferred for sea turtle patrols. Thus, waterproof pants can also make patrolling in the rain more comfortable.
• Poncho or other raingear (we extremely recommend a good quality one).
• Hiking shoes or boots (be prepared for them to get completely wet through).
• Swimsuit and quick dry towel.
• Biodegradable soap.
• Water bottle.
• Pocket knife.
• Insect repellant.
• Sunscreen.
• Watch (better with light and water resistant) with/and alarm clock.
• Personal First Aid (if you are taking any specific medication please ensure that you bring enough for the duration of your stay at the project).
• Photocopies of your passport and your travel insurance.
• If you carry electronic items think about how to get them dry and away of the humidity (dry bags, silica gel…).

Volunteers are able to join any time all year round.

Generally speaking, you can start our projects on any day. When you apply, you will specify the start and end dates. We will just check availability and inform you as soon as possible.

Applications are accepted on a rolling basis, so there is no firm deadline for applications.

Check our prices & payments page to see discounts according the duration of your volunteering.

You can choose to volunteer from 1 to 24 weeks. Volunteers staying 8 weeks or more have a special condition to work as project interns obtained a special discount.

Plan your dates

• Different activities are occurring during different times of the year.
• In-water turtle monitoring, mangrove restoration, community based tourism and environmental education activities are available all year round.
• The hawksbill nesting and hatchling emergence seasons are limited to a few months out of the year.
• The olive ridley turtle nesting season follows the hawksbill season and we help local partners protect nests in their project hatcheries.

The experience of working in a foreign country, and making a meaningful contribution to issues important to you, can invigorate your confidence in your own abilities; likewise, participating in an ongoing conservation program can renew your faith in the capacity of people to work together to make a difference in their lives and their environment. Nevertheless you need to be careful and understand well local cultural codes.

Upon arrival to the project site volunteers will be provided with a brief project orientation and training, before being immediately involved in field activities.

We enjoy sharing our way of life with visitors and firmly believe that both volunteers and local people can benefit by meeting and learning about each others’ lives. You will receive a warm welcome at Casa Carey and in turn we ask that you are respectful of communities, its norms and culture, which may be different to your own. Volunteers are expected to act in a responsible manner, eg. no drugs, and no drunken or overtly sexual behaviour. Please remember that in many ways Nicaragua is still a conservative country and act accordingly.

Field training takes place on the next two days after your arrival.

1. abuse of position as a volunteer,
2. misuse of facilities
3. improper professional or personal conduct
4. misrepresentation of project and its goals
5. violation of project policies such as reserve management guidelines and
6. unlawful conduct