How to volunteer with Ecoteer

Finding a suitable placement on the Ecoteer website is simple. Follow the four steps below to organise your volunteer placement.

Step 1: Find a placement

Browse our placements section to see what type of placements Ecoteer offers.

This will help you decide what kind of placement you want and where in the world you would like to travel.

New placements are being added to the Ecoteer database all the time so even if there are no suitable placements at the moment just join our mailing list to receive updates when we have new projects.

Step 2: Becoming an Ecoteer member

To be able to join one of the Ecoteer volunteer placements you need to become an Ecoteer member. Follow the register link in the top right hand corner of every page. If you are a volunteer please click the volunteer option, if you are a project seeking volunteers then click the volunteer project option.

You will now need to fill in your contact details, if you would not like the projects to be able to see your details then you have the choice to opt against it on the 'about yourself' section of the application form. It is very important for you to complete this information fully and describe the skills you could offer volunteering projects because projects can search the volunteer database for suitable volunteers.

The cost to become an Ecoteer member is only UK£20 and can be paid by either Paypal or a cheque made payable to 'Ecoteer'.

Once payment is made you will be asked to upload a photo of yourself which must be in .jpeg format and under 2mb. The membership enrolment is complete.

Step 3: Using your personal volunteer control panel

Once registered you can enter your own personal Ecoteer volunteer control panel. If you pay with paypal you will be able to access your control panel instantly however if you pay with cheque you will need to wait until Ecoteer has received and processed your cheque - we will email you once the cheque had been processed. If you pay using a cheque in a denomination other than UK£ sterling the Ecoteer membership fee is £15 due to extra administration costs.

The control panel lets you edit your profile, password, add photographs, bookmark your favourite placements, send and receive messages to projects, gives you access to our volunteering forums, submit your volunteering stories and you can see announcements by the Ecoteer team.

Forum. When you first register you will not be able to access certain areas of the forums because an Ecoteer member of staff needs to manually add your details. Once we have added your details we will email you and give you access to the forum. On the forums you can write new topics, contact people on the forums and answer other replies. The forums are a great way for our members to communicate amongst each other and also talk with the placement project leaders. The exchange of dialogue will help to ensure volunteers can make the most of their placements and exchange tips.

Membership Discounts. Ecoteer has been working hard to give our members great deals on products volunteers need most when volunteering abroad.

Keeping in contact with your family is very important when volunteering for your safety when abroad. However calling from your mobile is usually very expensive and often you are charged for incoming calls as well which means a huge phone bill when you get back home. This is why Ecoteer has partnered with Go-Sim a world renowned international sim-card company.

With GO-SIM, you can save up to 85% when calling from overseas in 175 countries. That's up to six times more chat than using your usual service while travelling. You also get FREE incoming calls in over 75 countries, and as your global SIM card is a pay as you go, there's no monthly bill and great call rates are guaranteed.

As an Ecoteer member you can receive a discount of 10% off - you will receive your promotional code once you become an Ecoteer member .

Step 4: Organising your volunteer placement

Search the Ecoteer database for suitable volunteer placements using either the search facilities or the map. If you see a project which appeals you can add it to your favourite projects section. When you view a project whilst you are logged in you will be able to contact the project leader by clicking on the green button 'Contact the Placement' which is under the photo in the top right hand corner. When you send a message to the project it is vital you write as much information about yourself, why you want to volunteer at the project, what you can give to the project (ie your skills) and when you would like to volunteer. If you do not give enough relevant information the project leader would not be able to offer you a concrete answer. Please bear in mind the project may not reply to you straight away. Many of the projects are in third world countries and internet is intermittent we recommend you give the project 1 month to answer. If they haven't answered within a month then contact Ecoteer using the contact Ecoteer form on your control panel. It is for this reason we recommend you to write at least 6 months in advance of your proposed start date.

The project leader will use their own Ecoteer control panel to reply to your message which you can access from your control panel. When you do receive a message through Ecoteer we will send you an email to the email address you supply to notify you that your message has been replied.

We encourage you to continue dialogue with the project leader as this will create a rapport between you and the project and enable you to be better prepared with the project. Talk to the leader about your skills and what you can offer the project this is a chance for you to be able to prepare suitably for your placement ie bring small children games for schools or learn the basics of their language etc. Payment for each project is different and you will need to discuss this with the project beforehand.

Then you will need to book your transport, travel insurance and research the country where you will be going. Search the Ecoteer resources section:

• travel
• accommodation
• insurance
• country info

And don't forget to make the most of the Ecoteer membership discounts.

It's that easy!

Organising a trip abroad can be daunting but with some planning and regular direct contact with your placement, you may be surprised how straightforward it is. Ecoteer hopes that by offering all you need on the one site has taken the stress away for you! No need to search the web just use Ecoteer!

You can then look forward to an experience that we hope will change your life for ever, whilst helping a community less fortunate than your own.