Volunteer: Amazonian Arts: Pottery, Jewelry, Weaving, Dance, and Music in Ecuador

Location and Program Details

Location: Tena, Ecuador, Duration: minimum 4 weeks, Start Dates: each month, enquire with us when applying. Cost: $500 for the 1st week + $350 for each additional week. Fee includes: all food, accommodation, pre‑departure and in‑country support, orientation and all project‑related activities. Does not include: flights, airport pickup, travel insurance, personal spending, visas and vaccinations.

Benefits

• Learn about Amazonian cultures through the mediums of art, pottery, jewelry‑making, basket weaving, dance, and music.
• Incorporate local traditions in art and music with your skills and interests and collaborate on events for the community.
• Gain experience in designing and implementing art and music workshops for kids and adults in schools, shelters and after‑school programs.
• Practice your own works of art and dance to share with locals and your community back home.
• Shadow masters in Amazonian arts, and learn how they use all‑natural, plant‑based ingredients to create materials.
• Research and dissertation support available with partner organizations and universities, if requested.

Program Highlights

• Learn about the different art forms of the host community and who makes the artisan goods.
• Attend music, dance, and storytelling events led by community members.
• Hike through agroforestry farms and collect natural materials for drawing, jewelry‑making, dyeing, and ceramics.
• Practice different forms of art with locals, including weaving baskets and bags, making jewelry, wood carving, and more.
• Assist local entrepreneurs with design and marketing of their woven goods, jewelry, and other products.
• Design and implement arts‑based workshops to share with community members.
• Design and implement workshops on topics such as recycling, environmental conservation, leadership, self‑esteem, etc., using art to transmit knowledge.
• Assist with tourism activities, including cooking, preparing cabins, guiding visitors, translating, and explaining ongoing art projects.
• Organize English lessons with locals eager to advance their language skills and receive Spanish and Kichwa lessons from them.

Typical Day

Wake up and have breakfast with host family (if with a very traditional indigenous family, you may wake up with them at 4 or 5 am and share in the ritual of drinking guayusa tea; morning is when most families work on making artisan goods). Head to the agroforestry farm for activities with local artisans, independent research, and/or assist with tourism activities. Lunch with host family (or when interns are in the field they can buy lunch or bring a packed lunch). Continue research, finish up daily tasks, practice weaving, jewelry‑making, etc. Return home around 5/6 pm for dinner with the family. We encourage interns to spend as many evenings and weekends as possible with their host families to make the most of their immersions, learn about the culture, and practice their Spanish.

Optional Weekend Activities

• Sports, clubs, teaching English, meeting up with other interns.
• Going on weekend trips to nearby tourist destinations, swimming in rivers, rafting, hikes to waterfalls and swimming holes, chocolate‑making.

Important Notes

• All information above is subject to change. Please check the most up to date information on the Global Nomadic website when applying.