VOLUNTEERING

Where can I eat the best steak? Where’s the hottest club? And usual illicits are among the questions I hear from travelers in BA every day.

But also, whether it’s because you’d like to stick around for a while or just feel like giving something back to the world, volunteering it’s another recurrent concern!

Many companies have a list of organizations and after a small (or sometimes not that small!) fee they can hook you up with them. The money some times even goes to the charity you are helping directly!

But in a country with such need of social help is it really worth paying someone to find the resources? If you are indeed willing to put some money down, wouldn’t you prefer that the whole amount went to the charity directly? There are a few exemptions, such as need of college credit (some of these volunteering companies offer that when you join their programs) or just the lack of time or even information about local organizations in need of help.

One popular fantasy is that through volunteering, you’d be able to get free room and board and finance your travels that way. These kinds of volunteer opportunities would definitely be hard to find. As a matter of fact I do not know any organization offering that! Shelters struggle with the little resources they have to accommodate as many people as they can, so they don’t quite count on extra room or food! The only work-for-a-room/food situation I could think of is working in a hostel or a beach pub, but we’ll get into that in future articles.

Going back to volunteering, your skills are also another concern but time is pretty much all you need! Of course that if you have any teaching, cooking, gardening, fixing, building, administrative, tutoring, creative, etc skills they will be much appreciated, though! But honestly, sometimes even spending an afternoon playing games or talking about how’s your life back home with a group of 12 years old can make the difference!

Whatever it is that you end up helping with (donations, of course will always be welcomed!) I strongly believe that volunteering could be a great way of connecting with the local community, learning, adding some work/volunteer experience to your CV back home and even practicing your Spanish!

Here’s a list of my favorite no-fee volunteer opportunities:

http://www.rutassolidarias.org.ar/esp/index.php

http://www.lifeargentina.org/

http://www.buenosaires.gov.ar/areas/des_social/voluntariado/programa/areas/?menu_id=6248

http://www.guiasolidaria.pccp.net.ar/

http://www.volunteersouthamerica.net/

Please, feel free to post any questions here, I’ll help with whatever I can!