Volunteers
Visitors, volunteers and staff enjoying a break and some refreshment.
Volunteer in the Peruvian Amazon
Minimum stay: One week.
Cost: $300 per person, per week.
Payment: Your first week is payable 30 days in advance.
Additional weeks are paid in cash at the start of each week.
Working hours: Monday to Saturday, normally 8:00am–12:30pm.
Time off: Sundays are free, with afternoons normally available for your own activities.
Accommodation: Your own bedroom in the Blue House, with a bathroom shared with a maximum of two other people.
Meals included: A full cooked breakfast, lunch, and a light evening meal or snacks.
Transport included: Transfers between Iquitos and the RA Initiative.
Volunteer projects: Farming, greenhouses, fish farming, medicinal gardens, stingless bees, building projects, path clearance, and kitchen or housekeeping support.
Skills and interests: Tell us about your experience and interests so we can try to match you with suitable tasks.
Optional activities: Participation in ayahuasca ceremonies may be available, subject to availability.
Volunteer Projects
There is always something to help with at the RA Initiative. Volunteering is an opportunity to learn practical skills, expand your knowledge, and learn or improve your Spanish. Let us know your particular skills and interests, and we will try to match you with suitable projects.
Farming
Our land is divided by a river into two main sections, each with several fields known locally as chacras. Volunteers can help with planting, harvesting, weeding, and preparing the soil.
Greenhouses
Our greenhouses are used to grow plants from seed before they are transplanted elsewhere, as well as to grow vegetables. Volunteers can help with these growing projects.
Fish Farms
We have two fish farms containing different breeds of fish, alongside a few turtles and frogs. These require relatively little volunteer work outside the periods when fish are harvested for market.
Medicinal Gardens
Our medicinal gardens need regular weeding and occasional harvesting. The main garden has painted signs displaying the Latin and common names of the plants. Volunteers can also help repaint these signs when needed.
Stingless Bees
We plan to expand our work with stingless Melipona bees and produce honey for our guests and for sale. The existing project description identifies this as medicinal honey and notes the bees’ sacred significance to the Maya.
Volunteers with beekeeping experience can make a particularly useful contribution while learning about these fascinating bees.
Building Projects
The main village, primarily used by guests attending ayahuasca ceremonies, currently has five ( 3 standard and 2 higher grade) completed casitas and three higher-grade casitas are planned
Volunteers can help transport timber cut with a chainsaw. This is physically demanding work and can involve travelling deep into the forest to collect fallen trees, which we normally use for construction. We fell as few trees as possible and do not cut rare trees or great forest trees.
Protecting the forest against indiscriminate logging is a principal aim of the project. Volunteers may also help patrol the site, accompanied by a permanent member of staff.
Experience using a chainsaw is welcome, but proof of certification and insurance is required for this work.
Path Clearance
Volunteers can help clear paths through the forest. This work suits people who are comfortable using a machete and physically able to pull up roots. If you have no machete experience, you will be taught how to use one safely.
Kitchen and Housekeeping
Our cook and housekeeper, Aurora, sometimes needs extra help, particularly when we are fully booked or when she is making her delicious ice creams and ice lollies.
Aurora also manages the herb garden. We use fresh produce from the farm, usually within a day or two of harvesting, giving volunteers an opportunity to help with food grown right here at the project.
to book contact us at 44 7417 369288 ON WHATSAPP
​