Volunteering in Patagonia: Membership and Volunteering Placement Fee

To perform volunteer work in Argentinean or Chilean Patagonia, you need to pay 250 €. This amount includes your annual membership fee to MAPU Association (50€) and your one-time volunteer placement organization fee (200€). How to pay your fees.

By paying the annual membership fee, which you can decide whether or not to renew each year, and by paying to have your volunteer placement organized, you will directly contribute to financing MAPU Association projects in Patagonia. At the same time this will allow you to keep volunteering in the future, as a MAPU member, without further placement payments.

Prospective volunteers sometimes question the need to pay a fee to willingly offer their resources, time and energy to performing a project in Patagonia. You need to bear in mind that while you are contributing your work with commitment and responsibility, you are also benefiting from a number of services, performed voluntarily by MAPU members, which are fundamental for you to organize your Patagonia experience and get a meaningful volunteering placement. Thus, you will have more time to make a difference in Patagonian communities and help with their social and environmental struggles. More importantly, your fees contribute directly, without any intermediaries, to promoting and financing activities and development projects in Patagonia, South America.

The organization cost of your volunteer placement includes:

Before your trip to Patagonia:

• Organization of your volunteer work placement with clearly defined activities and objectives according to your profile and your host organization´s needs.
• If necessary, translation and/or edition of your Letter of Intent and Curriculum Vitae for host organizations to decide whether your profile is suitable to their projects.
• Regular communication with Patagonia Volunteer’s Coordinators, who will answer your questions, give you advice, tell you about their own experiences as volunteers, and help you with the practical aspects of organizing your trip.
• Access to orientation material which will give you clear and realistic expectations about your Patagonia experience while providing you with some tools to get ready to give your best during your volunteering experience.

During your volunteer work in Patagonia:

• Orientation workshop (when volunteering with a host organization other than MAPU): analysis of the various local realities and tools to interpret them, role and position of the international volunteer, information and preparation for each specific project, etc.
• Guidance and supervision from the Patagonia Volunteer’s Coordinators and from your host organization coordinator.
• Organization of your accommodation with a host family, including search, full description, contact details, introduction upon arrival, and follow up. (It does not include the cost of accommodation, which is paid directly to the hosts upon arrival. Accommodation prices are in local currency, always kept as low as possible, but also fair for the hosts).
• If necessary, organization of private Spanish classes, also at a local price. (It does not include the cost of the lessons)
• Help finding a local partner for practicing Spanish and engaging in a language exchange.
• Information, tips and suggestions for trips and extra activities that you can engage in while in Patagonia.

After your volunteer work in Patagonia

• Possibility of staying involved with MAPU Association’s projects through virtual volunteering.
• As a MAPU member, access to monthly online meetings to discuss updates, existing projects progression, and new projects.
• As a MAPU member, right to propose new ideas and vote for projects to be supported.
• Opportunity to return to Patagonia to perform another volunteer project, as often as you want or can, without having to pay the volunteer organization placement fee again.
• A network of friends with common interests, objectives, and goals with which to share experiences and discuss differences.