Taking Care of Nature

Scoured by Ice Age glaciers, the dramatic east coast boasts long, narrow fjords with steep sides and jagged peaks that contrast with inland fertile farmlands. Natural harbors depict postcard-like fishing villages and seemingly never-ending roads across the region, providing beautiful views. “Fjarðabyggð" is an association of villages in the Eastern fjords of Iceland. It includes the towns of Eskifjörður, Fáskrúðsfjörður, Mjóifjörður, Neskaupstaður, Reyðarfjörður, Breiðdalsvík, and Stöðvarfjörður. All of them are tiny fishing villages with steep mountains towering just behind the houses. In this area, you will see some of the features that make Iceland a unique place in the world: spectacular fjords with rich sea life, a great variety of birdlife, and countless breathtaking hiking paths. You will have the opportunity to explore the area during your stay in the east.

Volunteers will have 5 to 6  hours of environmental work during weekdays. The main activities can be cleaning the coastline and rivers, planting trees or picking seeds, taking down old fences, removing lupines or other plants, and fixing hiking paths. The work depends on the need of the local community and the season. We also have the option to do a little bit of renovation in the house or take care of the garden if needed. Some days we will give a special focus on global warming and the volunteers will have workshops or lectures about climate change. The main goal of this project is to improve the environmental education and consciousness of the projects’ participants. Within the project, we will learn about green energy, sustainable householding, waste treatment, nutrition, the effects of consumption, and lots more. 

If you want to change something, develop solutions, or inspire others, you have to understand the issues and tasks first. In addition to the theoretical part, we are going to practice sustainable work. For example, planting trees is one of the main exercises of the camps. Planting trees becomes a very useful action against climate change because trees absorb carbon dioxide, clean the air and prevent erosions. Our work will also depend on weather conditions, which is why we must be flexible. You should be prepared for unfriendly weather, but hopefully, the weather will be nice most of the time. This is a perfect camp for people who like outdoor work and physical challenges. Working hours are about 5 to 6 hours a day, 5 days a week.

There are always one or more leaders for each camp, depending on the size of the group. Leaders represent the link between the hosting community and the group of volunteers. They coordinate the work, organize leisurely activities, plan excursions, grocery shopping, house chores, and cooking sessions. Apart from these additional responsibilities, they are equal to other volunteers. Most of our camp leaders are from other countries, as we are very open-minded in hosting international leaders from other organizations

Volunteers can arrive on the starting day either in the morning or in the afternoon but no later than 20:00.

The departure from the camp to Reykjavik is on the last day of the project, on Saturday. They leave the project location at 9:00 and arrive in Reykjavik around 21:00. The return flight cannot be earlier than Sunday morning. For the night of Saturday, volunteers must book a hostel.