Environment Activity Lead

Otra Cosa Network is a well-established UK Registered Charity and Peruvian registered not for profit (NGO), addressing the educational needs of children and vulnerable adults in an extremely impoverished area of Northern Peru. We work in informal settlements where many community members have been displaced by climate change, disaster and political instability. They live in precarious circumstances, few have running water, sewage provision and there is only sporadic electricity. Additionally, many children are forced to work instead of continuing their education, in order to boost family finances and there are no community-based facilities for learning and developing new skills in a safe environment.

Our dynamic range of activities address language skills, environmental awareness, women’s entrepreneurship, youth, employability and gender empowerment. we are seeking volunteers to work in project implementation in our new Recreation and Education Centre as well as our field office. Projects will restart as soon as the community is safely able to come out of isolation, post coronavirus. Our range of activities are implemented by national and international volunteers, allowing them to express solidarity whilst boosting their field experience.

As an Environment Activity Lead you will work under the guidance of our Community Education Project Coordinator and make sure that our Environment awareness teaching is meeting high quality standards and is carried out successfully. You could be leading several volunteers in their work of delivering Environmental classes and activities. The main goal of the role is to develop a program whereby the community understands the importance of protecting our environment and acts in an environmentally sustainable way. In order to complete that role, you will be also responsible to carry out environment awareness campaigns for the community with the help of volunteers.

This role may only require a few hours a week but also gives you the chance to work on other projects within the OCN portfolio to top up your hours to around 25 hours/week.

Please note that all volunteer positions are also available as Internships. With this add-on you will receive an extra level of mentorship and where necessary all appropriate liaison with your academic institution to ensure compliance with internship placement requirements. 

• Facilitate weekly meetings with volunteers to plan lessons

• Help volunteers to deliver high quality lessons and guide them with your specific knowledge in this field

• Assist in delivering lessons if required, depending on your own language abilities.

• Improve and add to the Environment curriculum

• Be creative in coming up with new ideas to actively involve children in fun and educative activities

• Plan and carry out Environmental campaigns and events

• Have weekly meetings with the Project Coordinators and participate in the Coordinators meeting

• Personal pick-up upon arriving and walking tour through Huanchaco

• Working with an organization that has many years of experience teaching Environmental awareness to vulnerable communities.

• Possibility of contributing with your own ideas

• Thorough introduction to the organization 

• Certified training in First Aid and Child Safeguarding.

• 24/7 emergency support 

• Personal pick-up upon arriving and walking tour through Huanchaco

• Organized activities & trips (barbeques, game nights,

volunteer-lunch, team building trips) with like-minded people from all over the

world

• Working in a friendly beach & surf town right next to many

historical sites

• The satisfying feeling of committing your work to a good cause

whilst gaining insight into a new culture.

• Certificate of completion detailing your role, the project(s) you

participated in and the dates you volunteered in.

• Current background check from your home country.

• Spanish level: Not required but desirable *

• Time commitment: 2-3 months

 * We can arrange Spanish classes in advance (by Skype) for you if want to improve your Spanish.

• Total 25 hours per week: 5-10 hours in this lead role, in addition to 15-20  hours spent on another activity

• Environmental Engineering

• Environmental Studies

• Disaster Risk Reduction

• Climate Change Adaption

• Human Geography

• Conservation

• Education

• Spanish