Volunteer in Brazil Further Details

 

There is a palpable obsession with the arts in Rio de Janeiro - as music, dance, and theatre are central to what it means to be Brazilian. However, the arts are far more than just entertainment; it can be a powerful force for community building, nurturing human creativity, and social empowerment.  With this in mind, this programme partners with a number of arts programmes around Rio de Janeiro dedicated to providing access to the arts for diverse populations - so that all Cariocas (locals from Rio) - may be empowered by the positive impact of the arts.

 

There’s certainly plenty to offer on an arts project which uses an invigorating mix of music, dance, and theatre to support the city’s most at-risk youth. Working with children from a number of favelas (urban slums) your efforts will play a valuable part in helping a project desperately short of resources, while allowing you to absorb the artistic vibes of Rio.

 

As a volunteer for an arts program, one of your main roles will be to help educate and support the children of Rio by offering a cultural and artistic education that reinforces positive interests, in an effort to provide an escape from the omnipresent drug trade and under-employment.  No previous experience or skills are required to join this programme - however if you do have an artistic talent, please do let us know.

 

 

 

 

Be an educator, advocate, and companion to children.

 

If you’re the type of person who has a genuine affection for young children and who wants to jump in to a high energy, life-changing experience to help develop their skills and equip them for a bright educational future - volunteering in one of our community development projects may be just the opportunity for you.

 

Helping in child development is undoubtedly the most beneficial way to increase the life chances of children living in a country with one of the most pronounced wealth gaps in the world. As a volunteer, you will work with children from favelas, providing them with the essential attention, support and guidance needed for healthy child development.

 

As a part of the programme, your objective is to provide children with the care and attention needed to develop their social skills, to encourage them to develop an enthusiasm for higher education, and to teach vital skills to be competitive in a rapidly developing economy.

 

Child development projects require volunteers who are dedicated and willing to give a lot of care and love. These projects generally have few resources, so you must have a lot of initiative and creativity with the facilities that are available to you. While there are few requisite skills needed, one thing’s for sure: you must be able to keep up with the kids!

 

 

 

At just about every corner of Rio de Janeiro, you will find the locals playing Brazil’s national sport: futebol; but now you can be a part of the team as a volunteer on one of our sports programmes. Athletics have become vital for Rio’s lowest income communities, as they provide children and adolescents with recreational outlets in neighbourhoods that offer young people very few options for entertainment.

 

Sports have become an essential part of favela life, especially for children and adolescents. Because there are so few entertainment options for youth in low income communities, kids unfortunately get caught up in illegal activity to pass the time. That’s why athletic programming has become a vital outlet for children, because it provides them with friendly competition in a safe and fun environment. And the best part is: sports programmes are almost always powered by volunteers.

 

The sports projects include popular programmes such as capoeira, football, basketball, and many others.  No previous experience or skills are required to join this programme, but if you are talented in a sport, it will go a long way!

 

 

 

You can do so much more than just teach English on this project; you will be working, side-by-side with your students, sharing perspective and encouraging cultural understanding. As an English teacher, you will also be exposing your students to one of the world’s most spoken languages and the one that fuels the global economy. Students range in age from primary school age to the elderly - but no matter who sits in your classroom, teaching English is bound to be an extraordinarily fulfilling experience.

 

English instruction in Brazil is spotty at best, so volunteering to teach English will provide young students with a supplement to what they learn in school and will give people who never took English courses the opportunity to learn the language. It is also an excellent opportunity to give those living in the favelas a chance to have access to the language that fuels the global economy.

 

If you’re thinking about volunteering to teach English in Rio and have no teaching experience, don’t worry! The English teaching placements are flexible - from tutoring a few students, to teaching an entire class. Volunteers also often help each other in planning lessons and activities - but the simple fact that there is an English speaker leading discussion makes a tremendous impact on language acquisition.

 

 

 

If you enjoy the outdoors and want to help preserve our natural wonders, consider volunteering on one of our environmental programmes; from conservation projects to urban renewal, you can join a variety of programmes to protect Rio’s stunning landscape.

 

Volunteer in the Tijuca Forest, the world’s largest urban rain forest, on a conservation or reforestation project. Additionally, you can work on a project helping to create alternative solutions to the ever increasing environmental problems in Rio created by plastic residues, waste, and pollution.

 

Rio de Janeiro boasts one of the most magnificent contrasting landscapes in the world: cascading forests on massive mountains adjacent to a world class city. However, this contrast isn’t always mutually beneficial, as many of Rio’s treasured green spaces are damaged by urban sprawl.

 

As a volunteer for an environmental programme, you can help to support and develop some of the most precious natural spaces, while providing alternatives to low income communities on how to dispose waste and recycle.  No previous experience or skills are required to join this programme.

 

 

 

 

 

Brazil is one of the most rapidly developing economies in the world. Dubbed on of the world’s leading developing countries, Brazil is fast becoming a powerhouse of business, industry, and innovation. Unfortunately, many people from Brazil’s favelas (or urban slums) have limited access to the opportunities the country’s emerging economy offers. That’s why this programme has expanded opportunities for people who live in favelas - working to give them increased access to opportunities across Brazil.

 

Technology is the key to the global economy, and it’s the goal of many of our partner NGOs to empower people from the favelas to learn how to use technology so they can have access to these emerging opportunities in Brazil. As a volunteer in a technological innovation programme, you may help teach people of all ages to use technology, set up new systems at partner programme sites, and/or maintain & upgrade existing systems to support new technologies.

 

Only basic technological proficiency is necessary to work on a technology programme - i.e. knowing the basic functions of operating systems like Microsoft Office. However should you be interested to offer specialist skills in technology, please let us know and a tailored programme can be devised accordingly.

 

 

 

There’s no doubt, our partner NGOs are making significant impacts in their communities - but with your help and creativity, their programmes could develop even further - making them markedly more sustainable and impactful. Volunteer opportunities range from helping partner NGOs to create new programmes, develop existing ones, make performance indicators, and work in outreach and promotion.

 

Our partner NGOs provide essential resources and programming to their communities, but staff members are often swamped by day-to-day operations and have little time to focus on the “big picture.” As a non-profit/business volunteer, you will have the opportunity to help them accomplish objectives that they may have not otherwise had time or the man-power to do without you. The time commitment and reach of your work is largely up to you, but creative and industrious go-getter types are always needed for this kind of role.

 

The most important skill needed for this kind of volunteer work is a positive attitude, creativity, and flexibility. The most successful volunteers have been self-starters who are willing to chart their own goals and objectives, while serving the needs of the partner organisation.

 

 

 

Health promotion and education is an integral part of furthering the goals of development in Brazil. With a well-informed and healthy population, anything is possible. However, there are extensive health problems that continue to threaten the wellbeing of the people. As a health volunteer, you will be on the front lines of educating and raising awareness for healthcare issues impacting local communities. Whether you are involved in hands on health promotion and canvassing, healthcare advising, contraceptive literacy, or leading disease awareness workshops - your work will make an immediate, positive impact on your project.

 

It is no secret that Brazil’s healthcare system is still in its early stages of development, and has limited impact on the poorest communities in the country. As a result, many communities rely on local organisations and NGOs for healthcare advice and education, meaning it is up to the people to provide effective health awareness. Thus, it is imperative that these organisations are staffed with dedicated and knowledgeable volunteers to execute essential health activities across Rio de Janeiro.

 

Programmes are suitable for both experienced and inexperienced volunteers. It is also ideal for medical students wishing to gain experience in this field.

 

 

 

 

This programme promotes learning through entertaining, sportive and artistic activities. Children and teenagers with a low social and cultural status have serious difficulties fitting into society in a way that maintains their dignity and equips them with the necessary skills to face life’s obstacles. The lack of these abilities make them easy targets for some of the worst social problems of our times, as they slide into the violence of drug trafficking, the vulnerability of unemployment or the humiliation of juvenile prostitution.  The purpose of the Social Circus programme is to create initiatives that reinvent forms of living, individually and collectively, making both volunteers and beneficiaries adopt values and attitudes that oppose individualism and exclude those stressing human and social differences.

 

The opportunity to show kids and teenagers that life can be mastered through their own effort and talent is something priceless. The fact that this work is seen as an effective and important social action - besides having its beneficiaries support - doesn’t guarantee the projects the funds and resources they require, making volunteer work there not only necessary, but an even more intense experience for every party involved, as it inspires both volunteers and students in the most positive of ways.

 

The Social Circus programmes are special in that they require from the volunteers not only a general physical fitness but some previous specific training in the arts performed at the circus.