Volunteering Programme – 4 weeks

Overview Volunteering Programme – 4 weeks

Live and work alongside conservation researchers and community‑development staff in one of the world’s most biodiverse reserves. In four weeks, you will gain a deeper understanding and contribute more fully to:

  • Wildlife surveys (birds, mammals, herps, butterflies)
  • Agro‑ecology & biogarden research
  • Local school visits & community workshops
  • Data entry, analysis and interpretation
  • Cultural immersion and festival participation
  • Wetland’s restoration

Optional activities:

Visiting a Sustainable Community Initiative: Shintuya Hot Springs

What’s included in this programme?

In-country travel, food, and accommodation

Accompaniment by professional guides and trained staff (where applicable)

Optional activities such as Peruvian festivities (depending on the time of year)

A Day as a Volunteer

  • 05:30 – 07:00 Pre‑dawn transect at a clay lick, monitoring macaws, parrots and parakeets
  • 07:00 – 08:00 Breakfast & daily briefing
  • 08:00 – 11:00 Rotating morning module (e.g. herpetological surveys, butterfly transects or biogarden research)
  • 11:00 – 13:00 Community engagement (school visit or biogarden build)
  • 13:00 – 14:00 Lunch & rest
  • 14:00 – 16:30 Data entry and group discussion of findings
  • 16:30 – 18:00 Afternoon survey (camera‑trap maintenance or plant‑plot monitoring)
  • 18:00 – 19:00 Dinner
  • 19:30 – 21:00 Optional night walk (nocturnal mammals, amphibians & insects)
  • 21:00 – 21:30 Reflection circle and planning for tomorrow

Sunday is your free day—rest, play or do what you enjoy the most. You can also read what Tim McGrath, a former intern, wrote: 10 activities you can do while volunteering in the jungle

All volunteers experience the same core activities—what changes with 2, 4, or 6 weeks is simply how many rotations of each project you complete. Committing for four weeks guarantees you:

  1. The ability to recognise important species recorded at the MLC on your own
  2. Getting used to life in the jungle (with the risk you won’t want to leave!)

If you’re up for a deeper challenge, the Volunteering Programme – 6 weeks is for you.

Accomodation

Manu Cloud Forest 

  • 1 night

Where you might spot the cock-of-the-rock in its natural habitat.

Manu Learning Centre Biological Field Station

  • Where you’ll be staying

The MLC offers simple, comfortable and breezy accommodation. You’ll share a room with up to three other volunteers. Fresh bedding and a mosquito net are provided weekly.

A space for learning and collaboration

The centre includes research facilities and open spaces designed to support your daily work and project needs.

A community of changemakers

The MLC brings together people from all walks of life—local and international students, visiting researchers, and curious travellers. It’s a space where inclusion, collaboration and respect shape everyday life.

What we expect

Be kind. Get involved. Make yourself at home.

Volunteers’ stories

Sofia Holmgren

My first week at the MLC has already been so much fun!! I feel as if I’ve already learnt so much new information and skills, especially in the ID workshops and jungle skill workshops. So far, my favourite part of being here is the easy access to the jungle. I have really enjoyed walking the trails & spotting wildlife, especially on the night walk. So far, my first impressions have been really good, with all the staff being so lovely and informative. I am really looking forward to seeing what the next 3 weeks involve — hopefully lots of field work and exploring the trails!

Amelia Gaskell

It’s been really special to share this experience with everyone, including the staff. They were so amazing and kind. We made some truly special connections. One time we played a soccer match—staff vs students—and that was probably one of my favourite memories.

Angus Perry

Coming here was a bit of an undertaking for me, as I had never travelled abroad before. However, I really wanted to explore the unique biodiversity South America has to offer—especially in a place like the Peruvian Amazon. […] My favourite memory was when I was lucky enough to hold a caiman in Lucumayo, one of the local streams”.

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