Many of our 2020 camp experiences have been postponed due to the Covid-19 virus. We look forward to continue the gatherings when it is safe to do so. Please check our website or subscribe to our newsletter for the latest updates. We commend the efforts by so many of us to limit the spread of the virus and send deep thanks to the healthcare workers across the globe taking care of those most affected. We see our work of bringing balance back to ecosystems as more important than ever. Our team is busy building our organizational capacity during this time so that we can share the message of regenerative land management even further. We are grateful for your support and look forward to seeing you at camp in the future.
Joining an Ecosystem Restoration Camp is a great way to give back to the planet and make a positive impact in your local region or while travelling abroad. The camps offer a range of short to long-term volunteering programs where everyone is welcome! Facilities, cost, minimum stay length and restoration activities vary from one camp to another. We also host events throughout the year so weekend stays are also possible.
We offer ecosystem restoration courses that are specifically designed for each of our camps and cover all the techniques that are implemented there. You will get the chance to learn and practice your new skills. For example, you can learn how to produce indigenous organisms for soil building at our camp in Mexico, agroforestry practices unique to the altiplano region of Spain or techniques to regreen the desert in Egypt.
Some of our camps offer internship opportunities. You can find them under the ‘Needs’ section of individual camp pages. You can also contact them and offer your unique skill set with ideas on how it can benefit the camp. Camps often welcome Master and PHD program students who want to collect data for a camp as part of their research. Other internship opportunities may include camp building, communications, restoration or testing a business idea.
Established Camp: A camp that has been part of the Ecosystem Restoration movement for a significant length of time and that has proven to be able to host campers and provide them with high quality, meaningful activities.
Seedling Camp: A camp that is new to ecosystem restoration and hosting guests. As a seedling, all parties involved, will jointly build this project together and develop the restoration work underway.
Your safety is very important to us. Most camps are in locations that are completely safe for you to travel to. Some camps are in locations where there is civil unrest, higher levels of crime, or in areas where there could be severe nature events (earthquakes, tornados, vulcanic eruptions). We strongly advise you to check with your national authority’s travel advisory service to see if there are specific travel advisories for the region you are travelling to. We strongly advise you to comply with that travel advisory. If there is a negative travel advisory for the area you plan to go to, we want to impress on you that it is your decision to not heed the warnings and go. ERC can then not be liable in that situation if something happens to you.
Work at camps is usually safe. The camp coordinators make your safety their highest priority too. But you will be working with tools and sometimes even (heavy) machinery. Sometimes the terrain can be slightly treacherous. Heat or cold can become a problem for people at work that do not take the necessary measures to prevent injury from weather conditions. Especially in remote locations, all people at an Ecosystem Restoration Camp will need to watch out for eachother’s safety. For this reason we ask you to also sign our Code of Conduct, through which you commit to contributing to a safe environment at camps for all that are there with you. Take yours and all other camper’s safety seriously! Together, while watching over eachother, we can restore our ecosystems safely and successfully.