Short-term (2 to 4 weeks) "work with children/teenagers" projects in Argentina

You can volunteer for a minimum of one month.

We feel that the volunteers need more than just an on arrival meeting when they arrive in Buenos Aires, and for this reason in 2010 we will be developing set arrival dates for the volunteers and we will arrange a two day on arrival training program so that the volunteers may be better prepared for their projects and so that they may know who SAS really are. We will also let the volunteer know of dates during the year in which events are taking place in local projects so we can have informal meetings and in this way the volunteers can get to know other volunteers in Argentina and learn about our other local projects.

- 13-14 March 2010
- 8-9 May 2010
- 31 July – 1 August 2010
- 30–31 October 2010

The volunteers need to cover their accommodation and food costs during the on arrival training, the training starts at 9am.

- Volunteers should write a MOTIVATION LETTER in Spanish.
- Volunteers should fill in the pre-evaluation in Spanish before their arrival, this will be sent out with the Information Sheet after completion of the placement.
- Volunteers should sign an agreement that they have read and understood the Information Sheet and have read and understood their rights and responsibilities. (this will be sent out with the Info-Sheet as well).

The name Quebrachito alludes to an historical significance, in relation to the origins of Villa Ana, which is linked to the presence of a foreign factory whose activity was to exploit the Quebracho Colorado, a type of tree.
Los Quebrachitos represent new roots, young people with common concerns who wish to improve the social reality of the village. Quebrachito was born with the objective of undertaking community work in the village, which gives an incentive to the young people to compromise with the social-political reality and at the same time deepen their knowledge and achieve a wider view of the world.
The methodology of our work is fundamentally based in the exchange of ideas and knowledge through community service, which is planned and organised taking into account the resources available. We always try to achieve the participation and compromise of each one of the young people who take part in the project, respecting and valorising different contributions. The group, even if it is an organisation, functions as a family, a group of friends who share common objectives and who feel a great responsibility for what they do and for the community.

The volunteer will develop a project at a primary school of the village.
The idea is to introduce the volunteer into a true teaching experience. The volunteer will incorporate the school's staff, leading a foreign language course (the volunteers own language) and organising specific games and educational activities for the children of the school.
In addition, the volunteer will support the group Quebrachitos in all of its activities. To allow a gradual integration in the reality of the village and the project, the first two weeks after the arrival of the volunteer at Villa Ana will be programmed with meetings with the school's authorities and all Quebrachito's members, in order to discuss all of the ideas and suggestions for the planning of the project, taking into account activities, schedules, availability of resources, etc.
The volunteer will work 5/6 hours per day from Monday to Friday and at times will need to participate in group activities on weekends.

The volunteer needs to be prepared to live in a small village of 4000 inhabitants, and to be organised and independent.

Shared with a local family.

Villa Ana, North of the province Santa Fe (12 hours by bus from the capital Buenos Aires).

A sufficient knowledge of Spanish.

Yellow fever.

Travel (internal and external) costs and costs related to the on arrival training (room and food) of the volunteer are at the volunteers charge. The volunteer will make a one off payment of 160€ to Subir al Sur on arrival. This money covers administration costs of Subir al Sur during the volunteers stay.

In addition the volunteer will pay 160€ per month for the duration of the project to the local hosting organization, Los Quebrachitos. This money will cover the volunteers housing and food during the month.

The on arrival trainings as noted above are obligatory. The costs for the stay in Buenos Aires will need to be covered by the volunteer. Please be clear with the volunteers about what they have to pay, when and why. After this they will travel to their project in the North of the province of Santa Fé (approx. 13 hours by bus).

This project is open all year round and you can volunteer for a minimum of one month.

We feel that the volunteers need more than just an on arrival meeting when they arrive in Buenos Aires, and for this reason in 2010 we will be developing set arrival dates for the volunteers and we will arrange a two day on arrival training program so that the volunteers may be better prepared for their projects and so that they may know who SAS really are. We will also let the volunteer know of dates during the year in which events are taking place in local projects so we can have informal meetings and in this way the volunteers can get to know other volunteers in Argentina and learn about our other local projects.

The arrival weekend dates are as follows

13-14 March 2010
8-9 May 2010
31 July – 1 August 2010
30–31 October 2010

The volunteers need to cover their accommodation and food costs during the on arrival training, the training starts at 9am.

- Volunteers should write a MOTIVATION LETTER in Spanish.
- Volunteers should fill in the pre-evaluation in Spanish before their arrival, this will be sent out with the Information Sheet after completion of the placement.
- Volunteers should sign an agreement that they have read and understood the Information Sheet and have read and understood their rights and responsibilities. (this will be sent out with the Info-Sheet as well).

Who are we?
Piedra Libre is a non-profit civil society association formed by a varied group of people, such as Recreation teachers, Physical Education teachers, Visual Arts and Graphic Design, Theatre and Music teachers, Primary school teachers, jugglers, social-cultural animators, tourist guides, graphic designers, make-up artists, mime artists and psichology pedagogues.

What do we do?
Our goal is to encourage the development of recreation, and its relationship with the social areas of education, health, and the services of tourism.
Piedra Libre facilitate the publication and diffusion of these objectives through concrete actions organised by the association. We are protecting and specifying several actions in those areas including research. We organise activities and meetings for associations and experts in relation with the theme of recreation.
Piedra Libre also encourages all kinds of bid activities for the common good. All our activities are organised for people of all ages and all social classes. We are constantly developing an environment of sincerity and solidarity among the local associations and we encourage their intellectual and cultural improvement.
Piedra Libre is working on the organisation of events, courses, workshops, seminars, congresses,etc. At the same time we are offering different kinds of trainings. The centre for the city of Bahía Blanca and the influenced zone of the Forum has been permanently functioning as a place for recreational and free time activities since 2001.

The reality of the neighbourhood where the volunteers will work

The district has a population of 860 families, of which 28% are living in poverty and 72% in misery. One of its main characteristics is the existence of a high birth rate and a significant part of the population is living from illegal work and is included in governmental social projects.

This is a centre hosting children up to 5 years old in a vulnerable social situation, concentrating on the following characteristics: unsatisfied basic needs, numerous families, single parents, unemployed parents, violence in families.
Integrated Attention Centre - the attendance of the institute is of 6 hours per day (from 8am to 2pm) Offering food support twice a day (breakfast and lunch or lunch and a snack).

Special objectives -
- To offer food support in the Integrated Attention Centre in accordance with the nutritional values required for the age group of 0 until 5 years old.
- To promote the participation of families in order to plan the appropriate actions according to the needs they present.
- To protect the psychosocial health of the children promoting their healthy development.
- To create an environment which the children consider it as their own, representing their social-cultural rules and personal daily routines in order to feel free, creative and responsible.
- To offer experiences such as socialisation and incorporation of conducted habits in an environment of solidarity exceeding the one provided by governmental institutions.
- To support the learning process, completing the family actions and school or nursery programmes, preventing situations of desertion, searching for a complete articulation and stimulating the incorporation of formal education.
- To promote the formation of family-groups in order to offer them a space for participation, for exchanging ideas, searching for solutions together for the problems they are facing with, in relation with children raising, and family-community relationships.

- The volunteer must be ready to work in an independent manner with children, young people and adults with social problems living in low income areas.
- The volunteer must have the ability to connect with children and adults through games and educational activities and to be in contact with their families.
- The volunteer needs to have charisma and be willing to play, to involucrate, to share knowledge and to be open to work with Piedra Libre and in the project of the children’s nursery.
- Knowledge of how to use internet.
- Predisposition to share and learn abut the cultural life of our country.

At least 4-6 hours per day and sometimes participation at weekend activities, such as Family Day, Children Day, etc. If the volunteer participates on weekends they will still be expected to partake in their weekday activities.

The accommodation is in a recreational complex which belongs to Piedra Libre, in an urban area with a big park and full of nature. It's 20 minutes by bus away from the nursery school and 30 minutes away from the centre where the central office of Piedra Libre can be found. The complex has a big park, football and basketball pitches and a swimming pool for the summer. Also we have a house which we have recently renovated with two rooms with 4 beds in each, a private bathroom, kitchen, living/dining room and Internet, telephone and a washing machine.

The association will NOT provide food for the volunteers.

The volunteers must keep the house clean and need to pay the costs of travel from the house to the nursery school or which ever Project they decide to participate in. It is important to note that Piedra libre also has the following projects, which the volunteers may also participate in -

• Road security/Wayside code.
• Older people.
• Caring for the environment, recycling, water management, etc.
• Celebrations for the Children Day, Family Day and Retired persons Day, etc.
• Recreational activities in the complex.

Basics in Spanish, willing to learn!

Yellow Fever.

Due to the fact we have had problems with volunteers making payments to Subir al Sur we would like to explain that the one off fee for administration costs (160€) which are payable to Subir al Sur in the on arrival training cover our internet, telephone, coordination costs, and costs for the on arrival training. To date we receive no additional funding. In addition to this, the amount is used in case of any problems
which may arise in the local project so that we may travel and mediate the situation.

We feel it very necessary that our international partners may share with the volunteers why the administration costs to SAS are necessary we feel that this should be an integral part of the volunteers training prior to their project. The volunteers should be aware that organizations in “South” countries do not receive funds from the government and are heavily dependant on the volunteer’s contributions.
Subir al Sur coordinates the actions here in Argentina and the volunteers go to participate in our partner’s projects.

The volunteers also pay monthly to our partners for accommodation and food, any money left over is used by the partners for administration costs.
Subir al Sur develops the local programs together with our partners and shares this information on an international level, we then do all necessary follow up with the international and local, including the writing of the info sheet.

Until now we have arranged an on arrival meeting for the volunteers in Buenos Aires so that they may have an idea about SAS and its local projects, we then follow up on the volunteers in their local projects through our partners and with the volunteers. During the project we request the volunteers to send us a series of written evaluations. If any problems may arise during the project we speak first by telephone and if necessary we travel to the project (this may be a six hour journey) in order to evaluate the problem and to mediate in case of conflict.

Travel (internal and external) costs, and costs related to the on arrival information meeting (room and food) of the volunteer are at the volunteers charge.

The volunteer will make a one off payment of 160€ to Subir al Sur in the on arrival training. This money covers the administration costs of Subir al Sur during the volunteers stay.

In addition to this the volunteer needs to pay monthly, 130 € to the local hosting project, Piedra Libre. This Money is used to pay the accommodation (including cable TV with 100 channels, telephone to receive phone calls, Mobile Internet, and wifi in the central office, costs of gas and electricity, kitchen/fridge/microwave/utensils for cooking – mineral water dispenser – heaters in Winter , ventilators in Summer – washing machine/ Cleaning products (this does not include washing power for clothes or softener) its is important to note that the volunteer MUST buy their own food, this is not included in the fee.

The on arrival trainings as noted above are obligatory. The costs for the stay in Buenos Aires will need to be covered by the volunteer. Please be clear with the volunteers about what they have to pay, when and why. After this they will travel to their project in the south of the province of Buenos Aires (approx. 8 hours by bus, overnight by train approx. 10 hour train journey).

You can volunteer for a minimum of one month.

We feel that the volunteers need more than just an on arrival meeting when they arrive in Buenos Aires, and for this reason in 2010 we will be developing set arrival dates for the volunteers and we will arrange a two day on arrival training program so that the volunteers may be better prepared for their projects and so that they may know who SAS really are. We will also let the volunteer know of dates during the year in which events are taking place in local projects so we can have informal meetings and in this way the volunteers can get to know other volunteers in Argentina and learn about our other local projects.

- 13-14 March 2010
- 8-9 May 2010
- 31 July – 1 August 2010
- 30–31 October 2010

The volunteers need to cover their accommodation and food costs during the on arrival training, the training starts at 9am.

- Volunteers should write a MOTIVATION LETTER in Spanish.
- Volunteers should fill in the pre-evaluation in Spanish before their arrival, this will be sent out with the Information Sheet after completion of the placement.
- Volunteers should sign an agreement that they have read and understood the Information Sheet and have read and understood their rights and responsibilities. (this will be sent out with the Info-Sheet as well).

WHO ARE WE?
EcoClubes is a democratic civil society association, made for children and young people, which undertake actions with other institutions to improve the quality of life of their towns.

WHERE ARE WE?
EcoClubes is present in 30 countries in America, Europe and Africa:Argentina, Bolivia, Brasil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Germany, Guatamala, Guinea, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Mexico, Morocco, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Ukraine, Uruguay, USA, and Venezuela. There are approximately 15,000 young volunteers integrated into this movement.

HOW DO WE WORK?
We define the local problems, we capacitate and inform ourselves through the help of specialists, community references etc., we search for alliances with other institutions, local governments, companies etc., we promote an exchange of practices within the community with innovative strategies, we diffuse our propositions and the results and finally, we measure the impact caused by our actions.

The volunteer must be ready to work in an independent manner with children and young people with social problems (socially disadvantaged, disabled, ill) living in low income areas. We would like to host someone who has a capacity to approach young people, to exchange, share, communicate and pass time with them. The work will take place be in centres such as Integrame, the missionary centres, the San Miguel Arcangel Community Hall, Barrio Toba, and some actions in collaboration with Red Cross, Clorinda.

Integrame is an association from Clorinda which works with children and adults with special needs. The volunteer will have the opportunity to work with them from two to five times during the week.

There are 3 "Centros Misonales" (Missionary Centres) in Clorinda: Centro Misional San Cayetano, Centro Sagrada Familia y Centro San Jose are working with about 125 children between 2 and 14 years of age. The volunteers will work with them two to four times a week during 2 hours in order to organise activities with a restricted group of children (5 to 15). The activities to develop can be ecological, artistic, school support and recreational. The volunteer will be in charge of the photo and film coverage of different events of the centres so it would be greatly appreciated if s/he can bring a digital camera. Otherwise it is possible to use the association's camera. As regards the filming, the association holds a camera for it which will be at the disposal of the volunteer.

The NGO San Miguel Arcangel gives us the opportunity to use a place in another part of the city (Barrio 29 de Septiembre) in their Community Hall, where children from 2 to 14 yrs go to play, eat and meet. The volunteers will have the possibility to work there at least once a week during 1h30 to organize the same kind of activities as above and everything that seems relevant to the volunteers.
During the summer holidays (from January to March), the volunteers will have the opportunity to organise a "summer camp" once to five times a week and follow every week a different theme to raise awareness amongst the children while teaching them through workshops.

In addition to working with children and young people the volunteer will work on environmental and cultural themes. It would be great if the volunteer has the capacity to share her/his knowledge of how to play an instrument, to teach languages or arts. Any artistic qualities will be greatly appreciated; we have guitars which can be used to teach young people and to use it in our cultural and artistic project called Expresarte (www.proyectoexpresarte.blogspot.com) which consists in teaching for free, music, guitar (with an aboriginal language choir and guitar lessons), theatre and folk dance, so the volunteer could help if interested.

The volunteer will work on workshops in schools on the themes of Dengue Fever and Waste and the Environment. The volunteer will also help out with planting trees in communal spaces. They will participate in puppet shows which are used as a pedagogical tool to teach young people on the above themes. In addition to this, once to several times a month, EcoClub Clorinda organises "Cine En El Barrio", where films are shown to the community.

Sharing with a family. Shared room with one (max 2) other international volunteer(s) with private bathroom.

Clorinda, Formosa. Northeast of Argentina, close to the border with Paraguay, one hour from the Paraguayan capital city Asunción. Please note that in the Summer the weather is VERY hot and humid.

Basics in Spanish, willing to learn!

Yellow Fever.

Travel (internal and external) costs and costs related to the on arrival training (room and food) of the volunteer are at the volunteers charge.

The volunteer will make a one off payment of 160€ to Subir al Sur on arrival. This money covers administration costs of Subir al Sur during the volunteers stay.

In addition the volunteer will pay 180€ per month for the duration of the project to the local hosting organization, Eco Clubes Clorinda. This money will cover the volunteers housing (and food), wash and iron the linen during the month + the use of a WIFI connection.

The on arrival trainings as noted above are obligatory. The costs for the stay in Buenos Aires will need to be covered by the volunteer. Please be clear with the volunteers about what they have to pay, when and why. After this they will travel to their project in the North of Argentina (approx. 18 hours by bus).

The youth group for community action “Quebrachito” are developing several actions which commemorate this important year. Argentina is going towards its bicentenary on 25 May celebrating 200 years as a nation and Villa Ana is going to celebrate its centenary on 9 July as a village.
For this reason together with Subir al Sur and the community of Villa Ana we will develop from 26 June until 11 July a project which has the objective of working on activities related and forming part of the festivities on the route to the birthday of the village.
The history and the development of a small village such as Villa Ana goes back exactly 100 years and was in the hands of a British company which exploited the North-East of Argentina for a tree called 'Quebracho' from which they extracted a substance called tannin.
The community of Villa Ana is characterized by its history and by the painful memories of usurpation and robbery. The youth group Quebrachito, Subir al Sur and the people of the village are preparing and organizing to celebrate the birthday of their dear village through different activities, which are as follows...

- Construction of a bus stop on the road 32 which gives access to the village of Villa Ana, its decoration will be related to the Centenary of the Village.

- Cleaning, painting and other activities in the local museum.

- Reforestation with different species of trees characteristic of the zone in the area of the former factory.

- Participation in different activities to be realized in the village organized by the Commission for the Centenary.

- Dynamic activities with children in one of the most marginalized neighbourhoods of the area.

During the project the volunteers will also participate in different workshops and talks based around the theme of “Exploitation in Latin America and the Forestal Company in Villa Ana”. A recommended reading list will be sent out with the Information Sheet to those accepted on the project.

26/27 June 2010. The volunteers must be ready to start the on arrival workshop at 10am on the 26th. More information will be sent out in the Information Sheet to those accepted on the project. The volunteers need to cover their accommodation and food costs during the on arrival training.

Villa Ana, a village of 3000 inhabitants in the North of the Province of Santa Fé.

Shared in basic conditions.

Suggested vaccinations: Yellow Fever. ALL VOLUNTEERS MUST HAVE MEDICAL INSURANCE COVER, PLEASE CHECK VISA REQUIREMENTS FOR ENTERING ARGENTINA.

200€ to be paid upon arrival.