Volunteer in Peru with United Planet: 1-12 weeks

Peru is filled with friendly people and is one of our most popular volunteer destinations. Ancient ruins and breathtaking landscapes pepper the region, and the society is as complex as the woven tapestries that abound at the market. While staying with host families in Cusco, you will get a firsthand look at the political and economic issues that impact locals on a daily basis. Whether this will be your first out-of-country volunteer experience or your hundredth, the warmth and kindness of Peru's people will make you feel at home.

As a volunteer in Peru, you will help alleviate poverty by working at a wide range of community centers in Cusco. Partnerships with after school programs, orphanages, women's shelters, and youth organizations allow you to build relationships and leave a lasting impression on the lives of those you meet.

Possible volunteer projects include:

- Working at sanctuaries that care for animals that have endured severe trauma

- Interning with a small local tour operator that organizes ecological, adventure tours in and around Cusco

- Assisting teachers in public schools with classes in various subjects

- Caring for school children in a village outside of Cusco

- Working with mentally disabled children at a rehabilitation clinic

- Providing emotional support to patients at a substance abuse rehabilitation clinic

- Mentoring boys who have committed crimes and preparing them to reenter society

- Working at a shelter with young mothers and children who have been victims of abuse and violence (women volunteers only)

- Caring for abused, abandoned, or orphaned children at either a daycare or an orphanage

- Helping medical staff at state-run hospitals or smaller clinics

- Working with patients and medical staff at a psychiatric clinic

- Assisting at a center for elderly living in extreme poverty

Please visit our website for more information about the projects.