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Volunteer with the MCL

 

Thank you for you interest in volunteering with the Monteverde Conservation League. We currently need volunteers for the following roles:

• Reception
• Maintenance
• Environmental Education
• Work with ProNativas
• Biological Stations
  • San Gerardo
  • Pocosol
• Requirements
• Costs
• Application

 

Reception
Tasks	Answering inquiries about the protected areas and the services available Selling products in the shop (books, clothes, cds/dvds) Attendant for the café (coffee, cold drinks, cakes)
Skills needed	Spoken Spanish and English Dealing with the public Handling cash (colones) Some food handling
Time required	Preferably at least a month, half time
Location	Information centre, Monteverde, Cerro Plano (2km from Santa Elena), Costa Rica

Materials production assistant
Tasks	Creating maps and field guides for the San Gerardo and Pocosol field stations
Skills needed	GPS, map making, interpretation, biological field skills (identification of points of interest). Reasonably high fitness level.
Time required	At least a month full time
Location	San Gerardo and Pocosol field stations and Cerro Plano office
Conditions	Field stations are a considerable walk from nearest transport and are off-grid and have no hot water.

Field biologists
Tasks	Conduct field surveys of birds, mammals and amphibians in the reserve Compile species lists for visitation centers
Skills	Species identification, conducting field surveys
Time required	At least 3 months for each species group. For non-resident species surveys at different times of year may be necessary
Location	The Children´s Eternal Rainforest
Conditions	Off-trail hiking in cloud- and rainforest in wet conditions, often far from the nearest road. Camping. Carrying all requirements except water.

Maintenance worker
Tasks	Assist with the maintenance of signage, tracks, fences, handrails, benches, lookouts and buildings in the reserve
Skills	Carpentry, trail building, good fitness
Time required	At lease a month, half-time
Location	Children's Eternal Rainforest
Conditions	Field stations are a considerable walk from nearest transport and are off-grid and have no hot water.

Environmental educator
Tasks	Developing environmental education programs and materials and teaching for elementary school age children
Skills	Curriculum design, developing teaching materials, teaching Spanish
Time required	At least a month half-time
Location	Bajo del Tigre, Monteverde, 5 minutes walk from public bus route
Conditions	Environmental education classroom at the reserve with internet access

Energy systems technician
Tasks	Designing, implementing and running off-grid energy needs for San Gerardo field station, writing grant applications
Skills	Energy system design, appropriate technology/ fund raising
Time	At least a month half-time
Location	San Gerardo field station
Conditions	One and a half hour walk from nearest transport and are off-grid and have no hot water

Other volunteers are required from time to time for tasks including:

• Cooking, Cleaning
• Tree planting
• Clean out/ File cabinet donations for organization
• Promotion activities, fairs
• Fund-raising
• Publicity for tree planting
• Native garden work with ProNativas

For most jobs volunteers need to stay for at least a month to have enough time to know the ropes and make a significant contribution. Volunteers will be located in Monte Verde, Costa Rica. Below you can find the necessary information about volunteering for our organization, as well as the application which we would like for you to fill out in order for us to get a better idea of what area you might be able to work in.

Reception:

This involves helping in reception at our visitor’s center at Bajo del Tigre, in Monteverde, or at Finca Steller on the Atlantic side of the BEN. At Bajo del Tigre, which is a patch of land that is part of the BEN but physically separate from the rest of the forest, we have over 3.5 km of trails as well as a visitors center, a greenhouse, and a children’s house where we organize recreational and educational activities. This small sector of the BEN has a unique ecosystem because it is a transition zone between pre-montane rain forest and premontane moist forest, a type of forest that is very rare nowadays in Costa Rica. Because of its location on the Pacific slope, elevation between 1,020 meters and 1,350 meters above sea level, and humidity, Bajo del Tigre is a habitat very different from other reserves in the area. Of the tree species found in Bajo del Tigre, 30 are among the species in Monte Verde that have been recently identified as new to science.

Work in Bajo del Tigre would involve more work in reception in the visitor’s center, whereas work in Finca Steller would involve more promotional tasks and even organizing your own activities for children at the center. For both jobs it is ideal that you have at least an intermediate level of Spanish, but fluency in Spanish is not necessary.

Maintenance:   

Maintenance work includes clearing trails, making and posting signs for trails or field stations, infrastructural work, and various other tasks.

Environmental Education Activities:  

Due to a scarcity of funds, we do not have an environmental educator on staff at the moment. As long as this continues to be the case, we count on volunteers for the incredibly important task of environmental education. If you have a strong background in environmental education and the initiative to work on environmental education materials, organize activities and carry them out, we would love to have your help. This would involve working at Bajo del Tigre or Finca Steller and visiting local schools to promote environmental education. Environmental education requires at least near fluency in Spanish and English. While many children in the Monteverde area speak English, these are the private school students and we would like to involve public schools from surrounding areas as well. Most public school children do not speak English. Also, please keep in mind that environmental education might involve organizing activities for adults as well.

Work with ProNativas:

ProNativas is an associated organisation which promotes native vegetation in the Monteverde area. Voluntary work with Provativas is supervised by botanist Willow Zuchowski and may include:

• Planning
• Garden design
• Future funding/sustainability of project
• Plant sales (including to hotels)
• Experimentation with various plant groups (propagation techniques)
• Communication with ‘clients’/donors
• Digital photography of gardens, activities, plant-animal interactions
• Collaborating with EE coordinator and Milton at CEC; assist with workshops for teachers, students.
• Review and translation of brochure and other materials.
• Preparation of EE material (laminates, posters, etc.), grant proposals, etc.
• Work on website

Garden

• Site preparation
• Garden installation
• Weeding, trimming…caring for gardens.
• Adding organic fertilizer.
• Mulching
• Adding plants (usually in rainy season)
• Adding trunks, branches, garden “infrastructure’

Plant collecting

• Collecting cuttings, plantlets, and seeds in natural areas where we have permission to collect
• Collecting cuttings and seeds along roadsides

Greenhouse

• Planting seeds, plantlets, and cuttings
• Weeding greenhouse in general, weeding bagged plants, germination bed
• Check condition of plants

Construction

• Repairing and building greenhouses
• Making signs
• Making trellises and planters
• Creating stone garden paths and walls
• Sustainable watering system for greenhouses
  

Biological Field Stations:

San Gerardo Biological Station is located 7 Km. from Santa Elena, Monte Verde, Puntarenas, at an altitude of 1,220 meters above sea level. It has capacity for 32 people, 5 Km of paths, a spectacular view of the Arenal Volcano, and wet forest full of life with two waterfalls. San Gerardo is home to incredible wildlife including the Puma and the Barenecked Umbrella Bird. To reach San Gerardo it is necessary to go to the entrance of the Santa Elena Biological Reserve and walk from there for about 45 minutes until arriving at the station.

Work at San Gerardo would involve helping the manager of the station, Geovanny Gonzalez, with all sorts of tasks including maintenance, cooking, cleaning, clearing trails, etc. Spanish is very helpful but not a requirement for this job.

 

Pocosol Biological Station is located 13 km from La Tigra de San Carlos at an altitude of 720 meters above sea level, and has a rainfall range of 4,000 to 4,500 millimeters annually. It has an agreeable temperature that varies between 17 and 20 degrees Celsius, capacity for 32 people, 10 km of trails, mud pots and volcanic lava, a Laguna of 3.5 hectares, and a waterfall. One can arrive at Pocosol in a 4 wheel drive vehicle or can catch a taxi (pick up, 4WD) in the community of La Tigra.

Work at Pocosol involves helping the manager of the station, Juan Chacon, with tasks including maintenance, cooking, cleaning, clearing trails, etc. An intermediate level of Spanish is required to volunteer at Pocosol.

 

Program Requirements

Volunteers for this program must:

• be 18 years or older
• have no major health problems
  
  

 

Cost of Volunteering with MCL

Volunteers are asked to cover the cost of their food, accommodation and travel to and from work. If the work involves travelling to the field, transport will be provided. MCL can organise home-stays for volunteers which will keep these costs to a minimum ($16-18/day full board). Staying at field stations is more expensive ($32/day full board) because food needs to be transported in and lighting is provided by generator and the station employs staff for cooking, cleaning, laundry and maintenance. The cost is negotiable for the currently advertised jobs listed at the top of this page.

 

Application Form

General information:
Name:
Date of Birth
Gender:
Nationality:
Contact information:
Mailing Address:
Country:
Email Address:
Telephone:		Fax:
Education (Check highest qualification):
High School Graduate		First Degree Graduate
Second Degree/Masters Graduate		Other
Other relevant qualifications and skills:
Work and travel experience:
Health Conditions:
How long are you hoping to volunteer?
Two weeks (Biological stations only)		One month
Three months		Four months
What task would you prefer? (Number in order of preference)
Maintenance 1 2 3 4 5 6 Reception 1 2 3 4 5 6 Environmental Education 1 2 3 4 5 6 ProNativas 1 2 3 4 5 6 Biological Station 1 2 3 4 5 6 Other 1 2 3 4 5 6
What is your interest in volunteering with the Monteverde Conservation League? What are you hoping to achieve with our organization?
Do you require any other information? Please let us know what information you need.
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