What inspired you to work for Impactrip?
I always enjoyed being a volunteer from a young age. I like the feeling of being useful and using my time in a profitable way. I was lucky enough to have the opportunity to be involved in several volunteer projects the past years and I felt like it was time now to be in the background of the action, therefore it was an amazing surprise that this position was open and that I had the opportunity to join the team.
Working in Impactrip makes me feel like I have an Impact in the community every day and I also love meeting all our amazing partners with such cool projects. Safe to say is the best of both worlds, professional and humanitarian.
Our team
Describe a typical day at work.
A good thing about this job is that the work days are never the same. The main responsible is to take care of everything related to the volunteers, however there are some activities that are always in the same day, for example weekends are always for arrivals, mondays always for the introduction day, and tuesdays for the placements (sometimes wednesdays if there are volunteers for the wolf conservation.
Every week I prepare the placements for the next week and help in the hostel. Sometimes I join the placements to make sure I know what the volunteers can do there and to maintain a good relationship with our partners.
What is your favorite part of your job?
Meeting people from all over the world and getting to know several amazing projects that do an amazing job helping the community. Before having this job, I was still very involved in volunteer work but having this position gives me more time and opportunity to participate in this world, which makes me very happy.
Also, I'm a very communicative person that likes to be surrounded with people and be occupied. This job is perfect for that as there are always people around and plenty of things to do.
Me and some volunteers in their free time
How do you use your education and international background in your current role?
I worked with a lot of NGOs around Europe so I know the way they work and the difference between them and a big company. Also during the three weeks I spent volunteering around Europe I met people from all around the world and due to that I'm aware of a lot of different cultures and nationalities so I know how to behave with the different volunteers.
Finally, regarding education, as I studied tourism this job is a perfect match between what I learned and the volunteering I did and continue doing.
What makes Impactrip special?
Lisbon is a very vibrant city and there is always something to do. The special thing about our capital is that there is always a way to please everyone, if you want to relax you can go for one of the many gardens around the city, if you want beautiful sunsets there is a lot of viewpoints, if you want beach is only a short train ride, there is nightlife, there is plenty of delicious food and there is always a project that will suit you.
Portuguese people live life slower than some other countries, we take our time to appreciate the small things and time is almost always relative. Is very usual to randomly meet a stranger while you are around the city that will quickly turn into your friend. I’m sure it is a trip that is going to be worth sharing and that you will not forget.
What hopes do you have for the future of Impactrip?
That we can reach as many associations as possible, we are looking for potential partnerships everyday in several different topics as we have volunteers with many different skills so I hope that in the future we are recognised as a big help for the associations of the countries we are located in.
One of our placements
What do you hope participants take away from your programs?
Personal growth and the feeling that their time was useful for someone. The kind of people that come to our projects are looking for a meaningful experience and to be somehow integrated in the community so they don't come as a simple tourist that only visits the basic things that they heard about and with our projects that's not the case at all.
From the beginning of their experience we make sure they are integrated and start learning about the culture, they are tourists but they give something for the community also so their trip has an impact not only in their lives but also in the places they visited.
How do you help support participants?
All our volunteers have support 24/7 and therefore they always feel safe. I also make sure I have a close relationship with the participants so that they know that they can count on me if they need. Before they arrive I talk with all of them to make sure they know who is picking them up from the airport and present them to the team in the hostel so that they know who to ask if they need something.
Every week we have a sharing circle activity where they have a safe space to tell me how the placement is going and can share suggestions between all the participants of ways to have more impact.
If you could participate on one of Impactrip programs, where would you go and what would you do?
Definitely to the animal care in Split, the coordinator from there shares a lot of things from there and it looks like an amazing project and of course the city is beautiful.
What does meaningful travel mean to you?
Not making the trip only about me. All of us already felt bothered by a tourist at least once so it is normal that we don't want to be that person in another country. Everytime I travel somewhere I like to feel like I'm not bothering anyone and that I'm making an effort to fit in there and that's why I love to do volunteer work everywhere I go. I love learning all the different countries and languages and making friends all around that can show me the real local experience.
