Agroecology & Community Farming Internship in Ecuador

What did you most enjoy about your experience? Everything! I loved getting involved with the community. I loved the days up at the school, getting to know the kids, chatting, playing, working on the garden together. I loved the days we spent walking around the land, identifying and mapping the ojos de agua. I loved all of the mingas. I loved being invited along to attend the meetings (even if I didn’t understand everything!). I loved being invited to join the disfile for carnaval with one of the families. I loved how much I learnt! From Sebastian, not only about various farming techniques, native plants and trees, how the water supply works etc but also about cultura andina, traditional methods, beliefs, medicines and how integral it is to the communities. I learned so much from Joshua and Karina about life in Ecuador in general - politics, culture, places! From the communities about life in the Andes. Seeing real progress. Although not complete, we planted in the garden and only had some parts left to finish. With the reforestation project, we mapped, observed whilst Sebastian coordinated where and when with the community and then planted in the minga! I loved the structure of the project. Daily check ins were great to get energised, feel appreciation, check in with each other and to stay up to date about what everyone else was up to. Delicious communal lunch was very much appreciated for the great food and social aspect also. Quilico is perfect. Comfortable, beautiful surroundings, sociable. Great recommendations for local walks - the Komoot link was great! List of things to do on days off. Joshua also shared lots of info of things happening around Guaranda.

Volunteering at El Terreno in Atandahua was a really great and meaningful experience. I joined a reforesting project, helping to give and plant trees to local communities. I learned a lot about how trees help bring back natural springs, and also improved my social and language skills. The volunteer team felt like a family, and the local people were super kind. El Terreno is a place where anyone can find a project that fits them, even without any experience. I really recommend it to anyone who wants to help and learn in a friendly and safe place.

After doing an internship of 6 weeks at El Terreno I can say without hesitation that I loved the experience. Joshua is open for the different goals and experiences people strive for, making it easy to create a well suited programme. It allowed me to develop myself in a new environment wherein I could learn new things as well as giving something back. Next to this more practical side, living with Joshua and the other interns was a really pleasant experience. The group activities we organised made the work / travelling experience nicely balanced, while on the other hand it was also possible to decide when to join these activities or not. Lastly the location, Atandahua itself is a rural quiet place which gives it a relaxing atmosphere. In the direct surroundings there is enough to do during the week and the central location allows for easy trips throughout Ecuador during the weekends.