Environment Volunteering in Sao Paulo, Brazil

Last summer I was lucky enough to volunteer at IPBio Betary Reserve in Brazil, and I can say that it was an amazing experience. For a month, I was lucky enough to enjoy a very well-organized volunteer experience with very competent people. The centre’s managers are very friendly and flexible, and always ready to help in whatever way you need. I was able to share this experience with other wonderful volunteers from various countries. The atmosphere was very good and during our free time, especially on weekends, we could enjoy excursions and leisure activities in the region, which has very beautiful and interesting natural sites to visit. I definitely recommend to volunteer with this amazing NGO if you are looking to do some meaninful voluntary work in conservation field in Brazil! :D

Having the privilege of assisting at both the Atlantic and Amazon forests, getting to see the differences in biomes and wildlife, and directly contributing to science has been a dream come true. Despite growing up as a city kid with a fear of spiders, I learned to enjoy collecting them and other insects to help identify and add to the database. It also wasn’t easy removing invasive Napoleon plants, hundreds of them, yet even still watching the endangered juçara palm saplings fill the new spaces we cleared is a satisfaction that makes me ready to do it all again. Working with people all over the world, practicing portuguese to speak with locals, getting to see wildlife I’d only ever saw on nat geo tv, from dancing manakin birds, to various monkey species, to fishing up piranhas, having a tree frog try to kiss me (still scarred), waking up to tarantulas or wandering spiders in the house, and barbecues with staff, so many memories were made. Would love to come back again, especially to visit the future bases across the other important biomes in Brazil. Even if you don’t directly see the impact you make here, there is proof in the data that every volunteer counts, and this is one you don't want to miss!