Volunteer on Construction Projects in the Ecuadorian Andes

This volunteer program is based in the indigenous communities surrounding Otavalo, bringing you into the heart of the Ecuadorian Andes in South America. The Otavaleño indigenous hold remarkably strong ties to their native culture and traditions. Here you will embark on building energy efficient stoves with the families in the communities, which decrease wood consumption and remove smoke from inside the house.

How this program makes a difference

Currently, families cook on open fires inside their homes, with smoke inhalation a daily occurrence, especially for the young children still draped over the mother's backs over the open fire. By building enclosed brick stoves with chimneys to take the smoke away, the air is cleaner. Also, due to the design, the stoves use less wood, leaving more time for work and study and less damage to the surrounding environment. Families who have already had a stove built by volunteers through this program have said that the stove generates greater and longer lasting heat in their home than the open fire did before. One Mum has also said that now she doesn’t have sore and watering eyes from the smoke