Overview
Conservation Internship in Ecuador

This six month internship begins with a 10 week expedition in the Amazon to develop your understanding of a wide-range of tropical habitat survey techniques as well as your ability to identify the vast array of flora and fauna found in the neo-tropics. You will also experience working with the local communities, in the form of teaching English at a nearby school. You will learn how to live and work with a research team in a remote environment and obtain experience essential for your following 3 month work placement. This includes a BTEC qualification in Biological Survey Techniques, Emergency First Response first aid and CPR course, introduction to TEFL and additional training including a Spanish language course. At the end of the six month internship, successful applicants may be offered paid or unpaid work with GVI or partners, depending on availability.

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Waking up to the sound of gladiator tree frogs, while finding yourself in a hammock - my time spent on this course was an amazing experience!

Reinout Bolweg, GVI Volunteer

Highlights

Developing individual skills in personnel management, leadership and expedition logistics; Living and working in the lush Amazon rainforest; Surveying and monitoring different habitat types to see how they impact different species; Experience local Amazon culture; GVI introduction to TEFL course and experience teaching children between the ages of 4-13 years old; Working alongside the Yachana Foundation to promote sustainable development and help conserve and protect their rainforest reserve; Learn Spanish; Gain a recognized BTEC qualification in Biological Survey Techniques; Gain a first aid and CPR qualification; Learn about rainforest ecology and explore different parts of the Amazon.

Skills And Qualifications Received

• Tropical forest ecology


• Research and survey techniques


• Identification skills


• BTEC in Biological Survey Techniques


• Jungle crafts and Kichwa culture


• Introduction to TEFL


• First Aid & CPR qualification


• 40 hours of Spanish lessons


• Vegetation/habitat mapping
• 
  
• Interpersonal skills


• Health, safety and environment awareness


• Leadership skills and Community relations skills

See Requirements And Training page for more information

Location

As an intern you have the opportunity to experience two distinct regions of Ecuador; the rainforest lowlands and the Andean highlands. The majority of the internship is based in the Yachana Reserve, a small slice of the vast Amazon rainforest on the Rio Napo, between Tena and Coca. To reach the GVI base from Quito it is approximately nine hours by bus, plus 30 minutes in canoe down the Rio Napo. The exception is the two weeks of Spanish School, which is based in the beautiful market town of Otavalo, in the Ecuadorian highlands, two to three hours north of Quito.

See Life on the internship page for more information

Field Conditions

GVI base camp is some 280 steps up from the rivers’ edge, in a small cleared area surrounded by rainforest. Accommodation is in shared dormitories with bunk beds, sleeping 2 or 6 people per room, in basic, open, wooden structures on stilts, with corrugated iron roofs. One communal structure is used for dinning and socialising. There is a shower and toilet area that includes areas for hand washing clothes. Running water is available (but limited). Electricity is extremely limited and priority is given to expedition requirements. During satellite camps or side trips accommodation is in jungle hammocks with next to no running water, no electricity and ‘bush’ toilet facilities.

See Life on the internship page for more information