1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:02,614 Many people desire to travel, but think 2 00:00:02,614 --> 00:00:04,784 that it is too expensive, and therefore 3 00:00:04,784 --> 00:00:07,155 completely unattainable to them. But the 4 00:00:07,155 --> 00:00:09,759 good news is, there are inexpensive ways 5 00:00:09,759 --> 00:00:12,385 to travel on a budget, where we can still 6 00:00:12,385 --> 00:00:14,965 expand our minds, travel sustainably, and 7 00:00:14,965 --> 00:00:17,119 give back to the communities that we 8 00:00:17,119 --> 00:00:19,917 pass through. Today, I'm really excited to 9 00:00:19,917 --> 00:00:21,886 introduce you to my friend Melica, who's 10 00:00:21,886 --> 00:00:24,146 going to share a handful of websites that 11 00:00:24,146 --> 00:00:27,250 she uses in order to travel on a budget 12 00:00:27,250 --> 00:00:30,466 sustainably and give back to the communities. 13 00:00:30,466 --> 00:00:34,240 Hey everyone ! This is Melica from Iran. 14 00:00:34,240 --> 00:00:36,308 I have been traveling and volunteering 15 00:00:36,308 --> 00:00:39,982 around Latin America for 2.5 years, and 16 00:00:39,982 --> 00:00:42,471 right now I'm in a small village called 17 00:00:42,471 --> 00:00:44,718 Jaibalito in Guatemala. 18 00:00:44,718 --> 00:00:46,752 Today I want to talk a little bit about 19 00:00:46,752 --> 00:00:49,793 volunteering, why volunteer, different 20 00:00:49,793 --> 00:00:52,373 types of volunteering, and I want to 21 00:00:52,373 --> 00:00:54,900 introduce you to some websites where you 22 00:00:54,900 --> 00:00:57,848 can find volunteer opportunities all 23 00:00:57,848 --> 00:00:58,999 around the world. 24 00:00:58,999 --> 00:01:00,916 What does it mean, to volunteer? 25 00:01:00,916 --> 00:01:04,237 To volunteer means to help, to freely 26 00:01:04,237 --> 00:01:07,424 offer to do something. When we volunteer, 27 00:01:07,424 --> 00:01:10,226 we learn and practice not to expect from 28 00:01:10,226 --> 00:01:12,864 other people. People volunteer for so 29 00:01:12,864 --> 00:01:14,880 many different reasons! They volunteer 30 00:01:14,880 --> 00:01:17,884 because if feels good, they volunteer 31 00:01:17,884 --> 00:01:20,887 because it's good for their career, they 32 00:01:20,887 --> 00:01:23,779 volunteer to develop a sense of purpose 33 00:01:23,779 --> 00:01:26,480 and motivation, and so many people, 34 00:01:26,480 --> 00:01:28,751 including me, volunteer for their 35 00:01:28,751 --> 00:01:30,867 personal growth, because the more 36 00:01:30,867 --> 00:01:34,187 opportunities you take to learn new 37 00:01:34,187 --> 00:01:36,674 skills and to gain knowledge, 38 00:01:36,674 --> 00:01:39,788 the more you develop as a person. When I 39 00:01:39,788 --> 00:01:41,792 wanted to start this journey, one of my 40 00:01:41,792 --> 00:01:44,149 friends asked me, "Why would you like to go 41 00:01:44,149 --> 00:01:47,251 around Latin America, and do what you do 42 00:01:47,251 --> 00:01:50,121 for free? Why would you like to work with 43 00:01:50,121 --> 00:01:52,212 children for free? There is a quote that 44 00:01:52,212 --> 00:01:55,893 says that volunteers are not paid not 45 00:01:55,893 --> 00:01:58,857 because they are worthless, but because 46 00:01:58,857 --> 00:02:01,210 they are priceless. Yes, when you 47 00:02:01,210 --> 00:02:03,913 volunteer, you are donating your time, 48 00:02:03,913 --> 00:02:07,266 energy and knowledge, and in return you 49 00:02:07,266 --> 00:02:10,137 are getting accomodation and food, but 50 00:02:10,137 --> 00:02:12,671 beyond that you are getting a lot more. 51 00:02:12,671 --> 00:02:15,442 You are getting experiences that are good 52 00:02:15,442 --> 00:02:18,495 for your mind, body and soul, you are 53 00:02:18,495 --> 00:02:21,330 learning new skills, you are learning new 54 00:02:21,330 --> 00:02:24,300 languages, you are developing purpose, you 55 00:02:24,300 --> 00:02:27,635 are building self-confidence, and you 56 00:02:27,635 --> 00:02:30,290 cannot buy these experiences with money. 57 00:02:30,290 --> 00:02:32,731 Volunteering has the power to change your 58 00:02:32,731 --> 00:02:36,217 life in many different ways. When you use 59 00:02:36,217 --> 00:02:38,971 your time and vacation days to volunteer, 60 00:02:38,971 --> 00:02:40,822 you are opening yourself up to new 61 00:02:40,822 --> 00:02:44,259 experiences. Breaking our cultural barriers 62 00:02:44,259 --> 00:02:47,329 and extending your comfort zone makes you 63 00:02:47,329 --> 00:02:50,215 grow as an individual. I want to introduce 64 00:02:50,215 --> 00:02:53,102 you to 10 different types of volunteering today. 65 00:02:53,102 --> 00:02:56,272 You can volunteer at NGOs, 66 00:02:56,272 --> 00:02:59,615 Non-governmental organizations, you can 67 00:02:59,615 --> 00:03:01,944 volunteer in different schools all around 68 00:03:01,944 --> 00:03:04,429 the world and work with children, you can 69 00:03:04,429 --> 00:03:06,449 join different families, which is the 70 00:03:06,449 --> 00:03:10,542 best way to dive deep into a new culture, 71 00:03:10,542 --> 00:03:13,404 you can join different communities all 72 00:03:13,404 --> 00:03:16,823 around the world, you can do house sitting 73 00:03:16,823 --> 00:03:19,178 and take care of people's houses while 74 00:03:19,178 --> 00:03:21,363 they are away, that is basically what I am 75 00:03:21,363 --> 00:03:24,450 doing right now. If you are into sailing, 76 00:03:24,450 --> 00:03:27,952 or if you are eager to learn and do not 77 00:03:27,952 --> 00:03:30,238 any experience, you can join different 78 00:03:30,238 --> 00:03:33,340 boats all around the world. You can do 79 00:03:33,340 --> 00:03:36,679 animal welfare and pet sitting, in which 80 00:03:36,679 --> 00:03:39,640 you learn about different kinds of animals 81 00:03:39,640 --> 00:03:41,332 and there are so many different 82 00:03:41,332 --> 00:03:44,274 permaculture projects, farm stays and 83 00:03:44,274 --> 00:03:47,204 sustainable projects that you can join. I 84 00:03:47,204 --> 00:03:48,957 am going to introduce you to some 85 00:03:48,957 --> 00:03:51,760 websites, and the first one is 86 00:03:51,760 --> 00:03:55,163 workaway.info. I have been using this 87 00:03:55,163 --> 00:03:59,466 website for 2.5 years now, and I love it 88 00:03:59,466 --> 00:04:01,403 because it has different types of 89 00:04:01,403 --> 00:04:05,289 volunteering. It has a subscription of 44 90 00:04:05,289 --> 00:04:08,600 dollars for an individual and 56 dollars 91 00:04:08,600 --> 00:04:11,729 for 2 people and it is valid for 1 year. 92 00:04:11,729 --> 00:04:14,900 It works well for me because, for example, 93 00:04:14,900 --> 00:04:18,754 I am a long-term volunteer and a 94 00:04:18,754 --> 00:04:20,737 non-stop traveller, and for example I 95 00:04:20,737 --> 00:04:22,772 want to volunteer at some schools for some 96 00:04:22,772 --> 00:04:24,663 months, and then I want to change and 97 00:04:24,663 --> 00:04:26,845 volunteer at a farm, I can use the same 98 00:04:26,845 --> 00:04:29,270 website and the same membership to 99 00:04:29,270 --> 00:04:31,834 volunteer at different kinds of projects. 100 00:04:31,834 --> 00:04:34,837 And the thing that I love about workaway 101 00:04:34,837 --> 00:04:38,455 is that you can find other workawayers around 102 00:04:38,455 --> 00:04:41,308 you by location. I have used this option 103 00:04:41,308 --> 00:04:44,363 and I have found so many amazing people! 104 00:04:44,363 --> 00:04:49,368 And if you introduce workaway to a friend 105 00:04:49,368 --> 00:04:53,371 and they sign-up using the link that you 106 00:04:53,371 --> 00:04:56,224 gave them, you can extend your membership 107 00:04:56,224 --> 00:04:58,809 for 3 more months, which is nice. To be a 108 00:04:58,809 --> 00:05:02,748 workawayer means to work 5 hours a day 109 00:05:02,748 --> 00:05:05,534 5 days a week, in exchange for 110 00:05:05,534 --> 00:05:08,687 accomodation and food. Sometimes the hosts 111 00:05:08,687 --> 00:05:12,820 offer you only accomodation, and they ask 112 00:05:12,820 --> 00:05:16,140 you to work for less hours, and sometimes 113 00:05:16,140 --> 00:05:18,984 they offer you a wage if you work for more 114 00:05:18,984 --> 00:05:23,123 hours. The second website is wwoof.net, 115 00:05:23,123 --> 00:05:26,627 worldwide opportunities on organic farms. 116 00:05:26,627 --> 00:05:29,479 I have used this website in Argentina, it 117 00:05:29,479 --> 00:05:32,583 was like, I volunteered at a farm with 14 118 00:05:32,583 --> 00:05:34,885 llamas, I didn't know anything about 119 00:05:34,885 --> 00:05:37,200 sustainable building and growing my own 120 00:05:37,200 --> 00:05:39,707 food, and it was just a life-changing 121 00:05:39,707 --> 00:05:42,342 experience. First, when you want to use 122 00:05:42,342 --> 00:05:45,362 wwoof.net, first you have to choose which 123 00:05:45,362 --> 00:05:47,545 country you want to go and become a 124 00:05:47,545 --> 00:05:49,850 wwoofer at. So first you have to choose 125 00:05:49,850 --> 00:05:52,553 the country, and the membership and the 126 00:05:52,553 --> 00:05:55,454 subscription depend on the country. It can 127 00:05:55,454 --> 00:05:59,342 be anything from 0 to 72 dollars. To give 128 00:05:59,342 --> 00:06:01,528 you an example, if you want to go and 129 00:06:01,528 --> 00:06:03,879 become a wwoofer in Canada, it's a 130 00:06:03,879 --> 00:06:05,665 subscription of 50 dollars for an 131 00:06:05,665 --> 00:06:09,186 individual, and 75 dollars for 2 people, 132 00:06:09,186 --> 00:06:10,837 and it is valid for 2 years. 133 00:06:10,837 --> 00:06:14,674 Wwoofing is for permaculture lovers, for 134 00:06:14,674 --> 00:06:16,469 the ones who want to learn more about 135 00:06:16,469 --> 00:06:19,846 growing their own food and want to make 136 00:06:19,846 --> 00:06:22,329 sustainable changes in their lives. I 137 00:06:22,329 --> 00:06:24,316 really recommend this website. The third 138 00:06:24,316 --> 00:06:28,188 website is worldpackers.com 139 00:06:28,188 --> 00:06:32,191 It is also very easy to use it, somehow 140 00:06:32,191 --> 00:06:34,570 similar to workaway, different types of 141 00:06:34,570 --> 00:06:37,248 volunteering. It has different types of 142 00:06:37,248 --> 00:06:40,294 memberships. They have worldpacker academy, 143 00:06:40,294 --> 00:06:43,857 worldpacker trips, and worldpacker pack. 144 00:06:43,857 --> 00:06:45,894 But if you want to be able to contact the 145 00:06:45,894 --> 00:06:48,312 host, and you choose worldpacker trips for 146 00:06:48,312 --> 00:06:51,333 example, it is a subscription of 49 147 00:06:51,333 --> 00:06:54,818 dollars, and it is valid for 1.5 years. 148 00:06:54,818 --> 00:06:56,922 I have many friends that have used this 149 00:06:56,922 --> 00:07:00,659 website, and they really liked it. 150 00:07:00,659 --> 00:07:03,596 The fourth website is helpx.net 151 00:07:03,596 --> 00:07:05,600 I have really close friends that have used 152 00:07:05,600 --> 00:07:08,167 this website, and they volunteered in 153 00:07:08,167 --> 00:07:10,386 Australia, that is how I got to know about 154 00:07:10,386 --> 00:07:13,155 this website. You can become a member of 155 00:07:13,155 --> 00:07:16,525 helpx.net for free, so it has a free 156 00:07:16,525 --> 00:07:21,680 membership, but only the hosts are able to 157 00:07:21,680 --> 00:07:23,733 contact you, so if you want to be able to 158 00:07:23,733 --> 00:07:26,251 contact the hosts, you have to upgrade 159 00:07:26,251 --> 00:07:29,188 yourselves to a premium membership, which 160 00:07:29,188 --> 00:07:32,810 is 20 euros, and it is valid for 2 years 161 00:07:32,810 --> 00:07:35,127 for both individual and twin memberships. 162 00:07:35,127 --> 00:07:37,546 This website is cheaper than the other 163 00:07:37,546 --> 00:07:39,349 websites. There are so many different 164 00:07:39,349 --> 00:07:42,118 websites for volunteering out there, so 165 00:07:42,118 --> 00:07:44,468 many non-profit organizations. People 166 00:07:44,468 --> 00:07:46,455 have their own websites for their own 167 00:07:46,455 --> 00:07:48,474 projects and they get volunteers from their 168 00:07:48,474 --> 00:07:50,810 own websites. I can just name a few like 169 00:07:50,810 --> 00:07:55,300 khayavolunteer.com, volunteermatch.org, 170 00:07:55,300 --> 00:08:00,235 volunteertherealuganda.com, which is in Africa, 171 00:08:00,235 --> 00:08:03,638 and a lot more. So you just have to search 172 00:08:03,638 --> 00:08:07,393 and learn how to use the website, and make 173 00:08:07,393 --> 00:08:09,928 a profile for yourself, find your perfect 174 00:08:09,928 --> 00:08:12,281 host, and just get going. 175 00:08:12,281 --> 00:08:14,667 Another thing, so many people asked me, 176 00:08:14,667 --> 00:08:18,721 "Why should we use these websites? Why 177 00:08:18,721 --> 00:08:21,190 can't we just go out and find hosts?" 178 00:08:21,190 --> 00:08:23,228 Because I have seen so many travellers 179 00:08:23,228 --> 00:08:25,940 that just go out, go traveling, they 180 00:08:25,940 --> 00:08:27,495 ask around and they join a host on farm, 181 00:08:27,495 --> 00:08:31,417 or a family. Well, I really recommend it 182 00:08:31,417 --> 00:08:33,900 for safety, especially if you are a solo 183 00:08:33,900 --> 00:08:38,560 traveller or a female traveller. I think 184 00:08:38,560 --> 00:08:40,992 it is safer to use these websites to 185 00:08:40,992 --> 00:08:43,246 volunteer around the world, because of 186 00:08:43,246 --> 00:08:46,532 their references and their reviews. When I 187 00:08:46,532 --> 00:08:50,753 want to contact the host I see the reviews 188 00:08:50,753 --> 00:08:52,988 and I see how other people felt, how other 189 00:08:52,988 --> 00:08:55,624 travellers felt when they were living with 190 00:08:55,624 --> 00:08:59,760 this family for a while. And if, which is 191 00:08:59,760 --> 00:09:02,249 very very rare, but if you have a bad 192 00:09:02,249 --> 00:09:05,667 experience, you can honestly write about 193 00:09:05,667 --> 00:09:08,519 your experience with that host and let 194 00:09:08,519 --> 00:09:11,439 other travellers know how you felt while 195 00:09:11,439 --> 00:09:13,842 living with these people. 196 00:09:13,842 --> 00:09:17,313 And also, if a host does not feel good 197 00:09:17,313 --> 00:09:19,699 with the volunteer, they can 198 00:09:19,699 --> 00:09:22,100 honestly write a review about that 199 00:09:22,100 --> 00:09:24,387 volunteer, and this makes the whole 200 00:09:24,387 --> 00:09:26,437 community way safer. So when I see the 201 00:09:26,437 --> 00:09:29,707 reviews, I feel safer to contact the host 202 00:09:29,707 --> 00:09:32,644 when I see how other travellers felt while 203 00:09:32,644 --> 00:09:36,282 being with that host. I really hope that 204 00:09:36,282 --> 00:09:38,717 we can all go out and have a wonderful 205 00:09:38,717 --> 00:09:40,786 experience volunteering all around the 206 00:09:40,786 --> 00:09:43,204 world, and I hope that this information 207 00:09:43,204 --> 00:09:46,292 was useful for you. Thank you so much, and 208 00:09:46,292 --> 00:09:47,893 have a wonderful day! 209 00:09:47,893 --> 00:09:49,979 I hope that you have found Melica's 210 00:09:49,979 --> 00:09:52,248 experience and knowledge to be very 211 00:09:52,248 --> 00:09:54,600 helpful to you if you are desiring to 212 00:09:54,600 --> 00:09:56,474 travel on a budget. 213 00:09:56,474 --> 00:09:58,217 Check the links in the description 214 00:09:58,217 --> 00:10:00,154 in order to follow her as well as read 215 00:10:00,154 --> 00:10:02,274 more of her work, and make sure to 216 00:10:02,274 --> 00:10:04,332 subscribe to this channel, where there are 217 00:10:04,332 --> 00:10:06,911 many more inspirational and educational 218 00:10:06,911 --> 00:10:08,875 videos to come. I love you all very much, 219 00:10:08,875 --> 00:10:10,611 and I will see you again real soon.