Overview
If you love to work outdoors, then this is the perfect opportunity for you to live by the beaches and contribute actively towards the protection of nature and the environment. Being a volunteer for the Wildlife and Environmental Protection in Greece, you'll be assisting the local conservationists, who have been working here for years, trying to control marine pollution and industrial fishing.
Depending on your knowledge or previous experience, each volunteer will be assigned tasks accordingly. You do not necessarily need to have any specialist knowledge. However, you should be committed to being able to think and act independently in a problem-solving manner and be passionate about environmental protection issues. Volunteers are often engaged in data collection activities, ecosystem monitoring, etc.
Program Requirements
Volunteers must be 18 years or older at the time of joining the project. You need to have an open mind and a flexible attitude for working in a new and different environment. The volunteer should bring energy and enthusiasm to make a difference and should be willing to work outdoors and get their hands dirty. Participants must be fit and healthy at the time of joining the program and should have a keen interest in environment conservation. Participants should have no criminal convictions and should provide a clean criminal background check report.
Volunteer Roles & Responsibilities
As a volunteer for this program, your main tasks would be:
- Ensuring the development of the eco-community on one of the islands in the Ionian Sea
- Focusing on permaculture and an experimental ecological fruit and vegetable farm
- Monitoring of wild cats on a small group of islands in the Ionian Sea
- Looking after the marine ecosystems: monitoring Mediterranean monk seals and mapping seaweed
- Contribute towards agricultural work such as planting, weeding, sowing, harvesting, and growing
Volunteer Work Schedule
You'll mostly be working for five hours a day, five days a week. In general, workdays are between Monday to Friday, but sometimes, due to adverse weather conditions, you might have to work on the weekends. In that case you'd get off on the weekdays.
The daily routine can vary greatly, but here's a general schedule that's mostly followed.
6: 30 AM - You either start the day with bird watching in their habitats on the island or go out for camera placement (either individually or in groups of two, when it's a distant location)
12: 30 PM (once a week) - Now is the time for your contribution to the permaculture farm: Every week, each volunteer must either clear the weeds or look after the irrigation in the farm.
1: 00 PM - Lunch time! Sit down comfortably and enjoy delicious and fresh Mediterranean food.
2: 00 PM - Working at the project site, depending on the assigned tasks.
6: 00 PM - Time for dinner, music and a cozy get-together. You can have a game night with your new volunteer colleagues or go out and play basketball - there are many ways to pass the time.
7: 30 PM (optional, depending on the task at hand) - Briefing for the next day's activity with a group.
Living

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Volunteering Solutions strives to provide best of the living and other arrangements to its volunteers. Like we keep saying, just pack your bags and arrive at your placement destination. From your airport pickup, stay, meals, weekend tours and other nitty gritties, VolSol manages everything for you.
Arrival & Orientation
Participants arrive at Athens International Airport and can stay overnight in Athens. We can give suggestions on places to stay and for the bus transfer as well. Take bus to Mytikas Port and from there transfer by Ferry to Kalamos Island, from where you will be picked up by a local team member.
Accommodation and Meals
You'll be staying at the volunteer house with others. It's a newly renovated, traditional, two-story stone house with a large veranda. The first floor has an open-air space that can also be used as a meeting point. You and your volunteer friends have two communal kitchens, three bathrooms, two interior seating areas and a total of 14 beds. For the summer, the house has fans for a little cooling and in winter you can warm up by a wood stove.
Shops, restaurants, cafes, bars and beaches are within walking distance - you will also find a basketball and football sports facility nearby.
Around ten days a year, the team camps with the volunteers on the remote islands to monitor the monk seals. If you tend to turn up during that time, you’ll get to camp amidst wilderness and soak in the beach vibes to the fullest!
During your Free Time
During the weekends and in free time you might have the option to leave the island to explore the villages on the mainland or the local team can help to organize some snorkeling as well for you.
Program Cost
Please Note: -An application fee of $229 is charged over and above the program fee as an application payment. (A 4% international banking fee is charged at the time of payment)
What are you Paying for?
- Comprehensive Pre- Departure Information
- Support from long term experienced staff
- Welcome meeting and Orientation
- 24-hour in-country support
- Accommodation in Volunteer house
- Catering: kitchen for self-catering, depending on the season, fruits and vegetables can be harvested in the garden
- Transfer to Project Site (Partially Included)
- Travel & Medical Insurance (Available at an extra cost
- Certificate Of Completion (Upon Request)
What's NOT included?
- Flights
- Public transport and extra transfers
- Private expenses on site
- Visa and vaccinations
Program Dates
Months | 2023 |
January | 08152229 |
February | 05121926 |
March | 05121926 |
April | 0209162330 |
May | 07142128 |
June | 04111825 |
July | 0209162330 |
August | 06132027 |
September | 03101724 |
October | 0108152229 |
November | 05121926 |
December | 03101724 |
FAQ's
FAQ's Application and Program Details
It is advised to apply for the projects once the volunteering/ traveling dates are decided as there are limited spots available. The application fee is valid for one full year and can be sent earlier than the desired year of volunteering for timely confirmation of the seat. As soon as you decide the travel dates, we suggest you apply for the program and hold your spot. We work on the basis of the first come first serve policy.
Usually, it takes around 10-12 working days for the application to be processed and placement to be confirmed. After we review your CV and documents, your booking is confirmed and the booking confirmation is updated in your ‘My Account’ and you can view the information in your account. The application acceptance depends on the availability of seats in the project as well as the eligibility criteria of the program (Age, skills and experience etc). Applications at a short notice are also accepted depending on the availability in the program.
Volunteers must be 18 years or older at the time of joining the project. You need to have an open mind and a flexible attitude for working in a new and different environment. The volunteer should bring energy and enthusiasm to make a difference and should be willing to work outdoors and get their hands dirty. Participants must be fit and healthy at the time of joining the program and should have a keen interest in environment conservation. Participants should have no criminal convictions and should provide a clean criminal background check report.
Yes, you are welcome to take part in Greece Volunteer Programs as part of a group. We welcome families, friends, college/university groups and corporate groups to volunteer together in the Greece Programs.
Yes, most definitely you can as we believe every participant brings something new to the project. If you do not have previous experience, we offer you the opportunity to have a great start with us. We make international volunteering easy – not only are our Volunteer Abroad opportunities rooted in offering you extensive support, but they are also very affordable.
Yes, we will provide you with the Certificate after successful completion of your program. The certificate is provided on request.
The Environmental and Wildlife Protection program is located on the beautiful Kalamos island, located off the west coast of mainland Greece.
You can arrive in Athens before your program start date. Participants arrive at Athens International Airport and can stay overnight in Athens. We can give suggestions on places to stay and for the bus transfer as well. Take bus to Mytikas Port and from there transfer by Ferry to Kalamos Island, from where you will be picked up by a member of the local team.
The next day, the orientation program for the project begins and lasts about four hours. You will take an introductory course on wildlife surveillance and basic health and safety issues.
Flights and Visa
Participants (most nationalities) require a Tourist Visa to travel to Greece. Volunteering Solutions strongly recommends all participants to apply and get a Tourist Visa before departing for Greece. Consult the Greece Embassy in your country for more details. If needed, Volunteering Solutions can provide with written documents that would help volunteers in getting the Visa.
Athens Airport is very well connected with the rest of the world and majority of the airlines fly to Greece. Some of the recommended airlines that fly to Athens are - British Airways, Austrian Airways, RyanAir, Emirates, Etihad, Qatar Airways, Ethiopian Airways, Lufthansa, Swiss Air and United Airlines.
Health and Safety
All participants are recommended to consult their physician or travel doctor before traveling to Greece.To view the general list of vaccinations recommended for your travel to Spain, click here.
Yes, for all participants, it is mandatory to have a valid travel medical insurance for their trip. Volunteers have the option to purchase Travel and Medical Insurance at a nominal extra cost from Volunteering Solutions. To provide the best option to our participants, we offer comprehensive insurance coverage in collaboration with a leading insurance provider.
If you already have a valid Travel and Medical insurance, you can email us a copy of the same. It is also advised to bring along the Insurance documents during your trip.
Connect with Past Volunteers
We encourage volunteers to get in touch with former Volunteering Solutions program participants and also other program participants joining our projects. You are recommended to join the Volunteering Solutions Facebook Page or Facebook Group to communicate with other participants.
To read alumni interviews from past participants, visit the Meet a Volunteer page on our website.
Accommodation and Living
Daily trip to the project site is included. The local team shall make arrangements for transfer to the project location while on the program.
You'll be staying at the volunteer house with others. It's a newly renovated, traditional, two-story stone house with a large veranda. The first floor has an open-air space that can also be used as a meeting point. You and your volunteer friends have two communal kitchens, three bathrooms, two interior seating areas and a total of 14 beds. For the summer, the house has fans for a little cooling and in winter you can warm up by a wood stove.
Shops, restaurants, cafes, bars and beaches are within walking distance - you will also find a basketball and football sports facility nearby.
Around ten days a year, the team camps with the volunteers on the remote islands to monitor the monk seals. If you tend to turn up during that time, you’ll get to camp amidst wilderness and soak in the beach vibes to the fullest!
Yes, that is not a problem. Please let us know of any dietary requirements in advance.
Yes, you need to cover for your personal expenses, meals, drinks, public transport and transfers. Your stay in Athens and transfer to the island is not included in the program fee. You will need to budget for that as well.