1. What were the main tasks you undertook with the organisation? Did you have any prior experience or knowledge that helped you with these?

Main tasks included relocating indigenous plant species, cutting down mora forests to assist in farming activities, and watering previously located indigenous species.

1. Was the information and support you received from the organisation adequate to ensure you could carry out your work successfully? If not, please explain why.

Yes, we were well informed and were explained the significance of our work during the day.  It turns out that several volunteers arrived who had not come through Yanapuma and did not get very good information.  One of them left after one day.
Yanapuma offers Spanish lessons in Quito that are very helpful for refreshing on your Spanish before your trip. Although take note the islanders on the Galapagos use a more informal form of Spanish, more slang than actual Spanish.

1. What skills or interests would other volunteers need for this work? Would you recommend working with this organisation to other volunteers? Please explain.

Yes I would recommend working with this organisation to other volunteers. Skills needed would include upper body muscle strength, knowledge of plants, and how to use a machete.

1. Was the information, communication and support you received from Yanapuma, both before and during your volunteer placement, adequate? If not, please explain why and offer suggestions on how it could be improved.

Yes, Yanapuma got us to the Galapagos safely and helped ensure we understood enough Spanish during our stay in Quito to help with our understanding of the local language. They also ensured we got home safely.

1. How would you rate your overall experience?

10/10 It was amazing, it was smooth ride the entire trip. Yanapuma made the going and coming back more relaxing. The Spanish lessons offered in Quito were amazing, our teacher was very nice to us.
As for the Galapagos, you have to go there to experience it.

1. If you would like, please write a short paragraph summing up your volunteer placement to help Yanapuma, our partner organisations and future volunteers learn from your experience.

Don't be afraid of Geovany, he is very nice, very open to conversation, and very smart. When he tells you something, you know what you are doing and the reason you are doing it. The work is hard, but it builds character. If you muscle through it then it will definitely be a memorable experience for you.

1. Any additional comments?

Bring gloves, plastic boots, and a hard working attitude.
Quick dry clothing is also recommended.
You will smell bad.

1. Do you authorise Yanapuma to share the information contained in this evaluation with other volunteers and partner organisations?                   YES __X___                 NO _____

Volunteer Ecuador Final Evaluation

1. What were the main tasks you undertook with the organisation? Did you have any prior experience or knowledge that helped you with these?

The main tasks with the organization were working on controlling invasive species and working with introducing more native species.  I did not have any prior experience in these areas.

1. Was the information and support you received from the organisation adequate to ensure you could carry out your work successfully? If not, please explain why.

The information from the organization was adequate to support the activities.  Unfortunately the guy that ran the Hacienda was away for the month I volunteered but I am told but other volunteers that he gives you a more complete vision of the project. 

1. What skills or interests would other volunteers need for this work? Would you recommend working with this organisation to other volunteers? Please explain.

You do not need any preset of skills to complete this project.  It’s best for people that want to do a little manual labour.  At times you can lose sight of the impact of the tasks you are completing and feel overwhelmed by the amount of invasive species, but when you are there longer you get to see the full spectrum of tasks and see areas that have really been restored to the native habitat and remember the impact of what you are doing. 

1. Was the information, communication and support you received from Yanapuma, both before and during your volunteer placement, adequate? If not, please explain why and offer suggestions on how it could be improved.

Yanapuma was great.  Fran reached out to me several times to ensure things were going well and the information about the project was helpful.  Things that maybe helpful to other volunteers for this specific project is that

1. Grocery shopping is expensive in the Galapagos and the project doesn’t include food.  The hacienda has a kitchen with refrigerator, stove and toaster, but no oven.  It’s best to buy some food on the mainland.  You can take any that is a packaged good.  It can be hard to find a lot of spices or exotic food products on the island.
2. It’s nice to see the other islands since you are in the Galapagos.  It’s hard to see very much on the weekend not on San Cristobal and I would recommend tacking on some extra time before or after volunteering.  Santa Cruz and Isabella are cheap to navigate between.  Isabella in particular has a lot of sights you can see cheaply or for free while on the island and I would devote at least 4 days there.  With Tame it’s generally free to change your flight up to 3 times, but when you go to the office they will charge you fees so you should go directly to the airport to make changes.

1. How would you rate your overall experience?

I really liked the organization and am glad I went through Yanapuma.  Most of the other volunteers went through a different organization and paid a much higher fee to volunteer.

1. If you would like, please write a short paragraph summing up your volunteer placement to help Yanapuma, our partner organisations and future volunteers learn from your experience.

Hacienda Tranquila is the best place to volunteer on the Galapagos in preservation.  I enjoyed the work and feel stronger now.  When I first came I remember being in awe at Carlos, one of the guys that works there, and how quickly he could take down the mora and guayaba.  Although I never was as strong as him, now I can make a decent dent.  The tasks had a good variety between working with the community, which is important for getting by and to make a difference, and preservation. In the free time I really enjoyed exploring the island.  Simply being at work and seeing all the different finches’ makes you really remember how amazing the diversification on the Galapagos is.

1. Any additional comments?

1. Do you authorise Yanapuma to share the information contained in this evaluation with other volunteers and partner organisations?                   YES __x___                  NO _____

EVALUATION
Name:
Place: Canada
Volunteer place: Hacienda Tranquila

1.        What were the main tasks you undertook at the project? Did you have any prior experience or knowledge that helped you with these?

Tasks:
Removing invasive plant species & clearing land for agriculture using machetes
Digging a pipeline with pick-axes & shovels
Collecting & planting seeds and saplings of endemic species
Working with children and horses (equine therapy)

Prior experience:
We both had farm experience and prior experience with horses and kids, which was great but not necessary (we rode horses to our worksite one day, and led the horses for the kids equine therapy).

2.        Was the explanation and support you received from the organisation adequate to ensure you could carry out your work successfully? If not please explain why.

The support from Yanapuma and Hacienda Tranquila was wonderful. Both were very helpful.
Yanapuma gave us lots of information and advice about Ecuador. At the Hacienda, staff members were very friendly and patient.

3.        Would you recommend working with this organisation to other volunteers? What are the main areas of skills and interests that volunteers need for this work? Please give reasons.

Absolutely! You need some level of physical fitness & stamina, as you are working outside
in hot, humid weather for long periods of time. A positive attitude works wonders! An
interest in making the world a better place would be good. At Hacienda Tranquila, they
recognize the importance of community in environmental work.

4.        Was the communication and support you received from Yanapuma, before and during your time volunteering adequate? Please comment on the initial orientation session, showing you to your site and communication throughout.  If not, please specify why and how it could be improved.

Yes, it was wonderful. Fran was very helpful and gave us a lot of great information, both
for our time in Quito before the project, and in giving us contacts of travel agents to
contact about getting to the Galápagos and communicating with Geovanny at Hacienda Tranquila. We appreciated the airport pick-up, and that Yanapuma arranged our stay in a clean, safe, friendly hostal. Our orientation session was very informative, giving us some historical background, an overview of Quito and Ecuador today, and good tips. Fran gave us great suggestions of things to do while in Quito, as well as really good instructions on how to get to Mitad del Mundo—we had a successful daytrip thanks to her excellent step-by-step instructions on getting there & back by bus! Thank you.

5.        How would rate your overall experience at this project?

Fantastic! We wish we could have stayed longer. The work was physically demanding, but everyone had a terrific positive attitude, which made all the difference. We felt like we were contributing to a worthy social and conservation effort.

6.        Any other comments?

This is a great place to volunteer. The people are wonderful.  The town is safe. It’s a great way of visiting the Galápagos, since you actually live on the island and get to know the people living there (and we did—even in our short, two-week stay, locals got to know us and vice versa; we were greeted with friendly smiles and even a kiss on the cheek by the owner of a shop we frequented).



7.        If you would like, please write a short paragraph summing up your project and experience volunteering, as well as if and why you might recommend this volunteer site to others in the future. We will put this information on our Volunteer Ecuador website, as a direct quote from you to help others learn about your experience.

This has been such an amazing experience! I will be honest: We initially went with this volunteer option because it was the cheapest (not including the flight to the islands and the park entrance fee) AND it involved going to the Galápagos islands—how cool is that! We didn’t want a volunteer project for the sake of the tourists where we travel to a new place, impose our ways of doing things, and feel good about travelling. Instead, we wanted to get involved with a more grassroots project where we would contribute to a good cause and at the same time broaden our own perspectives of the world.

This project is a great way to combine tourism with making a positive impact on the Galápagos Islands and enriching your own experience. Unlike a cruise, where your money goes to the large international corporations while the negative social/economic/environmental externalities are borne by the local community, this project is locally founded and operated. So if you’re looking for a worthwhile, community-building experience in the Galápagos, I strongly recommend this project          ! We’ve had a great time.

Muchas gracias!!!