Our Volunteering Story

 

Looking for an opportunity to volunteer in Nepal? Good. We are looking for volunteers!  No fee,  just free – contact us!

Free Volunteering Nepal is not a NGO but a non-commercial private initiative by Nepali and European people offering free volunteering opportunities in small remote communities. We decided to start our own program after we found that things are getting way to complicated and into a wrong direction when it comes to volunteering in Nepal.

It is quite obvious that volunteering has become an nontransparent and profitable industry in Nepal. Since the primary interest is the money paid by the volunteer, the projects are often questionable and the skills and efforts of volunteers are not put to good use  (Check where to volunteer in Nepal for a comprehensive report about this problem.)  The bad results: Many good people wanting to help refrain from volunteering while small needy communities and projects have little chance of getting in contact with volunteers in the shadow of the respective NGOs.

We, the Nepali members of Free Volunteering Nepal, own a trekking agency in Kathmandu (if you want to have a look at us, check the ‘TEAM’ section at Pristine Nepal Trekking). After the earthquake in 2015, when the school and most buildings in our home areas collapsed, we experienced a heart-warming wave of support from our current and former customers. We realized how many of our customers were also looking for volunteering opportunities to help improve the conditions in Nepal and get to know the unique and original Nepali culture. However, many also complained that they could not find a convincing organization or project.

We, the European members, were looking for volunteering opportunities in Nepal. However, we had to find that volunteering in Nepal is in the hands of a bunch of large NGOs which charge quite incredible amounts of money to the volunteers.

Together, we thus decided in January 2017 to bundle our skills and launch Free Volunteering Nepal, a non-commercial volunteering project focusing on  small remote communities.

 

 

Our Vision

Free Volunteering Nepal does not charge any money to the volunteer or the community and we do not see any reason why money should be part of the equation: There is no reason why people truly looking for help from volunteers for specific tasks or projects in their community should charge money.  Also, there is no reason why a volunteer should pay for volunteering, as he/she is already investing valuable time and efforts. So with no money to gain, we have a simple and effective way to make sure that people indeed looking for help are getting help. Moreover, we can make sure that our volunteers get the chance to actually help and make a difference.

Free Volunteering Nepal focuses on  small remote communities. Our Nepali members are constantly visiting remote areas due to their every-day job at a trekking agency.  They know many of the local families, the communities, and their struggles for more than 10 years. This gives us the opportunity to facilitate on-spot support for communities we know well and have people we know well look after our volunteers to make sure you have the best experience. During trekking, they frequently pass by at the villages without notice, can have a look at the progress of our projects and make sure things are going the right way. They can raise awareness for our program in the very remote areas and inform local the people about this new opportunity  to get help from volunteers for their village or school. We, the European members of Free Volunteering Nepal, are then preparing a project outline and putting it on our website.

 

 

 

Your Experience

WHAT TO EXPECT

If you are interested to volunteer, contact us. We will tell you everything you want to know.

Once you have arrived, we would of course like to meet you! We will then arrange you to be brought from Kathmandu to your host family. Please let us know if you’d like to have someone to accompany you on the way.

We can also help you find cheap and good accommodation in Kathmandu or help with airport pick-ups etc., if you like.

All our projects are based on home-stays, there are no hotels in the areas. You will experience to live with a Nepali family.

Accommodation: You can expect to have a simple private room.  It’s maybe more cozy if you bring your own sleeping bag, but you do not have to, blankets and bed sheets are provided. Should you not be offered a private room or be unhappy with your accommodation, please let us know.

Food: You will eat with the family. This usually means very small breakfast or tea around 7 a.m., Dal Bhat at around 9.30 a.m., a (relatively large) snack (popcorn with beans, soybean salad, roti, etc.) together with tea or coffee in the afternoon and Dal Bhat again at about 7 p.m. The food is simple and mostly vegetarian, but usually delicious and you can be sure that it’s local, organic and hygienic. If you have one, you could bring a water purifying device, otherwise water will be boiled for you.

Comfort: Please be prepared to live the very original and simple live of a Nepali family (except that you maybe glad to hear that your host family will be happy to prepare hot bucket showers for you). There is electricity but power cuts are frequent. There is enough reception to send emails but youtube or skype video will not work. You will be looked after very well but please realize that local ressources may be limited.

What we expect from you: We ask you to be respectful to the customs of your host family. Please let us know, if you need anything or are unhappy about anything.

Please just contact us for more details on accommodation, food, transportation, work details, the school, or any other information.
 

 

 

 

 

 

Your Costs

We are a non-commercial volunteering program.

You will have to pay “Dal Bhat money” for your food and accommodation directly to your host family, which is usually 8 $ per day. You will have to pay your transportation from Kathmandu to the village and back, usually about 2-10 $ by local bus one way (depending on the village you are going to).

That’s all.

Projects

Please read the project descriptions. You decide if you are fit to help. If you are not sure or have another valuable skill to offer, please contact us!

Not what you are looking for?

We work together with the reliable non-profit, non-governmental organization (NGO) Social Voyage Nepal, which receives most of its support from within Nepal and is aiming at sustainable actions and projects in rural areas, including drinking water projects, medicine projects, and women empowerment programs (awarded by the UN in 2017). Together, we will try to find a place for you to make a difference in the life of many Nepali people!