Surf Voluntourism

Project Wave of Optimism Surf Voluntourism Programs

Are you interested in socially responsible travel with a “world-class surf” twist?

Than look no further!

Project WOO believes that we as traveling surfers have a responsibility to give back to the rural coastal communities that we visit. And if you are now reading this, you probably agree!

Click here for the Project WOO voluntourism application!

The Program-

Project WOO’s background in sustainable community development has laid the perfect foundation for all levels of volunteer participation. We work with each of our volunteers to identify their particular skill sets and match them to the needs of the community to facilitate the most rewarding and impactful volunteer experience.

Through Project WOO’s holistic approach to development (please see About WOO and Why We Are Different), WOO has helped the community of Gigante (check this link for a map) identify, design, and implement various community-driven development projects. These projects serve as the platform for our volunteer programs.

Who Participates-

WOO accommodates all levels of volunteer participation.

Volunteers of all ages, individuals, couples, families and groups
High School Students – See our Surf ‘n’ Serve program
Surf clubs, Bro trips, Bachelor/Bachelorette volunteer trips

We have three types of programs depending on the length of your stay and level of commitment:

Momentary Immersion: Every Wednesday from 12:30 – 3 PM. This is the quick introduction to everything WOO related within the community. Why we are here, what we are doing, and where we are headed. This is also an excellent way to have a closer look into the true make up of the community of Gigante. Cost = donations only.
Community-Wide Project (CWPs): CWPs are perfect for volunteers wanting to get involved for 2-14 days, depending on the project. CWPs provide the both the volunteers and locals an opportunity to do meaningful development projects, side by side. An example of a CWP would be: repainting the school, custom painting the community school bus, providing local plants to add to the school garden, community beach clean up, supply materials for an interactive/cultural class to facilitate to the students, etc. These are projects that we ask the volunteers to fund and we in return facilitate.
Community Immersion: The community immersion program is for volunteers intent on spending 3+ weeks working with Project WOO in the community. Depending on your skill set, you will have the opportunity to implement new programs and/or work on larger projects. See some examples below under The Work section. Community Immersion volunteers are asked to fundraise a volunteer contribution and pay for their room and board. See details and the accommodation options under the Cost section below.

The Work-

Depending on the skills of our volunteers and the length of their stay, WOO’s in-country Program Manager and trip leader, Bo Fox, will directly facilitate all volunteer logistics, lodging, and travel accommodations. Past volunteers with specific skills have given first aid/CPR classes, taught dental hygiene classes, started pen pal programs, taught surfing lessons, and many other unique programs.

All volunteers will participate in:

Project WOO’s Education Program – working directly with the students and staff teachers assisting in one or all of the following subjects:
- English curriculum
- Pen Pal exchange program
- Environmental awareness course
- Basic gardening practices at school/volunteer run garden
- And of course, play days….. how often have you played “pato, pato, ganso” (duck, duck, goose) with 25 Nicaraguan first graders? or exchanged paintings with a fourth grader depicting a day in your life?

Community-Wide Projects (C-WP’s) are designed to engage both the volunteers and the community members in joint volunteer work. Such activities provide meaningful cultural exchange opportunities while helping to beautify the targeted community. Examples of C-WP’s are:
- Re-painting the school/church/community center
- Beach clean-ups
- Beautifying the school garden/central plaza
- Refurbishing the WOO school bus

Spanish-English exchange program
- While almost all the community members/students are very interested in learning English (the gateway to Nicaragua’s rapidly growing industry: tourism), hardly any have the opportunity to practice. Once a week, WOO’s voluntourists will have the opportunity to meet around a table with community members to engage in Spanish-English advancement opportunities.

Long term specialized volunteers, read on….

Are you planning on staying 3 weeks or more? The more time you commit to a development project, the more impacting and lasting it will be. Read below for potential programs that are in need. Use these ideas as a drawing for you and your trip. What skills do you bring to the table? How do you see yourself being most useful? Questions about how we place our volunteers? Contact us here.

Program/project ideas:

Computation classes
- We had 4 computers donated to the primary school and a basic curriculum computer program as well! Now we need the people power to facilitate the computer courses. Work with the teachers and students one-on-one or in groups. Design it and help introduce a powerful tool!
English School
- Tourism livelihood is a close second to the fishing here in Gigante and there is no lack of demand to learn English! Let our program manager help you set up the basics, then take the lead, design your courses and watch the growth!
Gardening and agro-education
- Dedicate your time to working at our school garden and educating the students from the ground up, literally. “Dirt, you made my lunch, thank you dirt, jeez thanks a bunch.”
Trash collection/recycling and education program
Construction based projects
- No lack of these here. You work best with your hands? Let’s excite the community, solicit everyone’s participation, and build on community-born ideas.
  - Library
  - Secure shelving units
  - Storage bodega
  - School beautification projects (fence reparation, new outhouses, playground, etc….)

Cost-

Project WOO asks all volunteers fundraise a volunteer contribution and pay a weekly rate to cover their expenses while participating in the program.

MINIMUM VOLUNTEER DONATION: $495 per person

Every volunteer is asked to raise a minimum of $495 prior to their trip to support Project WOO’s community development efforts in Gigante and insure the sustainability of our programs. We encourage you to raise more! We offer fundraising strategies to our volunteers and find that the fundraising model is an excellent way to excite pre-departure involvement while keeping our program fees low! Share your upcoming adventure with friends and family, soliciting their support and raising the necessary funding and awareness for a worthy cause. We’ll even help set you up with your very own webpage on our site! All donations are 100% tax-deductible as Project WOO is a registered 501(c)3 non-profit in the US.

WEEKLY PROGRAM FEE:

The Program Fee includes:

- Accommodations (see options below)

– 2 Meals per day (see options below). There will be various options for lunch and snacks throughout the day.

– Pre-program preparation, planning, education, etc.

– Program management: on the ground staff support, all volunteer activities, etc.

– Spanish Language “Inter-cambios”

– Weekly Group Surf Lesson including board rental

– Guided Excursion (once every 3 weeks): Surfing boat trip, fishing, hiking, archeological sites, etc.

As seasoned travelers, we at WOO know that there are various levels of comfort when you are on the road. Therefore we have decided to design three separate accommodation levels for our voluntourists.

	HOMESTAY	HOSTEL/SURF CAMP	LUXURY
Accommodations	Very basic accommodations with a local Nicaraguan family	Room in a local hostel or surf camp with fan. A/C additional.	Gigante’s finest. A first class wellness resort with full service luxury amenities
Food	Home cooked Nicaraguan breakfast and dinner	Breakfast and dinner at the hostel or local restaurant	Breakfast and dinner at the resort
WEEKLY RATE	$140	$230	$800+

We can also arrange many optional services including:

- Transportation to and from the airport in Managua

- Boat trips (surfing/fishing)

- Yoga classes

- Horse back riding

- Sea kayaking

- And many more!