After nine years studying engineering, Kevin decided to set off on an adventure with his girlfriend Audrey. The couple set off for South America with the idea of wandering around Patagonia and up the continent for a few months. Kevin and Audrey "are not athletes", they point out, but they enjoy hiking because they feel closer to nature when they walk. They are also particularly sensitive to environmental protection issues and the various changes currently shaking the planet. So they decided to make themselves "a little" useful, as they put it, by signing up as eco-volunteers. They spent 15 days with the AMA Torres del Paine association in December 2015. "Working in this place remains a privilege that doesn't cost that much compared to other volunteering," they wrote in their blog. They also spent 5 days on an organic farm, but the latter experience, you'll read, was a little disappointing.
Read the testimonials
AMA is an environmental organization working around nature in Torres del Paine National Park. It was founded in 2004 by the Cerro Paine estancia, located inside the national park (an area acquired in 1978 for horse breeding). With the increase in visitor numbers, the estancia is now completely dedicated to tourism (luxury hotel, refuges, camping). AMA was set up with the aim of working for the conservation of the park, integrating the theme of ecology into "tourist know-how". Read more...
Aldea luna, or the village of the moon, was created by a couple wishing to get away from it all, far from civilization. This small hamlet of 3 cabins is located on the outskirts of Jujuy, lost in the subtropical forest of the Yungas. With their two children, the couple have been living for the last ten years without running water (pumped from the river below) or electricity (solar panels only for lighting at night), and they can be proud of their "organic" vegetable garden (a few inputs such as nicotine only to keep pests at bay). Read more...
Thanks to Audrey and Kevin for sharing their experiences!