Established: 2005

Address: 13 Rozanis St., Tel Aviv 69018, Israel

Aim and objectives: Our aim is to develop ecological and humanitarian volunteer projects in Israel and concurrently to refer suitable and motivated people from Israel to volunteer projects worldwide. GoEco also organizes workcamps promoting co-existence and good will among Arab, Druze, Bedouin and Jewish communities through art, sustainable development and nature conservation.

Type: Private organization

Orientation: All our 2 week workcamps include a 3 day orientation & educational tour in Tel Aviv, where the volunteers will receive workcamp preparation and orientation about Israel.

Official website: Hebrew: www.goeco.co.il English: www.goeco.org

General conditions for participation:
· Age above 18
· High level of independence and flexibility
· Full travel and health insurance
· Conversational English
· Physically fit
· Good health
· MLTV programs require a letter of motivation


Camp list

MID - LONG TERM PROJECTS


WORKCAMPS


SPECIAL WORKCAMPS



Camp details

MID - LONG TERM PROJECTS

GoEco01 – WILDLIFE PRESERVE - 01/06/08-01/03/09 2 VOL MTV/ENVI
The mission of Yotvata Hai-Bar (Wildlife Preserve) Nature Reserve is to establish reproduction groups for populations of wild animals that are mentioned in the Bible; but have disappeared from the landscape, as well as for other endangered desert animals. The reserve is dotted with Acacia trees and includes a variety of desert habitats: an Acacia forest, a salt marsh, and sand dunes. The reserve has three parts: a three-acre penned-in open area, where herds of herbivorous animals live in conditions similar to those in the wild; the Predators Centre, where reptiles, small desert animals, and large predators are on display; and the Desert Night Life Exhibition Hall, where night and day are reversed so that visitors to the reserve can observe nocturnal animals during their active hours. Long-term volunteers are needed to join the Israel Nature & Parks Authority (NPA) staff with its on-going conservation and animal care work at the Wildlife Preserve.

Work: volunteers will become an integral part of the NPA staff at the Wildlife preserve and other nature reserves in the southern region of the Arava and Eilat. Duties include: Feeding animals and cleaning habitats, maintenance, observations and data collection, accompanying & assisting park rangers, field work and constructing enrichment facilities. Long-term volunteer may be asked to lead short term workcamps of 6 volunteers at the preserve.

Location: Yotvata Hai-Bar (Wildlife Preserve) is situated on Route 90 (Dead Sea-Eilat) between Kibbutz Yotvata and Kibbutz Samar, about 35 kilometres north of Eilat.

Nearest airport: Eilat Airport. Volunteers may also arrive by bus from BenGurion Airport, Tel Aviv.

Meeting point: First Sunday morning of each month at Eilat Main Bus Station, full details will be sent upon application

Accommodation: International volunteers will stay in a shared apartment in the center of Eilat with the Israeli National Service volunteers. Apartment includes: rooms suited for 2 people, beds, bathroom, shower, and fully equipped kitchen.

Language: English

Participation fee: 190 EURO

Special Remarks: Minimum participation period is 8 weeks. This project does not include food, around 5-10 Euros per day is estimated for each volunteer to purchase food at the local market.


GoEco02 - GRIFFON VULTURE - 02/03/08-01/08/08 4 VOL MTV/ENVI
GoEco03 - GRIFFON VULTURE - 07/12/08-01/08/09 4 VOL MTV/ENVI
The marvellous landscape of Gamla Nature Reserve contains a host of animals and many well-preserved remnants of the past. The reserve boasts both a phenomenal concentration of birds of prey, some of them rare, living in a relatively small area, and the earliest known synagogue in the world. Scores of Griffon vulture pairs nest on the cliffs, making up the largest flock of Griffon vultures in Israel (and in the whole Middle East). The Israel Nature & Parks Authority (NPA) needs volunteers to participate in its efforts to save this endangered population of the Griffon vulture. In order to sustain and conserve these vulnerable birds, they conduct nest surveillance and reproductive surveys at Gamla Nature Reserve.

Work: Volunteers will assist the NPA in watching and documenting all activities concerned with the Griffon vulture (courtship, mating, incubating, hatching, feeding, fledging etc.) and tracking fledglings and juveniles which are ringed and/or fitted with radio transmitters. Daily observations are carried out during light hours (total of 8 hours per day). The volunteers will work 6 days per week and will have one day off. Special permission is required to take more than two successive days off.

Location: Gamla Nature Reserve is situated in the Golan Heights around 215 km northeast of Tel Aviv, 91 km east of Haifa.

Nearest airport: BenGurion Airport, Tel Aviv

Meeting point: First Sunday of each month at Katzrin Bus Station, full details will be sent upon application.

Accommodation: Shared apartment for 4 volunteers with bed, linen and kitchen. Each volunteer will be provided with 120 NIS per week to purchase food.

Language: French/ English

Participation fee: 190 EURO

Special Remarks: Minimum participation period is 4 weeks. This project requires volunteers to sit patiently for long hours in the heat or cold in order to conduct effectively observation and surveillance. Motivation form is required.


GoEco04 - HAFEYOT WOODS - 01/06/08-01/12/08 4 VOL MTV/ENVI
GoEco and the Yaar HaFeyot Centre (Fairy Woods Centre) invite international volunteers to join this unique project and to take part in building a regional community centre. The centre will be the focal point for the community to learn about and to become aware of its natural surroundings and sustainable way of living. The project envisions a place that will remind people of nature on all its aspects. The aim is to start building a little “paradise” located in a rare oak forest, the last surviving forest from those which used to cover the landscape of the Holy Land centuries ago. The overall project includes the on- going construction of a stone theatre. The regional community centre will enable the local inhabitants, whether Jew, Arab or Druze, to interact with nature and among themselves. Knowledge of old agricultural methods and the wild life of the bio-region, remembered by the few remaining elderly people, can be passed on to the younger generation, who, for the most part, is completely ignorant of its past traditions. The project hopes to create integrative educational activities for all sectors of the population. As a volunteer, you will gain the opportunity to work on a project of major importance from its inception. You will have the opportunity to learn many different skills in building, land nurturing, grey water systems, stone work, forestry, organic agriculture, and traditional Jewish, Arab and Druze cultures.

Work: volunteers will assist in creating permaculture systems, such as: waterhole systems, terrace building, compost toilets, traditional farming, organic gardens, earth building, education programs and many more.

Location: Kibbutz Bet-Oren on top of the Carmel Mountains, south of the cityHaifa. The area itself is dotted with ancient caves and unspoilt corners of the forest that are waiting to be discovered.

Terminal: BenGurion Airport, Tel Aviv.

Meeting point: First Sunday morning of each month at Haifa Hof HaCarmel Bus Station, full details will be sent upon application

Accommodation: As the place is a work in progress, conditions are rather basic. Volunteers will live in field conditions, in basic yet comfortable forest shelters, with outdoor toilets and showers (What can be better than showering under a tree???). There will be an open kitchen with basic provisions and communal meals will be prepared.
Language: English
Participation fee: 190 EURO

Special Remarks: Minimum participation period is 4 weeks.


WORK CAMPS

GoEco05 - WILDLIFE PRESERVE - 03/07/08-17/07/08 6 VOL MANU/ENVI
The mission of Yotvata Hai-Bar (Wildlife Preserve) Nature Reserve is to establish reproductive groups for populations of wild animals that are mentioned in the Bible; but have disappeared from the landscape, as well as for other endangered desert animals. The reserve is dotted with Acacia trees and includes a variety of desert habitats: an Aacia forest, a salt marsh, and sand dunes. The reserve has three parts: a three-acre penned-in open area, where herds of herbivorous animals live in conditions similar to those in the wild; the Predators Center, where reptiles, small desert animals, and large predators are on display; and the Desert Night Life Exhibition Hall, where night and day are reversed so that visitors to the reserve can observe nocturnal animals during their active hours. Volunteers are needed to assist the Israel Nature & Parks Authority (NPA) staff with its daily work and further enrichment projects at the Predators & Visitors Centers.

Work: volunteers will work with the NPA staff at the Predators & Visitors centers. Duties include: feeding animals and cleaning habitats, maintenance work, observation and data collection, field work and constructing enrichment facilities.

Location: Yotvata Hai-Bar (Wildlife Preserve) is situated on Route 90 (Dead Sea-Eilat) between Kibbutz Yotvata and Kibbutz Samar, about 35 kilometres north of Eilat.

Terminal: BenGurion Airport, Tel Aviv.

Meeting point: from 16:00 on the 3 July at the Old Jaffa Hostel, Tel Aviv.

Accommodation: Volunteers will sleep under the desert sky in a shared tent at the Wildlife Preserve camping site. The site includes shared bathrooms, mattresses, showers, and fully equipped kitchen. Volunteers may bring their own tent.

Language: English

Participation fee: 210 EURO

Special Remarks: This project does not include food, around 5-10 Euros per day is estimated for each volunteer to purchase food the local market.
The beginning of the project includes a 3 day orientation and preparation seminar in Tel Aviv.


GoEco06 - BEIT SHEARIM - 03/07/08-17/07/08 6 VOL ARCH
The Israel Nature & Parks Authority (NPA) would like to invite international volunteers to join our archaeological project in the ancient Jewish city of Beit Shearim, dating back 1800 years. Built on a low hill in the western part of the lower Galilee, Beit Shearim flourished from the second through the fourth centuries C.E. The residents of Beit Shearim dug an ornate necropolis deep into the ground. Courtyards, corridors, and staircases lead to the catacombs with their burial chambers and stone sarcophagi. The chambers and sarcophagi are decorated with bas-reliefs, epitaphs, and frescoes. The mouths of some of the caves were closed with hewn stone doors, shaped to resemble wooden doors. The bas-reliefs and drawings are representative of Roman-period Jewish folk art. The settlement of Beit Shearim was known as an important centre of Torah study, thanks to Rabbi Judah Hanasi (also known simply as Rabbi), the leading figure in the Jewish world in the third century C.E. Rabbi Judah Hanasi was considered the spiritual authority of the Jewish people during his time. Rabbi Judah Hanasi took up residence in Beit Shearim, making it the seat of the Sanhedrin (assembly of 71 ordained scholars, which served as both as legislature and as the Supreme Court). Volunteers' on this project you will have the opportunity to conduct archeological restoration with experts in their field.

Work: volunteers will be assigned to the NPA staff and assist in reopening ancient Catacombs, dating back 1800 years. Duties includes: Learning and practicing different restorations techniques, cleaning roots and removing moss and from the large catacombs.

Location: Beit Shearim is situated in the western part of the lower Galilee, 20 km east of Haifa and in walking distance from the town of Tivon.

Terminal: BenGurion Airport, Tel Aviv

Meeting point: from 16:00 on July 3rd at the Old Jaffa Hostel, Tel Aviv.

Accommodation: Volunteers will sleep under the stars at the project’s camping site which has water, bathrooms, showers, electricity and equipped kitchen. Volunteers are requested to bring their own tents. Food will be provided and cooked communally by the volunteers (except for first night).

Language: English

Participation fee: 210 EURO

Special Remarks: The beginning of the project includes a 3 day orientation and preparation in Tel Aviv.


GoEco07 - ERETZ CARMEL - 14/08/08-28/08/08 6 VOL AGRI/ENVI
Eretz Carmel, a non-profit, non-political, grass roots organization, initiates & promotes models of sustainable growth and revival of the environment, while at the same time preserving quality of life and building for a better future. Eretz Carmel is currently implementing practical daily-life solutions through its 3 projects: (1) Compost Hakerem – a new and unique model for recycling of organic garbage in which the individual becomes a partner in solving the problem of organic garbage, by separating organic household garbage which is collected and converted into compost by Eretz Carmel. (2) Education program – a perfectly balanced outdoor ecological environment which serves as an educational centre offering lectures, workshops, and programs on the importance of social and environmental harmony, sustainable ecological agriculture, the recycling of organic garbage ("Kerem Compost" project), the need for ecological building, and more. The centre aims to educate through experience. (3) Ecological Agriculture Project – methodology of vegetable-growing and organic orchards while preserving the environment, using the Eretz Carmel model to create sustainable agriculture. The project offers a practical solution to the problems of modern agriculture and the need to preserve open areas and nature resources.

Work: volunteers will partake in the Ecological Agriculture Project in activities such as: creation and maintenance of waterhole systems and compost projects, traditional farming, agricultural work on the organic orchard, earth building, education programs and many more.

Location: Kerem Maharal is situated 30 km south of Haifa in the beautiful Carmel Forests.

Terminal: BenGurion Airport, Tel Aviv.

Meeting point: from 16:00 on the 3 July at the Old Jaffa Hostel, Tel Aviv.

Accommodation: Volunteers will sleep under the stars in a shared forest shelter at the project camping site. The site includes shared bathrooms, mattresses, showers, and fully equipped kitchen. Volunteers may bring their own tent. A natural rock pool may be used by the volunteers after work.

Language: English

Participation fee: 210 EURO

Special Remarks: This project does not include food, around 5-10 Euros per day is estimated for each volunteer to purchase food at the local market.
The beginning of the project includes a 3 day orientation and preparation seminar in Tel Aviv.


GoEco08 - FAUZI AZAR - 14/08/08-28/08/08 5 VOL RENO/SOCI
The Fauzi Azar house is a beautiful 300 year old Ottoman building that was converted into an inn in 2005. The Fauzi Azar Inn promotes ecotourism in Nazareth and works with the community to contribute to its development in various areas. The inn uses local resources to create new work places, to raise the self- image of the local community, and to encourage economic growth while preserving the universal values of natural and cultural preservation. The aim is to introduce in Nazareth, which is the largest Arab city in Israel, a new model of tourism and thus "bridge the gap" between Arabs and Jews.

Work: volunteers will help restore neglected parts of the old city of Nazareth together with the local community. Duties include: painting doors in the old city to create a clean, friendly atmosphere and planting gardens on top of pavilions to return their unique appearance.

Location: Nazareth is situated in the mountainous Galilee region of northern Israel approximately 102 km north of Tel Aviv and 40 km east of Haifa.

Terminal: BenGurion Airport, Tel Aviv

Meeting point: from 16:00 on August 14th at the Old Jaffa Hostel, Tel Aviv.

Accommodation: Volunteers will stay at the beautiful Fauzi Azar Inn in a dormitory room suitable for 5 people. Volunteers may use the inn’s kitchen facilities to cook breakfast and dinner.

Language: English

Participation fee: 210 EURO

Special Remarks: This project doesn't include food, around 5-10 Euros per day is estimated for each volunteer to purchase food at the local market.
The beginning of the project includes a 3 day orientation and preparation in Tel Aviv.


SPECIAL WORK CAMPS

GoEco09 - BIBLICAL ZOO - 03/07/08-17/07/08 6 VOL ENVI/MANU
GoEco10 - BIBLICAL ZOO - 14/08/08-28/08/08 6 VOL ENVI/MANU
The Jerusalem Biblical Zoo houses a large variety of animals from around the world, although its main focus is animals mentioned in the Bible. The majority of these animals became extinct in the Middle East, mostly in the twentieth century (e.g. bears, lions, Mesopotamian fallow deer, Arabian oryx, cheetah and the Nile crocodile). The JBZ coordinates a number of unique projects that involve preserving rare species, whose origins are in the Land of Israel and, where possible, returning them to the wild (e.g. fallow deer, sand cats, Negev tortoise). Volunteers on this project will have the opportunity to work with some of these fascinating species, while gaining practical conservation experience under the guidance of experts in their field.

Work: Feeding animals and cleaning habitats, maintenance, observation and data collection, field work and constructing enrichment facilities.

Location: Jerusalem

Terminal: BenGurion Airport, Tel Aviv

Meeting point: from 16:00 on July 3rd or August 14th at the Old Jaffa Hostel, Tel Aviv.

Accommodation: Volunteers will stay at the Judean Guest House in rooms for 4 with AC, hot shower and toilet. Pool and gym facilities are available.

Language: English

Participation fee: 590 EURO

Special Remarks:
The beginning of the project includes a 3 day orientation in Tel Aviv.


GoEco11 - BUSTAN - 14/08/08-28/08/08 6 vol ENVI/SOCI
Against the background of the magnificent desert scenery of the Negev, there exists the long standing, historical confrontation between the traditional nomadic life-style of the nomads (Bedouins) and the modern life-style of the 21st Century. From the time of the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948, the modernization of the Negev desert was central to the development policy for the area. Modernization meant the introduction of modern agriculture techniques, the building of new towns and villages and the development of modern infrastructure such as water, electricity, sewage and roads. Modernization often clashes with the nomadic life-style of the Bedouin. Their free movement in the desert is curtailed. They resist efforts to be settled in a permanent location and hence are obliged to find their livelihood on unauthorized and unrecognized villages without any basic infrastructure or social services. Bustan is committed to cultivating sustainable models which promote the fair allocation of public resources and to heighten public awareness of the problem. Since March 2008, Bustan has initiated an exciting course geared towards participants from unrecognized Bedouin villages. In this three-month course, through theory and hands-on practice, participants meet weekly to learn the principles of permaculture and its application to desert settings. Participants will gain the tools of analysis and planning to respond to local issues, implementing projects that are sustainable and appropriate.Following completion of coursework, participants will complete supervised projects implementing permaculture principles in their own communities. These projects will demonstrate environmentally sound solutions to ecological problems in the Negev, particularly those due to unrecognized status. Graduates will receive an internationally recognized permaculture certificate. Significant scholarships will be available to all accepted applicants.Target participants will be residents of the Negev's unrecognized Bedouin villages.Approximately 15 students will be accepted to the course. BUSTAN would like to invite international volunteers to join this ecological initiative to assist hands-on with various innovative projects.

Work: As a volunteer in this project you will assist with projects that are initiated by the course participants within their villages. They may include the following options: Composting, Organic Gardening, Rainwater Collecting, Greywater Systems, Solar Ovens, Seed Saving, Local Currency Projects, Recycling, etc.

Location: Be'er Sheva and Bedouin villages within the surrounding Negev Desert – rocky, dry, hot, mystical country side within Israel which attracts many tourists every year.

Terminal: BenGurion Airport, Tel Aviv

Meeting point: from 16:00 on August 14th at the Old Jaffa Hostel, Tel Aviv.

Accommodation: Volunteers will rotate their stay at the BUSTAN Green Center in Be'er Sheva and a homestay within a Bedouin community (a week in each location). As a volunteer you will be provided with a comfortable room in a shared apartment with fully equipped kitchen, bathroom, hot shower, internet, washer/dryer and living room. While at the Green Center, basic food items will be provided and there are many opportunities to purchase additional food in walking distance from the center. During the homestay, volunteers will enjoy full meals.
Language: English

Participation fee: 480 EURO

Special Remarks: The beginning of the project includes a 3 day orientation in Tel Aviv and a day tour of the Bedouin villages in the Negev.