Non-profit organization Tropical Adventures is gaining a mix of support and curiosity at Eastern Michigan University.
Its website, tropicaladventures.com, claims the group is seeking good-hearted students willing to volunteer toward a larger effort of preservation and empowerment. By networking with mainly Costa Rica, Tropical Adventures offers organized volunteer trips throughout South America, also including Panama and Nicaragua. In exchange for four days minimum volunteering on
preservation sites, roughly three days of leisure time are given to explore.
“It sounds like a priceless travel, volunteer and cultural experience; an awesome resume builder that can lead to career opportunities in the non-profit sector,” said Jerome Minto, a sophomore studying French and anthropology. “It is always enriching to interact with people in different parts of the world and discover its diversities.”
The required projects are either wildlife-based or aimed toward educating natives for improving their livelihood. The first type includes Barra Honda National Park; it utilizes butterfly and bat research as well as surveillance monitoring. The Ostional Sea Turtle Project calls on volunteers to protect and assist turtles during the reproduction process. Wildlife Rescue Center offers hands-on experience with exotic animals of a rescue center.
The second type includes Hojancha Art & Music Project & Daycare Center, an early childhood education development plan.
The last option is Bambu Indigenous Project, which encourages participation in community outreach projects designed for enlightening members of the community with a chance for language learning. For example, opportunities to learn Spanish online for discounted rates are available to volunteers.
Students are encouraged to participate not only for charitable, selfless opportunities to help others, but to showcase leadership and organizational skills to future employers. Many of the projects are well suited for majors of all types.
Since Tropical Adventure is a non-profit organization, very little funds are available to assist volunteers. But some believe the benefits of preserving the wildlife as well as reaching out to one of the most important natural resource communities in the world is worth more than a couple hundred dollars.
The cost breakdown is as follows: Volunteers are required to pay for airfare, room and boarding. Trip packages range in
price from $750-$1,400, not including the average $800 airfare ticket price.
“It sounds like a great opportunity, but the price seems unreasonable for volunteering,” said Max Carson, a senior majoring in criminal justice.
There are ways around the steep prices such as the university representative program. In brief, it entails a student to work as a liaison between Tropical Adventures and his or her school. The chosen representative would be asked to gather information on trips via social networks in order to create a volunteer group within the school.
Eventually, a responsibility of recruiting additional students and scheduling meeting times with other organization members to prepare for the trip would come. Representatives, given the amount of overall student interest, usually get individual package fees waived. Currently, Eastern Michigan University does not have a representative.
Other students on a tight budget might consider fundraising within the organization; profits could go toward traveling fees, as well as donations towards the effort. In turn, this raises awareness towards the cause by involving the community.
