Based in New Rochelle, NY, this is a nonprofit organization whose volunteers provide humanitarian assistance in health care, education, and community development in China, Ghana, India, Peru, and Russia. In addition, you pay your own international airfare. An international nonprofit organization founded in Boston, Earthwatch sends travelers to help scientists with their fieldwork. The aim is to promote sustainable conservation of natural resources and cultural heritage. Volunteers are ages 16 and over, and do not need special skills except a scuba certificate for diving projects.
Volunteers work three to six hours a day planting, weeding, woodcutting, or compost making.
The price for the six-day expedition off Mexico is still pending. For details, write to Franciscan Mission Service, P.O. Box 29034, Washington, DC 20017-0034. It has all sorts of information about the kibbutz communal movement in Israel and how to volunteer for temporary assignment. But you should be aware of the strife between many Israeli Jews and Palestinian Arabs. Besides these volunteer programs, dozens of others send Americans to study abroad.