Tailored Internships at an Ecuadorian Cultural Exchange Centre

I wanted to pursue a project that addressed the high adolescent pregnancy rate in this area and encourage people to start having conversations about sex, relationships, etc to make sure the next generation is better informed/can feel more prepared in making decisions in their lives.

I have nothing negative to say about my experience at El Terreno. The medicine and public health internship allowed me to get a close up look at how a healthcare system runs in rural Ecuador and I was able to make meaningful connections with the community members we served. I most enjoyed meeting so many different people in the community and getting to take weekend trips with the other volunteers.

After my first attempt at volunteering in Peru didn't work out, I found this opportunity which felt like a close fit and had great reviews. Leaving my family for 4 weeks sounded like long time, but it takes a while to make an impact. I'm so glad that I decided to go to Atandahua and help with their community water projects. Joshua was very supportive in helping me construct a plan for my internship and setting me up with top notch professionals to help me accomplish meaningful results along the way. I stayed in a family homestay and was guided by Cristian, an engineer whose family grew up around the area. I learned so much about the water, projects, farming, and culture. Having not been out of the US for an extended period of time, there was an adjustment, but the people in the local community are so warm, hard-working, and friendly, I felt like I was in a family community away from home. I ended up helping map out the water system and meters in the town, helping with a gray water project, planting native trees, and helping make organic fertilizer. I was also able to help out with the school children in English classes which helped solidify my Spanish. In the end, I was able help the community to have a much better understanding of their water system and I laid the groundwork for others who are coming in during the following months to continue to make an impact. I hope to come back, maybe with students, to continue to help out these great people to have better access to water, a right which we all should be able to have.

I spent 3 months interning at El Terreno, learnt so much and genuinely felt I made an impact.

I worked alongside the local potable and irrigation water committees on strategically planning improvements regarding water quality, quantity and infrastructure through regional organisation. I was part of a team that successfully led a proposal for the legal formation of a regional water committee (2nd degree organisation) compromising 7 communities as a platform to pool resources, knowledge and facilitate legal collaboration over protecting water supplies in the area.

I also worked on a solo project. This was an anthropological, qualitative study to better help inform strategies of community development, foster collaboration between key community leaders and identify and plan for key Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats of the community.

I had so much fun on this internship but more importantly, for my personal goals, I learnt a huge amount about development in real-life contexts. What I loved most was the balance between the freedom to design and implement my own project with a team of like minded interns while also having constant access to field experts Sebastian and Cristian - their support was invaluable.

Among other things, key activities included community site visits, attending conferences and field research. Furthermore, having the weekends free allowed time to travel Ecuador and visit other areas of Ecuador - something i was very grateful for!

Overall, I really enjoyed my internship and feel it has been a key part of my journey in the field of international development.

I spent two months at El Terreno working on a water project. The mission was very interesting and truly interdisciplinary. I got the chance to engage in many different activities (interviews, community meetings, site visites, classes with the local school…), work with a multidisciplinary team, discover a complete new environment, and contribute into the well-being of the community.
I would definitely recommend this internship to anyone willing to help local people, or to apply their skills into concrete projects.
On top of that, I met incredible people, saw amazing landscapes and made memories that I’ll never forget.

Working on the water project has really given me valuable experience. Having recently graduated from university, I wanted to gain experience in the field and really put my skills into practice and I feel like this internship fulfilled that. There was a mixture of physical work including site visits as well as some desktop work, and this balance of work really worked for me. There is opportunity to work and talk to members of the local community and really get involved in the project. Also, the internship mentors taught me so much during my time there and are genuinely amazing mentors. Joshua is also a great leader who you can can seek help regarding a work/internship issues but also your personal well-being too, which I really appreciated. Finally, I stayed with a local host family who were so accommodating and great hosts to live with. This experience is a great opportunity to meet people and and it was an experience I will never forget and will value forever.

I had an amazing experience with El Terreno. I participated in their Culture and Anthropology internship and learned more than I could ever have expected. The support from Joshua and Karina throughout the process was outstanding and my experience in a homestay and with the other volunteers and interns was absolutely amazing. My project developed throughout the 2.5 months I stayed in Ecuador and El Terreno was flexible and encouraging and helped with figuring out the next steps as I went. I am so blessed to have had this experience and would strongly recommend to anyone else who is considering.

My time and internship at El Terreno provided me with the perfect opportunity to combine my vision and ambitions with my profession. I learned tons by doing an internship in sustainable architecture. Joshua and Karina are very kind and put in a lot of effort to ensure I, and the other people staying there, had a good time and they helped us organizing activities on the weekends. Ecuador is a beautiful country and with the right people you're sure of an excellent time. I found those people here and would recommend more people to join their program!

The internship here in Atandahua was amazing. I got to learn and improve my medical skills as a 4th year student and was immersed in a very different setting. The rural indigenous population has a very different relationship with healthcare which was very enriching and eye-opening.
Next to the medical part, I got to learn a lot from the other volunteers in construction work and agriculture and could lend a hand in the afternoon, which made me feel super integrated to the group very fast.
I also improved my Spanish a lot and got to share the culture with locals firsthand in my host family.
In the weekends you can go roaming around in Ecuador sightseeing and visiting places, both nature and cities. Ecuador is a very rich and diverse country with 4 major biomes so there is plenty to see!
In short, amazing experience, don't think twice!