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It's 6 a.m. in Bansko, a farm village at the foot of Bulgaria's Rila mountains. Joulia, the 20-year-old Bulgarian leading this workcamp, wakes her twelve volunteers for a breakfast comprised of banitza, homemade cheese pastries, and milk so fresh it's still warm. The dirty dozen is bleary from a late night of plum brandy and dancing in Bansko's disco. After breakfast, these group members join their co-workers, local laborers with the forestry department. Their rickety bus climbs pine-scented peaks, where they spend the day clearing paths and picking medicinal plants from rainbow fields of flowers. A leisurely lunch under cool willows gives their backs a break. Conversation centers on their weekend plans to visit Rila monastery and climb Mount Virhin. The workers and volunteers, who represent nine countries, bridge language barriers with charades and laughter.

The most impressive monument from the Bugarian Revival period rises amidst the rugged beauty of the Rila Mountains.

Every summer, 33,000 people leave their countries for parts unknown. Their destinations are any one or several of over 2,200  workcamps scattered over 90 countries, from Argentina to Zimbabwe.  Some will work with farmers in the fields, others with children in the inner cities. By volunteering their time and money to help distant neighbors, all share the common goal of global peace and responsibility.

"When local people see volunteers paying their own way to better their lives, that alone is such a statement they can't help but be grateful for the initiative," says Peter Coldwell, founder of Volunteers for Peace (VFP), in Belmont, Vermont.  The largest of three U.S. organizations linking volunteers to workcamps, VFP has placed over 10,000 Americans abroad since 1982.

"For good-hearted paupers, workcamps offer an attractive alternative to volunteer projects requiring large sums of time and money. The typical third world program covers everything from inoculations to airfare, but it can cost as much as $4,000 for a month-long program," Coldwell explained. VFP's small program fee of $175 to $300 per camp merely covers organizational expenses. "I still can't believe that for $175 I lived, ate, played and worked in a remote village in central France in the heart of a valley summer," said Angela Kolter, a former VFP volunteer.

Worldwide, roughly 150 organizations coordinate more than 2,200 volunteer projects. Each group partners with particular camps locally and internationally, placing volunteers abroad in exchange for receiving foreign volunteers into its domestic programs.  By virtue of a body-for-body swap, money never needs to change hands between groups.

Any local organization, be it a church, arts group, or state park branch, can coordinate a camp to help with a community project. The local host group provides everything from tools to leaders, often with financial support from the community and government.
 

"…through the knowledge and sincere efforts of the biologists, local people and volunteers at the camp, my interest and enthusiasm for turtles, environmental education and cultural understanding is peaked!!" Angella Gibbons Photo Credit: Gerry Wood

The work varies widely from site to site. A group may excavate a medieval Jewish necropolis in Spain, plant mango trees in Thailand, or set up a summer music festival in Norway. Projects often involve the environment, arts, social services, archeology, construction, and historic preservation. Volunteers may find themselves sleeping in a school, church, private home, community center or even a tent. Some groups cook and clean for themselves, while others eat meals donated by a local family or restaurant. Most camps arrange evening and week-end excursions to local attractions, whether a city cultural tour or a trip to a national park. "Though volunteers tend to be college-aged, workcamps are for a mature audience only," Coldwell cautioned. "Volunteers must make their own travel arrangements and inform themselves about their host countries. Because camp conditions vary so widely, volunteers must come with open mind and heart."

"None of us realized we would be giving 100% for 14 hours a day, yet no one balked or moaned; we loved it," said Sandy Stefanowicz, who volunteered with a children's program in Ireland.

Workcamps trace back to peace pioneer Pierre Ceresole, a Swiss pacifist and Quaker. In 1920, Ceresole led a small international team in reconstructing a French village destroyed during World War I. He hoped that such projects would provide an alternative to military service.

Ceresole's efforts evolved into Service Civil International (SCI), a volunteer service organization that now has 33 branches worldwide. Located in Seattle, Wash., SCI's volunteer-run U.S. branch sends about 50 Americans abroad each year, according to Traudi Krausser, volunteer coordinator.

Workcamps are well established in Western Europe, where service projects have carried the olive branch since Ceresole's post-war effort. The region now is saturated with workcamps, several hundred in Germany alone. European camps often recruit unemployed youth to help organize projects, Krausser said.

Camps have also spread through Eastern Europe over the past two decades. In the 1980s, VFP focused on exchanges across the "Iron Curtain," using  individuals to span the distance between communist and capitalist governments.

Today, developing nations in Asia, Africa and Latin America abound with new projects, according to Coldwell. Several countries hosting camps, such as Azerbaijan, Israel, and Northern Ireland, face terrorism and political turmoil. Volunteers in these areas ultimately sign up at their own risk.

"We rely on information from our partners. If a country's residents feel an area is safe, that's what we tell our volunteers," explained Coldwell. Those who do venture into such torn nations are often glad they did. 

"Here was this place so devastated and destroyed, and yet the people were the most beautiful I ever met," said Hau Truong, a volunteer in Bosnia. "They seemed more real to me, unspoiled by the things we take for granted in the West."

Ultimately, volunteers get back much more than the time and money they give. By working, living and playing with people from a variety of countries and cultures, volunteers transcend a country's tourist facade and transform their sense of the world. 
 

"People cared enough to travel around the world to help a small town called Allemont," said Patrick Nolen of his camp in France. "Through our experiences, we created a magic that penetrated the boundaries not only of our minds, but also our countries." Molli Grant, who volunteered in the Czech Republic, summed it up. "When representatives from ten different countries get together and hold hands and pitchforks for two weeks, I call that Peace. Mission accomplished."

GREECE - I can't imagine travelling internationally without combining it with a workcamp. I think this is an experience every American should have!” Aria Kinch 99-GREECE - Friendship Dance

The Who, Where, When and Cost of participaption:

Who	10 to 20 volunteers per camp. In general, volunteers must be at least age 18. Campers tend to be college-aged, though certain camps cater to younger or older participants.
When	95% of camps take place between May and September. Each camp is two to three weeks. Many volunteers sign up for multiple camps in a single season.
Where	Over 2,200 projects in more than 80 countries.
Cost	$195 to $400 per session, not including transportation to the camp.

Organizations placing U.S. volunteers abroad:

Volunteers For Peace VFP specializes in short-term voluntary service placements in over 70 countries. Most programs cost $200 and include accomodation and food. 1034 Tiffany RD Belmont VT 05730-0202 Phone:802/259-2759 Fax:802/259-2922 Email:vfp@vfp.org Website: http://www.vfp.org/

Council for International Educational Exchanges The CIEE works with over 25 domestic and 600 overseas projects in 30 countries. 205 East 42nd Street New York, NY 10017 Phone: (888) COUNCIL or  (212) 822-2600 Fax: (212) 822-2649 E-mail: info@councilexchanges.org Web site: www.ciee.org

Service Civil International- IVS USA This office coordinates a dozen domestic and 500 international camps, in addition to long-term service projects. 814 40th St. NE Seattle, WA 98105 Phone/fax: (206) 545-6585 E-mail: sciinfo@sci-ivs.org