We believe that a greater awareness of global issues and a deeper understanding of people will help to create an international culture that is more peaceful, open-minded, and responsible for its actions. Our international volunteers help us to promote our vision by promoting a culture of peace, social justice and sustainable development worldwide through our nternational peace network, Service Civil International (SCI).
Longer term programme at a glance:
-Worldwide
-18 years and over (volunteers must be at least 21 years old to volunteer in the Global South*)
-Projects from 1 to 12 months
-Food and accommodation provided
-Volunteers pay a fee to VSI, sometimes to the host organisation and for their own travel.
*refers broadly to the regions of Latin America, Asia, Africa, and Oceania. It refers to regions outside Europe and North America, mostly (though not all) low-income and often politically or culturally marginalised.
Some examples of our wide variety of projects:
-Community work at a youth centre, Tanzania
-Supporting an eco-village, France
-Organic farming, Thailand
-Working with asylum seekers, Switzerland
-Teaching basic IT skills, Kenya
-Living in a therapeutic community, Scotland
Our 2026 projects database is currently under construction! Please contact us if you would like to find out about available projects, or sign up to our mailing list.
Please note, we do not send volunteers on short-term projects to the Global South, projects start from 1 month in this region. Info on our short-term programme in Europe.
VSI carries out a comprehensive preparation programme with our volunteers, including practicalities e.g. travel, insurance, finance, visas, health as well as what to expect, culture-shock, global citizenship education and we try to include meeting with former long-term VSI volunteers.
Please note, we also work through another long-term programme, the European Solidarity Corps (ESC). ESC projects take place in Europe and surrounding countries, they are for 18 to 30 year olds, last 2 weeks to 12 months and are funded by the EU. More info here.