From leading yoga, Zumba and dance-fitness sessions for all ages in Poland and creating botanical gardens on a secluded UNESCO-listed island in the Venetian Lagoon, to goat-cheese making and cob building in a Hungarian village, teaching French near the Sahel in rural northern Ghana, tackling elderly isolation through paired home visits in France, night-time seabird rescues against light pollution on a Portuguese Atlantic island, climate resilience and flood preparedness in Georgia, an archaeological-heritage team on a Croatian island, decolonising higher education in Belgium, and afternoon clubs for Roma children in Czechia — this batch of 36 fully funded ESC placements spans 18 countries across Europe and Africa.
Every ESC placement is fully funded — flight, accommodation, food, monthly pocket money and insurance. A large group of deadlines falls between 7 and 19 July 2026, with several placements running right through into the autumn.
What's in this batch:
36 ESC Volunteering Placements · 18 Countries · Deadlines from July into Autumn 2026
🌱 ESC Volunteering Opportunities
🇵🇱 Poland — Supporting a Non-Formal Education NGO 📱
📅 Deadline: As soon as possible!
Support the daily work of an international NGO focused on non-formal education and active citizenship. Write articles and disseminate projects, plan community activities, support a non-formal education seminar for Polish schools, run social media and create videos and podcasts, and help with logistics and the upkeep of the NGO's headquarters. Open to applicants from 29 countries across Europe — a hands-on look at how a youth NGO actually runs, day to day.
🇮🇹 Italy — After-School Support and Activities for Teenagers (Milan) 🎨
📅 Deadline: 7 July 2026
Join a Milan youth centre where local teenagers gather after school to socialise, learn and grow in a safe, welcoming space. Help teens with homework and study, assist in creative workshops on citizenship, music and art, support sports and recreational activities, propose new ideas to involve the community, and accompany groups on summer camps and trips. Open to applicants from 29 countries across Europe — become the reliable adult a Milan teenager looks forward to seeing.
🇮🇹 Italy — Eco Education and Hostel Life in a Mountain Park 🌳
📅 Deadline: 7 July 2026
Live and work at a hostel set in a mountain nature park where sustainability shapes daily life. Help with maintenance and guest check-in, prepare and clean rooms, get creative with recycling and upcycling, guide guests on local hiking paths, and design and run environmental workshops for primary school groups. Open to applicants from 29 countries across Europe — your commute is a hiking trail.
📋 New to ESC volunteering? Everything you need to know — how it works, who can apply, what costs are covered — is in one place. Read the complete guide →
🇪🇸 Spain — Ecology and Intercultural Exchange on an Organic Garden 🌍
📅 Deadline: 9 July 2026
Join an association championing interculturality and sustainable development in rural Spain, with much of the work outdoors around its ecological vegetable garden, a place for learning, encounter and environmental awareness. Help maintain the garden, join gardening tasks, support educational activities and school garden projects, and contribute to the association's intercultural life. Open to residents of France — slow, outdoor, hands-in-the-soil days in rural Spain.
🇧🇬 Bulgaria — Renovating a Green Education Centre in the Mountains 🛠️
📅 Deadline: 9 July 2026
Help an association renovate its Green Education Centre in a mountain village near Sofia, a base for non-formal education programmes supporting children. Over two months surrounded by nature, take on maintenance and basic repair work on the building and garden, including woodworking and working with natural materials, and connect with the local community. Open to applicants from 26 countries across Europe — build something with your hands that outlasts your stay.
🇮🇹 Italy — Empowering Youth at a Milan Neighbourhood Centre ⚽
📅 Deadline: 10 July 2026
Support a lively youth centre helping young people, many from immigrant backgrounds, in disadvantaged Milan neighbourhoods. Offer after-school and homework help, assist workshops on arts, culture and human rights, support sports and friendly matches, and help with intercultural events, language tandems, free markets and social media, all through learning by doing. Open to applicants from 29 countries across Europe — frontline youth work where it changes the most lives.
✍️ Last-minute motivation letter? Here's how to write one that actually gets read — and remembered. Read the guide →
🇭🇺 Hungary — Village Life, Gardening and Eco Crafts 🐐
📅 Deadline: 12 July 2026
Discover natural life in a cosy Hungarian village, helping at family-size ecological farms and public places. Choose from traditional animal keeping with goats and cheese making, natural gardening and food processing, ecological building with wood, metal and cob, running programmes at a cultural centre, communication through photography and film, or creating art. Open to applicants from 27 countries across Europe — pick your craft and learn it from people who live it.
🇧🇪 Belgium — Social Work with Children and Teenagers at a Care Home 💛
📅 Deadline: 13 July 2026
Support a home in the south of Belgium caring for children and teenagers aged 3 to 18 facing all sorts of difficulties. Help the educational team with daily life, from house and garden upkeep and meals to homework support, games and leisure activities, and join weekly activities with people with mental disabilities and at a local youth house. Open to applicants from 28 countries across Europe — steady, caring presence in young lives that need one.
🇬🇭 Ghana — Monitoring and Evaluation for Community Development 🤝
📅 Deadline: 14 July 2026
Help a community development association strengthen its monitoring, evaluation and learning systems. Review existing tools, improve data collection and reporting, develop practical indicators and templates, support teams in integrating M&E into projects, analyse and visualise field data, and mentor staff to build a culture of learning and data use. Open to applicants from 31 countries across Europe — a rare, CV-ready route into humanitarian M&E.
🇬🇪 Georgia — Climate Resilience and Disaster Preparedness 🌊
📅 Deadline: 14 July 2026
Support local communities in Georgia to understand environmental risks and prepare for floods, extreme weather and other climate challenges. Help organise workshops, discussions and awareness events, run small community initiatives, and support communication and documentation, working closely with active residents and women in a practical, people-centred setting. Open to applicants from 31 countries across Europe — practical climate-adaptation work with the people who live the risk.
💡 What do organisations actually look for in an ESC volunteer? Skills, values, attitude — what makes a strong profile. Read the guide →
🇬🇭 Ghana — Digital Skills and Inclusion in the Community 📱
📅 Deadline: 14 July 2026
Help a community development association strengthen its digital presence, internal tech capacity and community digital inclusion. Manage social media and create content, provide basic IT support, deliver digital skills training for staff, lead digital literacy sessions in rural communities, and develop your own digital innovation project with lasting local value. Open to applicants from 31 countries across Europe — leave behind a digital project that keeps working after you go.
🇺🇬 Uganda — Inclusive Education at a School for Children with Disabilities 💛
📅 Deadline: 14 July 2026
Support a primary school for children with physical disabilities, educating and rehabilitating pupils for greater self-reliance. Help with classroom learning and extracurriculars like sports, music and drama, support therapy exercises and basic computer teaching, and assist with teacher training and vocational skills, treating every child with dignity and care. Open to applicants from 31 countries across Europe — work that widens what these children believe they can do.
🇬🇷 Greece — Team Volunteering in Media and Community (Thessaloniki) 📸
📅 Deadline: 15 July 2026
A two-month team experience in Thessaloniki with an organisation working on social, educational and cultural topics. Join an international team, share daily life with people from different backgrounds, and get involved in media and community activities, no previous technical media knowledge required. Open to applicants from 4 countries across Europe — a very small eligibility pool, which means real odds if you qualify.
🗺️ Not sure if your country is eligible? The full list of ESC and Erasmus+ programme and partner countries — including many outside the EU. Check eligibility →
🇬🇭 Ghana — Teaching French to School Children 📚
📅 Deadline: 15 July 2026
Help drive French language skills among school children and community members in a grassroots organisation in rural northern Ghana, a region bordering French-speaking neighbours. Teach French, assist French teachers, play with children using everyday conversation, and help with exercises and homework, bridging cultural gaps and opening doors to trade and good neighbourliness. Open to applicants from 31 countries across Europe — your French becomes a whole community's bridge to its neighbours.
🇭🇷 Croatia — Heritage and Nature on a Croatian Island 🌊
📅 Deadline: 15 July 2026
Join a team of volunteers from across Europe on a Croatian island to explore shared archaeological heritage, sustainable development of cultural and natural sites, and community development. Live and work with a diverse group, embrace the local island culture, and grow your skills while championing social inclusion, active citizenship and solidarity. Open to applicants from 20 countries across Europe — island living wrapped around real archaeological heritage work.
🇫🇷 France — Europe and Languages at a Training Campus 🌍
📅 Deadline: 15 July 2026
Support a training centre near the French seaside, splitting your time between a business school and an apprenticeship centre. Create and run workshops for students and apprentices using non-formal methods, focused on European languages, Europe and current affairs, coach students preparing for Erasmus+ mobilities, and take part in debates and campus events. Open to applicants from 26 countries across Europe — help students take their own first step abroad.
🚫 "I'm not qualified enough." "I don't speak the language." Four common ESC myths — and the facts that prove them wrong. Read the facts →
🇵🇱 Poland — Content Creation and Communication for a Peace Organisation 🎬
📅 Deadline: 19 July 2026
Support the Polish branch of an international peace movement that builds bridges through volunteering. Create reels, videos and posts, design promotional materials, document events and campaigns, and help promote youth mobility and intercultural dialogue from a busy office team. Open to applicants from 35 countries across Europe — a content-creator's role with peace as the mission.
🇸🇮 Slovenia — Inclusion and Creative Activities with Adults with Disabilities 🎨
📅 Deadline: 19 July 2026
Support a care and working centre for adults with intellectual disabilities, where people develop their skills and take an active part in community life. Help out in workshops and leisure activities, bring fresh ideas, and organise creative sessions promoting healthy lifestyles, social inclusion and personal growth. Open to applicants from 26 countries across Europe — the kind of role measured in human connection, not tasks.
🇧🇪 Belgium — Global Citizenship and Decolonisation in Higher Education ✊
📅 Deadline: 19 July 2026
Help shape how higher education engages with global citizenship, decolonisation and international solidarity: develop tools, training and materials, contribute to a project on decolonising research including a resource guide and colloquium, support workshops and campaigns, and co-create communication content from a youth perspective — intellectually serious work with a genuine moral spine.
🇺🇬 Uganda — Transforming Education at a Rural Community School ✏️
📅 Deadline: 19 July 2026
Take on a rewarding role transforming education at a rural community school. Lead workshops and training to strengthen school management and equip teachers with innovative teaching methods, support subject teachers across disciplines, raise community awareness of the importance of education, enrich the school library through partnerships, and organise extracurricular activities. Open to applicants from 31 countries across Europe — reshape how a whole school teaches, not just one class.
📋 First time applying? The complete ESC guide walks you through eligibility, costs and how the whole thing works. Read it here →
🇵🇹 Portugal — Seabird Conservation and Light Pollution Awareness 🌙
📅 Deadline: 23 July 2026
Help protect seabirds on an Atlantic island by raising public awareness of light pollution and supporting night-time rescue campaigns for birds disoriented by artificial light, as part of a LIFE conservation project. ⚠️ Fluency in Portuguese is essential. ⚠️ Open to residents of Portugal — hands-on wildlife rescue under an Atlantic night sky.
🇵🇱 Poland — Move, Motivate and Inspire with Yoga, Zumba and Dance Fitness for All Ages 🧘
📅 Deadline: 30 July 2026
A sport-focused placement encouraging community members to stay active through fun and inclusive physical activities. Organise and facilitate sessions for children, youth, adults and seniors, lead or support activities such as yoga, pilates, Zumba, stretching, dance fitness and outdoor exercises, document everything through photos, videos and social media, and support local sports events, tournaments and recreational activities — get a whole community moving, one class at a time.
🇭🇺 Hungary — Short-Term Youth Creative and Cultural Activities 🎭
📅 Deadline: 31 July 2026
A four-month placement at a cultural and youth centre running creative and leisure activities for young people. Lead handcraft sessions and a children's theatre club, support a personal development programme through singing, music, group games and stories, and help deliver events like museums' night and summer and winter festivals. Open to applicants from 22 countries across Europe — a shorter placement packed with festivals and creativity.
🇵🇱 Poland — Workshops and Support at a Youth Educational Centre ⚽
📅 Deadline: 31 July 2026
Join a youth educational centre running educational, therapeutic and social reintegration programmes for its residents. Organise and lead thematic workshops based on your own skills, from language and culinary to sports and arts, using non-formal education methods, and help co-organise local events and initiatives. Open to applicants from 16 countries across Europe — your own skills become the curriculum.
✍️ Writing your motivation letter? Here's how to make it land — and be remembered. Read the guide →
🇫🇷 France — Sustainable Living and Inclusion in the Community ♻️
📅 Deadline: 31 July 2026
Join local community centres blending social inclusion, environmental sustainability and healthy food. Working with residents of all ages, help run workshops and events on sustainable lifestyles, recycling and upcycling, urban gardening, healthy affordable cooking and food-waste reduction, while sharing traditions from your own country and co-creating inclusive spaces. Open to applicants from 29 countries across Europe — small daily habits, scaled across a whole community.
🇮🇹 Italy — Nature and Heritage on a Venetian Lagoon Island 🌿
📅 Deadline: 31 July 2026
A team experience on a secluded island a short boat ride from the mainland, deep inside a UNESCO-listed natural oasis in the Venetian Lagoon. Help create the lagoon botanical gardens, lend a hand with gardening, painting, livestock and fishing, and live communally with a family preserving ancient lagoon traditions. Open to applicants from 31 countries across Europe — a placement you'll struggle to believe was real once it's over.
🇱🇹 Lithuania — Brightening a Community Park Together 🌳
📅 Deadline: 1 August 2026
Join a team bringing new light and energy to a community park already home to a geodome, herbal garden, archery range and cosy paths. Work hands-on with a team of skilled handymen to install lamps that guide visitors at night and add new elements to make the park shine brighter. Open to applicants from 38 countries across Europe — leave a park literally brighter than you found it.
💡 What makes a strong ESC profile? Skills, values, attitude — what organisations really look for. Read the guide →
🇨🇿 Czechia — Supporting Seniors at an Elderly Care Home 👵
📅 Deadline: 15 August 2026
Support a home for older people where residents live with dignity and as much independence as possible. Help seniors through their daily routine, from morning programmes to afternoon activities, and join activation sessions, gentle physical and breathing exercises, and memory and music activities that brighten their days. Open to applicants from 29 countries across Europe — companionship as a full-time calling.
🇨🇿 Czechia — Afternoon Club for Marginalised Children and Youth ⚽
📅 Deadline: 15 August 2026
Support a centre creating positive change for marginalised children and youth, including Roma children, facing challenging situations. Run fun leisure activities from board games, arts and crafts and table football to quizzes, sports tournaments and cooking clubs, design and lead your own programmes, and help build confidence and joy every day. Open to applicants from 29 countries across Europe — build small, daily moments of joy for kids who need them most.
🇵🇹 Portugal — Children's Activities and Intercultural Creativity 🌊
📅 Deadline: 7 September 2026
Join a leisure centre on the Portuguese coast supporting and entertaining children aged 6 to 12. Run intercultural afternoons with games, dances and food from home, create themed workshops around your own passions like theatre, sport, drawing or photography, and in summer join beach clean-ups on Blue Flag shores and help organise book fairs. Open to residents of France — a whole coastal summer of games, workshops and sea air.
🗺️ Checking your eligibility? The full list of ESC programme and partner countries — including many outside the EU — is here. Check eligibility →
🇫🇷 France — Socio-Cultural Youth Work and European Awareness at a School 🎨
📅 Deadline: 9 September 2026
A dual placement between a school and a youth centre fostering cultural openness and citizenship: design interactive language clubs, support Spanish projects, help organise events like Europe Day and guide eco-citizen initiatives, then lead socio-cultural activities and raise awareness about international mobility during holidays — two settings, one mission: opening young minds to Europe.
🇪🇸 Spain — Supporting People with Intellectual Disabilities and Inclusion 🤝
📅 Deadline: 20 September 2026
Support adults with intellectual disabilities and promote social inclusion: accompany participants in daily living and care activities under professional supervision, lead recreational, educational and sports workshops, and join outings and sports events at a leisure club and residential centres. Open to residents of Austria — inclusion work built on patience and genuine connection.
🇫🇷 France — Tackling Elderly Isolation Through Intergenerational Visits 👵
📅 Deadline: 20 September 2026
Help reduce isolation among older people through home visits and group activities, always working in pairs within a team of eight young people. Build deep bonds of trust with isolated seniors, run animation activities in care homes and libraries, and take part in cultural exchanges around European citizenship. Open to residents of Italy — for some seniors, you'll be the highlight of the week.
🚫 Think you're "not qualified enough"? Four common ESC myths — and the facts that prove them wrong. Read the facts →
🇪🇸 Spain — Supporting People with Intellectual Disabilities (Leisure Club) 🌟
📅 Deadline: 27 September 2026
A unique placement with a social NGO dedicated to people with disabilities and their families: raise awareness, develop inclusive leisure activities and support work inclusion, with weekly Spanish language support. ⚠️ Good knowledge of Spanish required. ⚠️ A sending organisation needed (support available to find one) — meaningful inclusion work, with the language help built in.
🇮🇹 Italy — Community Development in a Rural Village 🏡
📅 Deadline: 1 October 2026
An invitation to rethink collaboration through food, sustainability and daily life in the Italian countryside. Immerse yourself in rural living alongside locals and internationals of all ages, take part in gardening, planting, manual work and painting, and help build an active, sustainable and supportive community. Open to applicants from 27 countries across Europe — a slower, more intentional way of living, tested for real.
🇷🇴 Romania — Inclusion and Equal Opportunities for Disadvantaged Youth ✊
📅 Deadline: 31 January 2027
Work with disadvantaged teenagers to boost inclusion and equal opportunities: support quality education, reduce school dropout, build motivation and self-confidence, and promote citizens' rights and anti-discrimination through civic education in local communities, alongside training in media literacy and communication — the longest runway in this batch, with months to plan your move.
Thirty-six fully funded ESC placements across 18 countries in a single batch — and this is one of the largest and most varied volunteering drops of the season. Yoga, Zumba and dance-fitness for all ages in Poland, botanical gardens on a secluded UNESCO island in the Venetian Lagoon, goat-cheese making and cob building in a Hungarian village, teaching French near the Sahel in rural northern Ghana, tackling elderly isolation through paired visits in France, night-time seabird rescues against light pollution on a Portuguese Atlantic island, climate resilience and flood preparedness in Georgia, an archaeological-heritage team on a Croatian island, decolonising higher education in Belgium, and afternoon clubs for Roma children in Czechia — these are not opportunities you'll see grouped together again.
The spread reaches from Europe deep into Africa. Italy leads with five placements — two Milan youth centres, a mountain eco-hostel, the Venetian Lagoon island and a rural-village community project — while France follows with four spanning a seaside training campus, community sustainability work, a socio-cultural school role and intergenerational visits to isolated seniors. Poland offers four (a non-formal education NGO, a peace-movement content role, an all-ages fitness placement and a youth educational centre), and Spain three roles supporting people with intellectual disabilities and an organic garden. Ghana brings three complementary community-development placements — M&E, digital inclusion and French teaching — while Uganda contributes two disability- and education-focused schools. Bulgaria, Hungary (×2), Belgium (×2), Czechia (×2), Portugal (×2), Georgia, Greece, Croatia, Slovenia, Lithuania and Romania round out the map. The Polish NGO role moves as soon as a strong application lands, a heavy cluster falls 14–19 July, and the calendar stretches all the way to a Romanian placement closing 31 January 2027. Choose yours.
