From monitoring vultures and joining anti-poison dog-unit patrols in the Dadia-Lefkimi-Soufli National Park of Greek Thrace and gender-equality and new-masculinities workshops in the highlands of Guatemala, to a community radio station giving voice to a French region, dog-shelter life in northern Italy, scout-camp survival skills in Croatia's wild Lika region, reimagining the future of villages in a Hungarian rural living lab, supporting young Ukrainian refugees in Romania, and elderly care in a charming Black Forest town — this batch of 18 fully funded ESC placements spans 12 countries across Europe and Central America.
Every ESC placement is fully funded — flight, accommodation, food, monthly pocket money and insurance. Seven placements are open "as soon as possible," and the rest run from 10 July all the way to 30 September 2026, so there's a fit here for a fast mover and a careful planner alike.
What's in this batch:
18 ESC Volunteering Placements · 12 Countries · Deadlines from Now to 30 September 2026
🌱 ESC Volunteering Opportunities
🇫🇷 France — Ecology, Gardening and Solidarity ♻️
📅 Deadline: As soon as possible!
Join a multidisciplinary team promoting hands-on political ecology through market gardening, recycling, forest management and activities in schools. After three weeks of observation, you will design your own personal action project that builds on your skills and those of the collective, supported by weekly guidance and tailored training. Develop collaborative, linguistic and methodological competences while raising awareness of social and educational issues and helping drive local development. Open to applicants from 25 countries across Europe — ecology as action, with your own project at its heart.
🇪🇸 Spain — Community, Environment and Cultural Exchange (Galicia) 🌳
📅 Deadline: As soon as possible!
A short-term placement packed with variety in the green heart of Galicia. Get hands-on with organic farming and permaculture, help run a youth fair promoting solidarity and opportunities, lead daily guided visits to a historic manor in English and Spanish, and join an afforestation day raising awareness about forest protection. Bring your own creative project to life and host an intercultural night sharing your traditions with the local community. Open to residents of Türkiye — a little bit of everything, in the green corner of Spain.
🇫🇷 France — Community Radio and Media Education 📻
📅 Deadline: As soon as possible!
Take to the airwaves at a community radio station that gives voice to a diverse local region. You will host and produce regular broadcasts on culture, music and local themes, take part in external radio sessions, and help lead media education workshops. Learn hands-on radio skills, audio recording, mixing and podcasting, alongside journalism techniques, in a creative team environment. A perfect placement for anyone passionate about radio, media and giving communities a voice. Open to applicants from 23 countries across Europe — your voice, on the air, all year.
📋 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 →
🇫🇷 France — Nature Education and Pedagogical Gardens 🦋
📅 Deadline: As soon as possible!
Play an active role in the daily life of a nature education centre alongside a team of nature facilitators. Help design and run social programmes for families and seniors, from garden workshops to themed gatherings, and co-create playful new educational tools like nature escape games and board games. Bring the pedagogical garden to life, design ecological signage, and get involved in eco-responsible trips for teenagers, including canoe journeys and European stays. Open to applicants from 24 countries across Europe — teach nature by playing in it.
🇫🇷 France — Community Dining and Social Connection (Mulhouse) 🤝
📅 Deadline: As soon as possible!
Become an active part of a warm, solidarity-driven community canteen in Mulhouse. Far more than an observer, you will welcome guests, spark conversations and create a friendly atmosphere that encourages social and cultural mixing. Lead intercultural debates and workshops, organise themed meals and international culinary discoveries to celebrate diversity, and help share this convivial concept with young people, all while raising awareness of sustainable eating. Open to applicants from 27 countries across Europe — where a shared table becomes a whole community.
🇭🇷 Croatia — Outdoor Skills at a Scout Camp (Lika) 🧭
📅 Deadline: As soon as possible!
Trade your routine for camp life in the beautiful southern Lika region. Support a scout camp and the local community while developing communication, teamwork, leadership and problem-solving skills. Try your hand at new outdoor experiences, camping, survival skills, sailing, rescue activities and hiking, and explore the natural beauty of Lovinac through organised educational activities. A hands-on adventure for anyone eager to contribute and embrace the outdoors. Open to applicants from 18 countries across Europe — swap your routine for survival skills under the stars.
✍️ Last-minute motivation letter? Here's how to write one that actually gets read — and remembered. Read the guide →
🇭🇷 Croatia — Scout Camp Life and Community Skills (Lika) 🧗
📅 Deadline: As soon as possible!
Swap city life for the wild beauty of the southern Lika region at a lively scout camp. Support the camp and local community while building communication, teamwork, leadership and problem-solving skills, and dive into hands-on outdoor experiences: camping, survival skills, sailing, rescue activities and hiking. Explore Lovinac through organised educational activities and grow alongside a motivated international team ready for camp life. Open to applicants from 🇦🇱 🇧🇪 🇫🇷 🇩🇪 🇵🇹 and 10 more — a second Lika camp spot for another outdoor-lover.
🇮🇹 Italy — Environmental Education at a Nature Hostel ♻️
📅 Deadline: 10 July 2026
Live and work at a mountain hostel in a beautiful natural park, immersed in environmental education and sustainable living. Support hostel maintenance, guest check-in and room preparation, get creative with recycling and upcycling for decoration, and share hiking and local tips with visitors. Design and run didactic workshops on art, environmental education and creative recycling for schoolchildren, and help tell the story on social media. Open to applicants from 🇦🇹 🇧🇬 🇭🇷 🇫🇮 🇸🇪 and 24 more — your commute is a mountain trail.
🇮🇹 Italy — Animal Care at a Dog Shelter 🐾
📅 Deadline: 10 July 2026
Give your days to the dogs at an animal rights shelter in northern Italy. Care for the shelter dogs, prepare their food and take them on walks, clean their spaces, and get to know each animal's personality and special needs. Support the organisation of animal rights events and help tell their story through social media and the website. A hands-on placement for animal lovers ready to get up early, get their hands dirty and be fully immersed in shelter life. Open to applicants from 🇩🇪 🇫🇷 🇵🇹 🇸🇪 🇳🇱 and 24 more — the placement on this list with the most wagging tails.
💡 What do organisations actually look for in an ESC volunteer? Skills, values, attitude — what makes a strong profile. Read the guide →
🇸🇮 Slovenia — Youth Center and Career Empowerment 🎨
📅 Deadline: 12 July 2026
Support a lively youth centre working on youth innovation, employability and career guidance. Inform the local community about the centre's activities, organise group activities, international evenings and educational sessions, and create fun events for young people. Raise awareness of volunteering, international mobility and interculturality, promote ESC, and get involved in multimedia activities, all while helping young people build skills and confidence to enter the world of work. Open to applicants from 🇮🇹 🇦🇹 🇭🇷 🇵🇹 🇷🇸 and 28 more — help young people find the confidence to start their careers.
🇪🇸 Spain — Youth Work and European Projects (Murcia) 📣
📅 Deadline: 13 July 2026
Join a vibrant youth organisation in the Mediterranean city of Murcia for a short-term experience in youth participation, European projects and intercultural community work. Support the daily management of local and European projects, help with communication, activity preparation and dissemination, and bring your creativity to social media and storytelling. Work in a dynamic young environment where cultures, languages and ideas come together through international cooperation. Open to applicants from 26 countries across Europe — a short, sunny immersion in European project work.
🇭🇺 Hungary — Reimagining the Future of Villages 🏡
📅 Deadline: 17 July 2026
A three-week experience for young people curious about community, resilience, sustainability and alternative ways of living together. Set in a rural living lab, you will explore what the future of villages could look like, rethinking how we relate to energy, water, food and each other. Instead of separating theory and practice, you learn by doing, joining small working groups shaped by the real situations, limitations and possibilities of the place. Open to applicants from 27 countries across Europe — a living lab for a completely different way of living.
🗺️ 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 →
🇬🇷 Greece — Wildlife Conservation and Bird Monitoring (Dadia) 🌿
📅 Deadline: 17 July 2026
Protect the wild heart of Thrace on a hands-on conservation placement. Monitor vultures and other birds of prey as key indicators of biodiversity, help restore the Dadia-Lefkimi-Soufli National Park, and assess the impact of wind farms on birds. Support anti-poison dog unit patrols, assist with sampling and fitting transmitters on vultures, help rescue injured raptors, and contribute to data management, mapping and camera-trap analysis, all while learning how ecosystems work in the field. Open to applicants from 17 countries across Europe — serious, hands-on fieldwork for a future conservationist.
🇷🇴 Romania — Supporting Young Refugees and Inclusion 💙
📅 Deadline: 25 July 2026
Help young Ukrainian refugees build new beginnings through structured volunteering, education and community engagement. Rooted in ESC priorities, this project tackles language barriers, social isolation and skill gaps through non-formal education, mentoring and intercultural experiences, boosting employability and long-term integration. Bring your creativity, storytelling, design or digital skills to a diverse team where everyone contributes ideas, energy and new perspectives. Open to applicants from 36 countries worldwide — meaningful work at the human edge of a war.
🇩🇪 Germany — Supporting Older People in Care (Black Forest) 💚
📅 Deadline: 27 July 2026
Spend a meaningful year in a day care centre and residential home for older people in a charming Black Forest town. Share your time with residents through individual and group moments: play board games, read and chat, support meals and daily activities, join events, crafts, singing and excursions, always promoting the independence of older people. A rewarding chance to immerse yourself in the world of elderly care while gaining language and professional skills that could open doors to a future career. Open to residents of Italy — companionship as a full-time calling, in a storybook setting.
🚫 "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 — Activities for Children and Communities 🧒
📅 Deadline: 28 July 2026
Team up with international volunteers to run creative, sporty, hands-on and intercultural activities for children, young people and the local community. Lead school sessions on human rights, equal opportunities, cultural diversity and anti-discrimination, organise wellbeing activities from healthy cooking to mental health and personal development, join local events and festivals, and support organisations working with migrants and refugees, all through non-formal education. Open to residents of France — broad, energetic work with kids and community alike.
🇬🇹 Guatemala — Gender Equality and Women's Empowerment ✊
📅 Deadline: 21 August 2026
Support a local organisation in raising awareness and promoting gender equality in the highlands of Guatemala. Develop training for women in rural communities, conduct community visits with women's groups, run workshops on new masculinities, and organise events for International Women's Day, the Day for the Prevention of Violence against Women and International Men's Day. Collect and systematise success stories of empowered women in a meaningful long-term humanitarian placement. Open to applicants from 31 countries across Europe — rare, serious human-rights work in Central America.
🇹🇷 Türkiye — Sport, Health and Community Engagement 🏀
📅 Deadline: 30 September 2026
Use the power of sport to build healthier, more inclusive communities in the Turkish capital. Get involved in swimming, basketball, volleyball, football, table tennis and tennis, support outdoor and school activities with local communities, and help organise international youth initiatives like sports and language camps, cultural exchanges and tournaments for children and young people. A dynamic placement blending personal growth with real community impact. Open to applicants from 🇮🇹 🇵🇹 🇭🇺 🇮🇪 🇷🇴 and 13 more — the longest runway in this batch, with months to plan your move.
Eighteen fully funded ESC placements across 12 countries in a single batch — and the range here runs from wild-bird conservation to human-rights work in Central America. Monitoring vultures and joining anti-poison dog patrols in Greek Thrace, gender-equality and new-masculinities workshops in the Guatemalan highlands, a community radio station in France, dog-shelter life in northern Italy, scout-camp survival skills in Croatia's Lika, reimagining the future of villages in a Hungarian living lab, supporting young Ukrainian refugees in Romania, and elderly care in a Black Forest town — these are not opportunities you'll see grouped together again.
France leads with four placements — ecology and gardening, a community radio station, a nature-education centre and the Mulhouse community canteen — while Spain, Croatia and Italy each offer two, spanning Galician cultural exchange and Murcian youth work, two Lika scout camps, and a nature hostel and dog shelter. The seven "as soon as possible" placements at the top reward the fastest applicants; then the two Italian roles close on 10 July, the Greek conservation and Hungarian village projects on 17 July, and the calendar stretches through the Guatemala women's-empowerment placement on 21 August to the Türkiye sport role on 30 September. Choose yours before the early ones fill.
