Arts & Design Volunteer in Rio

Arts & Design Volunteer in Rio de Janeiro

When you feel like sharing your creativity and passion for arts, go for a trip to Rio de Janeiro work as an arts & design volunteer. Since the “Cidade Maravilhosa” has already inspired many artists and musicians, you may find young talents and help them grow.

Caius Lee UK teaching piano and singing — Caius Lee teaches piano in a favela

During your stay as a voluntary arts teacher you will work with children and adolescents of Rio’s Favelas, developing their artistic talents. There are plenty of creative talents to develop, be it painting, sculpting, dancing or singing! You may even paint the walls of a school or orphanage, having fun with the children. Finally, the new decoration will raise the vibes of the learning environment for the children.

There’s certainly plenty to offer on an arts project that uses an invigorating mix of music, dance, and theatre to support the city’s most at-risk youth.

You can also combine the arts project with teaching English in Brazil.

Working with children from a number of favelas (urban slums) your efforts will play a valuable part in helping a project desperately short of resources, while allowing you to absorb the artistic vibes of Rio.

Jissaura: Amazing Experience as an Arts & Design Volunteer in Brazil

Had an amazing experience with Iko Poran in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Although I signed up to volunteer for the art and design program, I was essentially more so of a student myself because the students at the program were my age and mostly independent with their studies.

Despite this, I was accepted and treated with extreme kindness even though there was a language barrier. I made some amazing friends with the students who taught me so much about Brazilian culture, Portuguese, and art (as I am an art student myself). – Jissaura, Parsons Design School, New York

Artistic Education for the Children of Rio’s Communities

As an Arts volunteer in Rio, you mainly will educate the children about arts and develop their creativity. By reinforcing the children’s creativity and positive interests, you can help shielding the children from negative influences. Children who fully develop their artistic and practical skills will find it easy to learn. And later, they more easily will find a job and will be prevented from the negative impacts of omnipresent drug trade.

Uplifting Experience as an Arts and Design Volunteer in Rio

It was very uplifting to be able to share my skills and hopefuly make a small difference to the lives of these young people.
Their enthusiasm for learning and determination to make their country a better place was inspirational.

– Bob Black

Start Dates & Duration

The Arts volunteer projects in Brazil start on the 1st and 3rd Mondays of the month. Participants on our volunteer in Brazil programs should arrive on Sundays. You can choose to volunteer from 2 to 24 weeks

Orientation for Arts volunteers in Rio

Orientation takes place on Monday after the arrival date.

Fees and what is included with the volunteer program

The program fee is paid directly to the host organization.

All of the projects incur a registration fee of U$ 149.00 on top of the program fee.

What is included in the volunteer in Brazil program fee?

Airport Pickup
Orientation plus tour in the area including some tourist sites
Accommodation for all projects
Breakfast
Support from local staff & Program supervision
In-country 24/7 support throughout your stay
In-country administration costs
Donation to support the local project

There are no hidden costs. These projects are the most affordable to volunteer in Brazil.

Iko Poran is an NGO based in a developing country. We are dedicated to helping you help others, at the lowest possible price. We are interested in making volunteering abroad more accessible so that more people can help do really important work.

Participants in our Brazil programs normally find US$150 to be sufficient for weekly expenses in the country.

The program fee should be paid to the host country and it is due 30 days before the project start date.

When you plan to stay during the New Years Eve in Rio as a volunteer in Brazil, you are required to pay a surcharge of U$ 100 to cover accommodation premium prices from Dec 29 to January 2nd.

Carnival in 2019 is from March 1st to 9th. If the duration of your program in Brazil includes the Carnival week in Rio, you have to pay a surcharge of US$ 200 to cover accommodation premium prices during this period. Note that all projects will be closed during the Carnival.

Accommodation & Meals

As a volunteer in Brazil you will be staying in a happy and charming Hostel located on the lower part of Santa Teresa neighborhood.

The hostel has many leisure areas, free Wi-Fi everywhere, and laundry service. Breakfast is provided and there is a fully equipped kitchen that volunteers can use to prepare other meals. All rooms have lockers (just bring your own lock).

The house has 3 floors. On the first floor there is the reception where you can always find a friendly face, a large living/TV room, a veranda with a bar and tables to chill out, a big kitchen with a dinning area next to it, a big dinning table, and even a music room; if you play any instrument you are welcome to bring it along and/ or play with the instruments that the hostel already has.

On the second floor there are the shared dorms where our volunteers and other guests stay, and bathrooms. And on the third floor there are private rooms available at an extra fee.

The hostel tries to book one room exclusively for the volunteers. However, when this room is full, we accommodate volunteers in other rooms.

All services, such as supermarkets, drugstores, banks (ATMs), bars & restaurants, delis, fruit store, bus stops, and others are literally 5 minutes walking distance

The metro station to get to Ipanema, Copacabana and other areas is only 15 minutes walking distance. Volunteers stay in a peaceful oasis right “next door“ to the most vibrant and picturesque area of Rio de Janeiro.

Lapa is Rio’s buzzing nightlife spot with lively bars, pumping nightclubs and street parties that last all night. Lapa attracts foreigners and locals every weekend to drink caipirinhas and dance out some moves with many varieties of music playing. Whilst at night it comes alive, during the day it is a quiet neighborhood where you can wander the winding streets and visit the tourist sites and small bars.

The neighborhood Santa Teresa, Rio de Janeiro

Santa Teresa is a bohemian area with an intense cultural life. The charming neighborhood stands out for its unusual architecture. Enjoy a trip with the hundred and ten years old tram which still runs through its winding cobbled streets!

A residential sanctuary in the heartbeat of the Mata Atlantica (Tijuca National Park), the world’s largest urban subtropical rainforest, it provides access to the Christ statue of Corcovado as well as to the city centre, Sambodromo (where the samba schools compete during Carnival) and the city´s beautiful beaches.

Santa Teresa prides itself of the atmosphere reminiscent of that of a small town, and also enchants visitors with its panoramic views. Moreover, Santa Teresa offers a variety of options for eating local dishes to international cuisine.

Requirements

You must be at least 18 years old at the start of your placement.

All volunteers must have adequate volunteer travel insurance and are required to provide a criminal background check to local staff on arrival in Brazil or during orientation.

Language Requirements

Knowledge of basic Portuguese is desired but not a pre-requisite. You will already learn a lot practising in your project where nobody speaks good English, but if you would like to speed up your learning we recommend that you take advantage of a very affordable 20 hours Portuguese course taught at your accommodation for only U$ 180.

Safety

You will have a competent support and advices from the local team and project leaders. Someone will always be available in the case of any emergency. Please keep in mind that you are in a different country and should take some precautions to avoid exposing yourself to certain risks.

The local coordinators will give you all the information to have a safe and unforgettable experience. We are based in Brazil and have been receiving approximately 400 volunteers per year since 2003 and we never had any major problem.

Amazing Experience as an Arts Volunteer in Rio

More Volunteer Projects in Brazil

Find here all projects to volunteer in Brazil.

As a volunteer teacher you can choose, whether to teach English at school or train sports and football with the boys and girls. If you love to work with children, you can volunteer as a parenting teacher at a daycare in Rio.

Moreover, volunteers can do valuable work on community development in Rio, in order to improve the living conditions of the residents of the favelas. In addition, environmental volunteers can help with the reforestation of the Tijuca Rainforest.

Finally, volunteers can participate in the preparations for Carnival at a Samba School in Rio de Janeiro.

Discover more Arts Volunteer Opportunities

Learn more about our Arts volunteer projects elsewhere!

You can choose whether to teach photography to students at a school in Ethiopia, or to volunteer on African Dance in Tanzania.

Arts & Design Volunteer in Rio