Covid-19 and Volunteering

March 2022 Update: We are very happy to announce all of our programs are open and accepting volunteers! Many countries are still requiring a negative Covid-19 test to enter the country, don’t worry we will work with you if that is the case. All of our programs will be requiring full vaccinations and masks while volunteering with the animals and while on the program. Covid-19 is a virus that has spilled over from a wild animals and we have seen numerous cases of both domestic and wild animal infections from humans. To protect the health of the animals you are volunteering with and the communities you are living in- we ask that you respect all the new and developing rules and polices of our partners. Our commitment to you is that they will never be a surprise. Once we know something, you will know something as well as the rational behind it.
We are all in this together, we will continue to act like it!

At AEI we always make the health and safety of our amazing clients our priority. As we navigate the rapidly evolving COVID-19 situation, we wanted to let you know your options, and assure you that we will be here to help you make important travel decisions. There have been many new changes put in place to keep people safe and to limit the spread of COVID-19. These changes affect international travel and therefore will have an impact on our AEI programs.

Many governments have issued a global travel advisory to avoid non-essential travel until further notice. In addition, many countries have put in place travel or border restrictions and other measures such as movement restrictions and quarantines. Airlines have cancelled flights. New restrictions may be imposed with little warning. Your travel plans may be severely disrupted and you may be forced to remain outside of your country of origin longer than expected. It is difficult to predict what the next few months will look like, and when travel restrictions will be lifted.

We have been working with our partner organizations to ensure our clients can easily reschedule their AEI Experiences as needed. We do know that the animals in our programs will also be significantly impacted by the COVID-19 disruptions, and when travel restrictions are lifted, these animals will, more than ever require your assistance. Each situation will be different, so we encourage you to contact us so we can work on a plan for you and your particular AEI Experience. People traveling later in 2020, or in 2021 have time to monitor the changing situation and can make their decisions closer to their departure date.

Things you can do to stay informed:

Please take a moment to review Animal Experience International's cancellation policy. It has not changed but we do want to remind you that your deposit is transferable. Deposits from 2019 and 2020 can be transferred until March 2023.

AEI will be there to help everyone stay safe, and make the best of this situation. Please feel free to reach out to us with any questions or concerns that you might have.

Sincerely,

Heather and Nora

We will be updating this space as much as possible, in what we know about travel, our centres but also in ways you can help!

  • We do not have any updates about when Canada will be easing travel restrictions. But we encourage everyone to see this as positive. Setting hard dates is often not based on science, it’s based on commerce. In order to keep everyone safe and alive, we should be looking at science based, community dependant and conditional easing of restrictions.

  • AEI will not have a ‘Covid Guarantee’ on fees as we have always made deposits 100% transferable. Signing up for a trip should not cause financial hardship or anxiety, if you need to change your dates because of health, travel changes or anything not pandemic related, we are happy to help. You can read more about our cancellation policy here.

  • Currently the best way to help is by donating. Centres around the world are hurting because volunteers are sometimes their only source of income. Small donations once you and your family are taken care of, will really make a difference. We are collecting donations through our website so you don’t have to pay admin or bank fees. Just write where you would like your donations to go and we will get it to the centre ASAP.

  • If you would like to help a centre as a virtual volunteer we encourage you to reach out to them directly. Introduce yourself and say specifically and directly that you would like to volunteer virtually and give them ideas on what you can help with. Some ideas are, grant writing, fundraising letters, sponsorship documents, photo editing, editing and translation of documents, social media and photo/video animal IDing. There are MANY other ways you can help, all you need to do is ask! If you would like to be put on AEI’s virtual volunteer database, email us and we will let you know when we have a special project from one of our partners.

  • You can also read A Message From Nora, on our blog in which she expresses her heartfelt sadness of the time but optimism for the future.

  • We will be contributing to Fanimal in this time as well to help people know lots of ways to help animals during this worldwide epidemic. Please read and share: How to Fanimal in an Age of Social Distancing. and How to Virtually Help All Animals… Remotely.

  • Many travel companies and groups around the world are putting together safe travel practices, while we will help you step by step with your trip, the more information is always better. Here is a great article from Love Holidays in the UK all about Safe and Responsible Tourism during the Covid-19 Pandemic.

 

Keeping You Safe During Travel.

We have been in constant communication with all our placement partners, making plans and finding ways to make sure you are as safe as possible while you travel in the coming months. Every program is different so our one-on-one interviews, manuals and our travel app will be even more important for you and all our clients. However, there are some things that will be the same across the board.

You should be bringing 2 masks with you (for your flight and volunteering at the centres) and hand sanitizer. PPE will be available when you volunteer but we want to make sure your travel to the centre is as safe as possible. Airlines have updated their policies and travelers can bring 355mL of hand sanitizer with them along with 100mL of other liquids.

Social distancing will continue to be important in airports and at volunteer sites. 2 metres or 6 feet of distance between people is what our goal should always be, remember to be kind and to give people space.

We will continue to offer airport pick up for all our programs. Avoiding public transit like buses and other airport shuttles is ideal. Less exposure is less exposure.

Our housing at all our centres will be updates to allow for social distancing. This of course will mean there will be less volunteers at each centre but we don’t want to risk unnecessary exposures or outbreaks.

We luckily have all our placements in rural areas away from density populated urban areas. Less contact with local populations will keep you and them safe. But do remember, you will be required to bring a mask with you when you travel beyond the centre. You are a visitor to these communities, the most respectful thing you can do is wear your PPE and follow all socially distancing guidelines.

All clients will be required to download our travel app. This will help us update everyone with any Covid-19 guidelines or travel updates. The app also has a 24/7 messaging system so clients can always get in contact with us in case of emergency.

We talk with our placement partners at least once a week. We don’t know when travel and volunteering will start again but we do know when it does we will be ready to help you make the safest and best choices for your trip.

B Corps are certified by the non profit B Lab to meet rigorous standards of social and environmental performance, accountability, and transparency. We have been a B Corp since 2013 and since then we have always been in the top 10% of quantifiable benefit to the environment and the communities we operate in.