"Given the inherent uncertainty and risk of mountaineering, choosing the best guide is the most critical decision you can make. Jeff Evans is the real deal, and I emphatically recommend him for anyone considering a climbing trip."
Philosophy
MountainVision Expeditions was founded on the principals of connecting people, cultures and planet through adventure-based trips that stimulate mind, body, and soul. An integral part of this mission is our commitment to supporting non-profit and volunteer-based projects in the communities surrounding our adventure travel destinations.
Projects
All MountainVision trips include optional days where you can volunteer with an organization that we have vetted and worked with in the past. These include a broad range of projects in local communities in Tanzania, Nepal and Peru. Whether your interest is health, education, sports/athletics, clean water, or environmental issues, there are opportunities for you to actively contribute and give back. We work with each organization to match up special skills you may bring so that everyone is getting as much out of the experience as possible. Click here to see a full list of opportunities.
General Information
Volunteer commitments are typically 3-5 days, although you have the option to do more on your own. A typical day would involve a breakfast meeting at the lodge where we review the goals and objectives, as well as review any needed skills. We travel as a group to the site, and then you may be broken up into smaller teams for the day. Lunch may be a sit down, or in the field. Work will typically wrap up around 5PM and we will travel back to the lodge for showers and a relaxing dinner where we review the accomplishments and swap stories. By tapping into the collective intelligence and experience of volunteers with such varied backgrounds, we often discover creative solutions and improvements to the existing processes, which can then be passed back to the local community. Evenings are then free for relaxing, lounging, and/or socializing with your fellow volunteers. Each volunteer can choose whichever project they find most inspiring. The dinner conversations are even more exhilarating when the experiences from different projects start to overlap and we discover new ways for them to work together. To maximize the value of each volunteers' contribution, you will work on one project for the full duration. In certain cases, our sponsoring companies may provide some skills training long before you start your trip. This enables you to hit the ground running, and ensures that we are providing skilled volunteers to the projects.
Costs and Sponsors
To simplify and streamline your experience, we will handle all your arrangements for transportation, lodging, and other logistics, and build the incremental costs into your overall trip invoice. Corporations have often supported Jeff Evans and MountainVision on our higher profile expeditions, and we encourage these sponsor companies to actively sponsor the volunteer projects we support. In certain projects, corporations may be subsidizing a portion of the costs - savings which will be passed on to you. Naturally, we hope you will spread the word about our sponsors that are pioneering an inspiring new approach to corporate social responsibility. We have also had volunteers raise support for their trips from sponsors in their local communities and from their employers.
Example Volunteer Projects
Peru
School house carpentry and repair
Adobe brick construction and application
Donation and distribution of school supplies
Soccer field development
Expert ecological education on local challenges and subsequent methods of assistance
Tanzania
Donation of school and living supplies to Arusha based AIDS orphanage
Community based projects at local Masai villages ie...clean water access, medical supply distribution, clinical medicine
Expert ecological education on local challenges and subsequent methods of assistance
Athletic field development/construction
Nutrition education
Nepal
Medical clinic assistance
School supply distribution
Expert ecological education on local challenges and subsequent methods of assistance