ECO-LABOR-ATION ... Volunteer Corps

About the ECO-LABOR-ATION Volunteer Corps

If you've reached this page, we want to first start by saying "Thank You" for considering our programs and initiatives worthy of your time and effort!

ECO-LABOR-ATION has several big tasks ahead, and we will certainly need the continued support of Volunteers to achieve our goals. That being said, our ability to incorporate new Volunteers into our organization is based on the following factors: our current program schedule, our current level of funding, and the special mix of talents & time commitment that you are able to offer to ECO-LABOR-ATION. Please consider using the questionnaire below as your guide when contacting us about joining the Volunteer Corps. You may copy the text below to use in your word-processor or email editor, and after describing yourself, email the information to us at: volunteer@eco-labor-ation.org , please list Volunteer Introduction Package for (Your name) in your email subject line. We accept text emails, "pdf" format documents, Word documents and photo attachments. We thank you for virus-checking any documents or other attachments prior to submission, and we recommend that your attachments not exceed 5 MB each.

ECO-LABOR-ATION Nonprofit Corporation is an All-Volunteer organization and does not offer paid positions or stipend-internships at this time. We do however value the immense effort of our Volunteers and, to show our appreciation, we are able to offer the following in exchange for your contribution:

We work with students & other adult volunteers to tailor their activities to qualify for academic, work or continuing education credits

We provide electronic letters of reference for Volunteers completing 20 hours or more of program support in the prior 12 months.

Logo space on our supporters page if your organization contributes volunteers, services or materials (such as web hosting, plant-stock, vehicle-services, electrical components for our energy models, etc.) calculated at 50+ hours or $500.00+

Update Posted November 1, 2009: Introductions from experienced gardeners/seed-savers who are interested to propagate seed for use in SEED-SAVERS LENDING LIBRARY during the 2010 growing season will be given top priority. To be considered, please be certain to describe your gardening skill-level/history, space and location when preparing your Introduction-package; if you have particular experience with certain varieties, we appreciate you describing which ones. Thanks!
Guide for writing your Introduction to ECO-LABOR-ATION Volunteer Corps text file for download: Click Here.
Please consider answering the questions below in order to help us know you better. Items 1 - 5 are required () . Thanks! Please state: I am an Individual or I am an Organization Must include the one of these two statements: a) I am age 18 or older or b) I am age ____ (under-18) and am preparing this application with the permission of my parent or legal guardian who can be contacted at (must include Full Name, Phone and Email of parent/guardian) * Name * Email address * Your Home location where you would primarily Volunteer (City / State / Country ) * Other temporary locations where you may be available to Volunteer (City / State / Country )... include dates if known Your occupation or focus area ( i.e. now or formerly employed as "(title)"; student studying "(subject)"; retired from "(industry)"; my past-times are"", our organization "(does what)", I am a troop leader for local scouting club, I am group leader for GreenLeaves Garden Society, etc. ) Have you participated in previous events, forums or workshops of ECO-LABOR-ATION? Describe. Are you primarily interested in participating in an On-Going Project* of ECO-LABOR-ATION (such as the SEED-SAVERS LENDING LIBRARY, Cob Bench Project, ECO-Babble forums, web site design or management)? if so, please indicate which. ECO-LABOR-ATION special events, forums and interactive exhibits often require 6 to 20 hours of time commitment, but concentrated over a week or weekend, is this of interest to you? (If you indicate yes, please confirm whether you give us permission to email you from time-to-time about signing-up to volunteer at a special event ) Please describe your available time-commitment for volunteering (examples: 2 hours a week over the next 8 months; week of July 7 to 15, 2010; 15 hours during the spring semester of 2010 ) ... hint: very important when we consider your package. Are you hoping to apply your volunteer experience toward academic, work or continuing education credit? (If yes, please provide any details regarding your program requirements for credit and any other details you may like us to consider, such as your intended degree, your area of study, similar volunteer or credit projects you have previously completed) Are you wanting to volunteer to maintain your involvement in a profession while you transition between jobs? (If true, don't feel timid about saying so! Volunteering is a fantastic way to spend a career break, recharge or to diversify your credentials while in transition!) Describe your talents and other qualifications that you believe would combine well with ECO-LABOR-ATION's programs, charitable purposes and growth (Are you a photographer, cob-sculpter, nature guide, scientist, handy with tools, trained in first-aid, long-time gardener, inexperienced - but enthusiastic public relations person, computer wiz, natural builder, graphic-designer, mushroom specialist, writer, policy specialist, a bean-counter -hey, literally, sorting seeds for SEED SAVERS LENDING LIBRARY could be called "bean-counting") - Feel free to be creative with your answer, we only ask that you be realistic & honest when offering your time & talents to our organization. Describe your preferred working style ... I am a details-person, I'm a take-charge type, I prefer small groups, I like public speaking, I get lost easy, but give me directions and I'm on it! ... help us understand what activities might best suit your personality. Describe any tools or resources that you have available for your personal use while accomplishing your volunteer activities (i.e. I have use of my own computer, printer, camera, vehicle, tent, hand-tools, greenhouse, garden-space, mixing tarps, solar oven, wind-energy system, etc. ). Please note, we are not asking that you share your personal items with others - answering this question simply helps us determine how auto-sufficient you are for activities that require more than physical energy and brain-power to complete. Unless special funding allows it, ECO-LABOR-ATION does not pay for travel expenses. Describe your ability to travel to other locations while volunteering, including your limitations, if any, to pay for your own travel (i.e. I would always need reimbursement in order to travel any distance while volunteering, I'm willing to travel within 15 miles from home, I'm willing to travel withiin these cities/states/countries , I would need reimbursement when traveling more than 15/25/50/100 miles from home, I am willing to travel Internationally to Volunteer) Please describe any special needs or accommodations you may require while Volunteering. Bear in mind, many of our activities occur in the outdoors and some require several hours of physical stamina. Together, we can make your volunteer experience more enjoyable if we know in advance about special requirements you may have. (Also, please mention if children under age 16 will accompany you to volunteer activities). In truth, what would you like to get out of your volunteer experience? (i.e. personal satisfaction, CV/ resume experience, improve my own skills while helping in the Big Picture, complete academic credit while working outside of the classroom, my name in lights, a movie deal, nomination as a regional Chapter Leader for ECO-LABOR-ATION, corporate recognition for environmental involvement, affiliation with another nonprofit etc.) Include any other comments, references, photos, etc. that you would like to make part of your Introduction Package. Organizations that are proposing a Joint adVenture with ECO-LABOR-ATION may want to include any relevant financial proposals/comments at this point in their package. See NOTE below prior to including any information you consider "confidential" or "proprietary". Final Note Prior to Submission: ECO-LABOR-ATION Nonprofit Corporation develops and participates-in a variety of programs and environmental initiatives. Most, but not necessarily all, of our projects will be announced on our web site pages. If you are a student, a professional, or organization, we ask that you do not include confidential or proprietary material or other data which you are developing (whether or not for publication) with your Volunteer Introduction package. Why do we ask this? Simply put, we want to avoid any confusion or dispute if your personal or professional project overlaps with another project we are developing. When submitting your Volunteer Introduction package, in whatever form, the information you provide may be used by our organization to tailor an opportunity for you or to better tailor our existing programs. If you are considering volunteering with ECO-LABOR-ATION as a route to finalize your personal research project or any other professional project for which you would like to receive credit, please communicate that clearly to us from the beginning and, together, we will decide if it is appropriate for you to share any further details with us.
When ready, email your information to us at: volunteer@eco-labor-ation.org . Don't forget to please list Volunteer Introduction Package for (Your name) in your email subject line. We accept text emails, "pdf" format documents, Word documents and photo attachments. We thank you for virus-checking any documents or other attachments prior to submission, and recommend that your attachments not exceed 5 MB each. Thank you for your interest in becoming part of the ECO-LABOR-ATION Volunteer Corps!

Update Posted November 1, 2009:

Introductions from experienced gardeners/seed-savers who are interested to propagate seed for use in SEED-SAVERS LENDING LIBRARY during the 2010 growing season will be given top priority. To be considered, please be certain to describe your gardening skill-level/history, space and location when preparing your Introduction-package; if you have particular experience with certain varieties, we appreciate you describing which ones. Thanks!

Guide for writing your Introduction to ECO-LABOR-ATION Volunteer Corps

text file for download: Click Here.

Please consider answering the questions below in order to help us know you better. Items 1 - 5 are required (*) . Thanks!

Please state: I am an Individual or I am an Organization *
Must include the one of these two statements: a) I am age 18 or older or b) I am age ____ (under-18) and am preparing this application with the permission of my parent or legal guardian who can be contacted at (must include Full Name, Phone and Email of parent/guardian) *
Name *
Email address *
Your Home location where you would primarily Volunteer (City / State / Country ) *
Other temporary locations where you may be available to Volunteer (City / State / Country )... include dates if known
Your occupation or focus area ( i.e. now or formerly employed as "(title)"; student studying "(subject)"; retired from "(industry)"; my past-times are"*", our organization "(does what)", I am a troop leader for local scouting club, I am group leader for GreenLeaves Garden Society, etc. )
Have you participated in previous events, forums or workshops of ECO-LABOR-ATION? Describe.
Are you primarily interested in participating in an On-Going Project of ECO-LABOR-ATION (such as the SEED-SAVERS LENDING LIBRARY, Cob Bench Project, ECO-Babble forums, web site design or management)? if so, please indicate which.
ECO-LABOR-ATION special events, forums and interactive exhibits often require 6 to 20 hours of time commitment, but concentrated over a week or weekend, is this of interest to you? (If you indicate yes, please confirm whether you give us permission to email you from time-to-time about signing-up to volunteer at a special event )
Please describe your available time-commitment for volunteering (examples: 2 hours a week over the next 8 months; week of July 7 to 15, 2010; 15 hours during the spring semester of 2010 ) ... hint: very important when we consider your package.
Are you hoping to apply your volunteer experience toward academic, work or continuing education credit? (If yes, please provide any details regarding your program requirements for credit and any other details you may like us to consider, such as your intended degree, your area of study, similar volunteer or credit projects you have previously completed)
Are you wanting to volunteer to maintain your involvement in a profession while you transition between jobs? (If true, don't feel timid about saying so! Volunteering is a fantastic way to spend a career break, recharge or to diversify your credentials while in transition!)
Describe your talents and other qualifications that you believe would combine well with ECO-LABOR-ATION's programs, charitable purposes and growth (Are you a photographer, cob-sculpter, nature guide, scientist, handy with tools, trained in first-aid, long-time gardener, inexperienced - but enthusiastic public relations person, computer wiz, natural builder, graphic-designer, mushroom specialist, writer, policy specialist, a bean-counter -hey, literally, sorting seeds for SEED SAVERS LENDING LIBRARY could be called "bean-counting") - Feel free to be creative with your answer, we only ask that you be realistic & honest when offering your time & talents to our organization.
Describe your preferred working style ... I am a details-person, I'm a take-charge type, I prefer small groups, I like public speaking, I get lost easy, but give me directions and I'm on it! ... help us understand what activities might best suit your personality.
Describe any tools or resources that you have available for your personal use while accomplishing your volunteer activities (i.e. I have use of my own computer, printer, camera, vehicle, tent, hand-tools, greenhouse, garden-space, mixing tarps, solar oven, wind-energy system, etc. ). Please note, we are not asking that you share your personal items with others - answering this question simply helps us determine how auto-sufficient you are for activities that require more than physical energy and brain-power to complete.
Unless special funding allows it, ECO-LABOR-ATION does not pay for travel expenses. Describe your ability to travel to other locations while volunteering, including your limitations, if any, to pay for your own travel (i.e. I would always need reimbursement in order to travel any distance while volunteering, I'm willing to travel within 15 miles from home, I'm willing to travel withiin these cities/states/countries , I would need reimbursement when traveling more than 15/25/50/100 miles from home, I am willing to travel Internationally to Volunteer)
Please describe any special needs or accommodations you may require while Volunteering. Bear in mind, many of our activities occur in the outdoors and some require several hours of physical stamina. Together, we can make your volunteer experience more enjoyable if we know in advance about special requirements you may have. (Also, please mention if children under age 16 will accompany you to volunteer activities).
In truth, what would you like to get out of your volunteer experience? (i.e. personal satisfaction, CV/ resume experience, improve my own skills while helping in the Big Picture, complete academic credit while working outside of the classroom, my name in lights, a movie deal, nomination as a regional Chapter Leader for ECO-LABOR-ATION, corporate recognition for environmental involvement, affiliation with another nonprofit etc.)
Include any other comments, references, photos, etc. that you would like to make part of your Introduction Package. Organizations that are proposing a Joint adVenture with ECO-LABOR-ATION may want to include any relevant financial proposals/comments at this point in their package. See NOTE below prior to including any information you consider "confidential" or "proprietary".

Final Note Prior to Submission:
ECO-LABOR-ATION Nonprofit Corporation develops and participates-in a variety of programs and environmental initiatives. Most, but not necessarily all, of our projects will be announced on our web site pages. If you are a student, a professional, or organization, we ask that you do not include confidential or proprietary material or other data which you are developing (whether or not for publication) with your Volunteer Introduction package. Why do we ask this? Simply put, we want to avoid any confusion or dispute if your personal or professional project overlaps with another project we are developing. When submitting your Volunteer Introduction package, in whatever form, the information you provide may be used by our organization to tailor an opportunity for you or to better tailor our existing programs. If you are considering volunteering with ECO-LABOR-ATION as a route to finalize your personal research project or any other professional project for which you would like to receive credit, please communicate that clearly to us from the beginning and, together, we will decide if it is appropriate for you to share any further details with us.

When ready, email your information to us at: volunteer@eco-labor-ation.org . Don't forget to please list Volunteer Introduction Package for (Your name) in your email subject line. We accept text emails, "pdf" format documents, Word documents and photo attachments. We thank you for virus-checking any documents or other attachments prior to submission, and recommend that your attachments not exceed 5 MB each. Thank you for your interest in becoming part of the ECO-LABOR-ATION Volunteer Corps!