Travel to the Himalayan foothills in the lively tourist town of Pokhara, about a three-hour drive from the capital city of Kathmandu, and live and work among one of the friendliest communities in the world – with the world’s most thrilling mountains as your backyard. 

When you volunteer in Nepal, you can join a wide variety of community development volunteer programs or internships, with a focus on:

• Teaching and early childhood development
• Women’s empowerment
• Public health 
• International development

Why it matters 

We are dedicated to inclusive, sustainable and meaningful engagement with the local community and economy. With this in mind, all of our volunteers or interns in Nepal will work alongside local community members to coordinate and manage the running of these programs. All our volunteer projects and internships are also fully resourced through local businesses. 

One of our main partner oganisations in Nepal is SASANE, an anti-human trafficking, survivor-led organisation that has dedicated itself to spreading awareness about the prevalence of human trafficing and its effects on the lives of women in the region. This is vital advocacy work. 

Volunteer to teach children

The object of all our childhood education programs in Nepal is to provide resources to support long-term improvements in developmental and learning outcomes for students.

As a teaching volunteer or intern, you will support teachers at a local Nepali primary school. The aim is to provide support in developing children’s literacy and numeracy, as well as skills such as hand-eye coordination, social interaction and teamwork. We also support children in improving their conversational English skills to assist them with accessing future education and employment opportunities. 

Global public health volunteering

Volunteers or interns focusing on global public health will work to create awareness of preventative health practices through developing health-education initiatives for both children and adults in local communities, including water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) workshops. 

Women’s empowerment volunteering

Alongside SASANE, an anti-human trafficking, survivor-led organisation that has dedicated itself to spreading awareness about the prevalence of human trafficking and its effects on the lives of women in the region, you will work to progress gender equality inititaives in the region. 

You will also contribute to several regular workshops aimed at women and girls, including literacy, numeracy, professional skills development, public health, and conversational English classes.

Nepal offers volunteers and interns the chance to learn about the rich regional culture and religious traditions, as well as participate in a range of outdoor adventures – all with the Himalayas right on your doorstep. Just 200 kilometres west of Nepal’s capital city, Kathmandu, Pokhara is a popular tourist destination and the second most visited city in Nepal. The region is well-loved for its tranquil environment, scenic vistas, views of three of the highest mountains in the world, and beautiful Phewa Lake. 

Mountain trekking 

For the adventure-seekers among us, one of the most exciting privileges of becoming a volunteer in Nepal is having the Himalayan mountains in such close proximity. Challenge yourself with one of our trekking experiences, ascending through green meadows and traditional mountain villages, up to panoramic views of the valleys below. Throughout your journey, you will be staying at and supporting the many locally-owned teahouses that dot the trail.

GVI offers two different trekking opportunities for volunteers or interns to tackle before or after volunteering in Nepal: 

• Annapurna sanctuary trek
• Everest base camp trek 

 Cultural immersion 

If trekking isn’t for you, immerse yourself in Nepali culture by visiting some of the Hindu temples and Buddhist monasteries in the region. Visit Tal Barahi Temple, located on a tiny island on the nearby Phewa Lake or check out the Shanti Stupa – a hilltop Buddhist monument and World Peace Pagoda dedicated to spreading kindness.

GVI’s programs are compliant with rigorous ethical guidelines. We employ on-the-ground ethics officers to ensure that our projects follow rigorous and current best practices and standards. We are governed by our ten ethical principles and five human empowerment principles. We also hold a badge of ethics – our dedication to continuously reflect on and improve our policies and practices. 

All staff and participants are required to complete a police background check before arrival on a Nepal volunteer program, and on-site child protection training is provided once they arrive to volunteer in Nepal. We also protect children from cyber and real-world threats by ensuring our marketing material follows child protection best practices. For more information please familiarise yourself with our child and vulnerable adult protection policy. 

Take note that our early childhood development programs don’t allow volunteers to work in orphanages. We don’t support orphanage volunteering or donations to orphanages. For more information, see our stance on orphanage volunteering. We support ChildSafe, a global child protection initiative, and regularly review our Child and Vulnerable Adult Protection policy. 

Each of our programs is aligned to one or more of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs). 

You can read about the work we’ve done with the help of volunteers and interns like you in our Impact and Ethics Report. 

GVI is a British Standards 8848 compliant provider.

Who can join a community development program in Nepal?  

You can! 

Anyone over 18 (including college students and gap year students), people on a career break, and older adults can volunteer in Nepal at just about any time throughout the year. 

If you are under 18 and want to join a community development volunteering program, we offer a wide selection of opportunities all over the world. You can find more information on our teens volunteering page.

Who qualifies as a community development volunteer or intern? 

You do! We don’t require any pre-existing qualifications or certifications. 

All our volunteers, interns and staff are required to complete a police background check before they can sign up to any of our programs.

Is it safe?

Extremely safe. We take every precaution to make sure our participants live and work safely, no matter where they are in the world. We have trained support staff on hand 24 hours a day to ensure that all participants across all our programs are well taken care of.

You can speak directly to one of our enrolment officers or alumni, who can answer any and all questions you might have about life in Nepal and on the GVI base. 

Where will I live and who will I live with?

GVI volunteers and interns in Nepal live in shared accommodation in the centre of town, surrounded by the tourist bustle of Pokhara. You will live and work with other volunteers, interns and GVI staff from all around the world. Living in an international community such as this with like-minded individuals is why many of our participants leave our programs with lifelong friends. 

The house has hot water and a good Wi-Fi signal so you will be able to stay in contact with your friends and family back home.

I’m interested. What are the next steps? 

Welcome! Click here to enquire or apply. One of our trusty enrolment officers will take it from there.