Ecuador is located on the equatorial line in northwestern South America, bordering the Pacific Ocean to the west, Colombia to the north, and Peru to the south and east. Ecuador is the second smallest country in South America. Ecuador is 283,561 square kilometers in size and has a very diverse geography. Ecuador has four geographical regions: The Andes (La Sierra), the Amazon Rainforest (El Oriente), La Costa (The Coast), and the Galapagos Islands.

The terrain is made of jungle east of the Andes, a rich agricultural coastal plain west of the Andes, high-elevation valleys through the mountainous center of the country and an archipelago of volcanic islands in the Pacific Ocean.

Ecuador's population is ethnically mixed. A large majority of the population is mestizo (mixed Amerindian-Caucasian), followed by smaller percentages of indigenous, Afro-Ecuadorian, and European descendent criollos. The religion is predominantly catholic but religious freedom is recognized. Spanish is the official language but there are places where they speak Quichua and Shuar. Although Ecuadorians were heavily concentrated in the mountainous central highland region a few decades ago, today's population is divided about equally between that area and the coastal lowlands. The tropical forest region (or Amazon region) to the east of the mountains remains sparsely populated and contain only about 3% of the population. Ecuador always has placed great emphasis on multilateral approaches to international problems.

If you are planning to explore the real cultural and natural beauty of Ecuador, why not start your adventure by joining one of our voluntary positions.

 Volunteer programs in Ecuador are: