Welcome to join KVT camps in the summer of 2025!

FI-KVT 4.1 Food Not Bombs 23.6. – 4.7.2025

Number of Volunteers: 10

Description: Food Not Bombs is an international campaign that works in hundreds of cities around the world to inspire the public to participate in changing and educating society by helping in a concrete way. The idea of the campaign is to focus our resources on solving problems like hunger, homelessness and poverty while seeking an end to war, continuous rearmament and the destruction of the environment. In practice, this is done by giving out vegan meals in public places to anyone in need. The campaign is also closely connected to food waste issues, and much of the cooking is done with donated food.

Type of Work: During the camp, volunteers will organize five meal-sharing events around Helsinki. The volunteers’ tasks include cooking, bringing the food to the event location, giving it out during the event, and cleaning up afterwards. Volunteers are also welcome to participate in announcing the meal-sharing events and collecting food donations. No special skills are needed.

Study Theme: There will be discussions on the history and ideology of the Food Not Bombs, nonviolence, antimilitarism and social problems in Finland.

Accommodation: Volunteers will live at the Peace Station in Helsinki where many peace organisations reside. The accommodation is simple. A sleeping bag is required as volunteers will sleep on mattresses in a shared space. There are bathrooms, a kitchen, a shower and a sauna. The accommodation facilities and the nature of the work might be challenging for a person with physical disabilities, but their participation is warmly welcome. Families can apply to the camp if the lack of privacy is not a problem. The food will be mainly the same vegan food that is offered in the events around town.

Language: English

Requirements: Free-formatted motivation letter is required. Volunteers should express why they want to participate in the camp and how they could benefit from it. Please include what are your thoughts on antimilitarism, nonviolence and peaceful conflict resolution as volunteers should be interested in these themes.

Location: Helsinki, capital city of Finland, urban location

Notes: We trust that the impact of our travels is a shared concern and if you can, please prefer more eco-friendly options than taking a plane.

Additional fee: Some SCI workcamps will have an additional fee of €50.00. The additional fee covers international insurance costs of the volunteer and a small travel fund to enable disadvantaged volunteers to join projects. If you apply through a partner organization, you will pay the fee directly to the hosting branch according to their instructions. Check here whether you’re applying through the SCI branch or partner: https://sci.ngo/about-us/our- movement/where-we-are

FI-KVT 9.1. Assisting with a camp: Friendships across social borders 6.7. – 19.7.2025

Number of Volunteers: 10

Description: Äijälä is situated near Jyväskylä in Central Finland. The community’s aim is to support its clients in their everyday life and life management. The community works with organic gardening and it has a charming old farmhouse that has been renovated to host disabled people for daily visits and during the holidays. Äijälä also offers supportive work activities for long-term unemployed people and preserves traditional culture and working methods. Äijälä has been hosting KVT workcamps since 1980.

Type of Work: During the two-week camp the volunteers are going to help and assist with two separate camps aimed for 6 – 8 disabled people; one camp taking place on the first week and the other camp on the second camp week.Together with campers volunteers will learn about nature, traditions, and the English language through arts and crafts, play, and games. There will also be some gardening work. The aim is to provide unforgettable memories for disabled people by working and spending time together across social borders. Work will be done together with the other workers of the community. Please bring with you clothes that are suitable for outdoor work and moving in nature.

Study Theme: Disabled people in Finland, diversity of people, ecological living, Finnish folk culture

Accommodation: In shared rooms with women and men sleeping separately in a 200-year-old wooden farmhouse, the main building of the farm. Beds, bed linen and pillows will be provided to the volunteers. Volunteers with physical disabilities are warmly welcome too but should be aware that moving around the house or garden can require some assistance (there are e.g. doorsteps, sand & grass in the garden). The nearest biggest city Jyväskylä can be reached by public transport and can be visited for sightseeing during the freetime of the volunteers.

Language: English

Location: Jyskä, near Jyväskylä city in Central Finland

Notes: The Äijälä community aims to offer a tranquil environment for their visitors which is also aligned with the work of the camp. This means that some of the camp days might be a bit more slow in pace.

We trust that the impact of our travels is a shared concern and if you can, please prefer more eco-friendly options than taking a plane.

Additional fee: Some SCI workcamps will have an additional fee of €50.00. This will cover e.g. international insurance costs of the volunteer and a small travel fund to enable disadvantaged volunteers to join projects. If you apply through a partner organization you will pay the fee directly to the hosting branch according to their instructions. Check here whether you’re applying through the SCI branch or partner: https://sci.ngo/about-us/our-movement/where-we-are

FI-KVT 13.1. Sustainable renovations and gardening in a heritage landscape 3.-15.8.2025

Number of Volunteers: 12

Description: Get to know Finnish countryside and village life! In this camp volunteers join the local cooperative on their work to restore the historical vicarage area in Teisko village and create a location for both community life, cultural center and travel destination for those looking to embrace sustainable lifestyles and nature. The old vicarage area with lakeside location in the island is considered a heritage landscape in Finland.

Type of Work: Volunteers participate in the renovation works of the historical buildings, such as the lakeside sauna and the outhouse, which was designed by an architect. Most of the work is done by hand tools and environmentally friendly materials. Volunteers will also participate in the garden work and may help with the upkeep of the nature trail that goes around the island. A work supervisor with the necessary competencies will oversee the work of volunteers. 

Volunteers should bring clothes and shoes that are suitable for physical outdoors work and that can get dirty and worn. Rubber boots and raincoats are recommended as at times Finnish summer weather can be cool and rainy.

Study Theme: The workcamp has two main themes: traditional building practices and sustainable renovation of old buildings in a way that respects the history of the location, and in addition, permaculture gardening. The cooperative hosting the camp has experience in both themes and can organise study sessions for the volunteers alongside the work done during the camp.

Accommodation:Volunteers will stay at the old vicarage building in shared rooms in smaller groups. The accommodation is upstairs and the stairway is not suitable for people with mobility restrictions. Beds, bed linen and pillows will be provided to the volunteers. Showers and toilets are shared. The participants will make their own meals. 

In the free time volunteers have the opportunity to play garden games, swim, visit nearby nature parks and tennis/badminton fields or try rowing as a team with the traditional church boat.

Language: English

Location: Teisko village located in the countryside around 30km north of Tampere. Pirkanmaa region.

Notes: We trust that the impact of our travels is a shared concern and if you can, please prefer more eco-friendly options than taking a plane.

Additional fee: Some SCI workcamps will have an additional fee of €50.00. The additional fee covers international insurance costs of the volunteer and a small travel fund to enable disadvantaged volunteers to join projects. If you apply through a partner organization, you will pay the fee directly to the hosting branch according to their instructions. Check here whether you’re applying through the SCI branch or partner: https://sci.ngo/about-us/our- movement/where-we-are

FI-KVT 12.1. Arts & Village culture in the North of Finland 17.8. – 26.8.2025

Number of Volunteers: 10

Description: Kaukonen village is located in the north of Finland around 100 km north of the region’s capital Rovaniemi. The workcamp in Kaukonen is organized by local associations, who promote the village as a cultural space. The volunteers will help with the restoration of the village’s facilities for culture and arts.

Type of Work: The annual restoration and reparation of the local art museum’s yard, village area and the local village hall. Volunteers will be given tasks like tidying up and other restoration activities. Protective equipment will be provided by the organizer. A work supervisor with the necessary competencies will oversee the work of volunteers. Volunteers are recommended to bring their own rubber boots as well as outdoor clothes suitable for working. Mosquito repellent is good to have.

Study Theme: Year 2025 will be the 100th anniversary year of the local, world-known artists Reidar Särestöniemi. The volunteers get to honor the legacy of the artist with their contribution at the camp. Särestöniemi was known to be ahead of his time when it comes to understanding and potrating the global challenges. The camp will provide a chance to experience global and local encounters with the local village participants.

Accommodation: The accommodation has shared rooms with women and men sleeping separately. Beds, bed linen and pillows will be provided to the volunteers. Separate shower times can be arranged for male and female volunteers. The participants will make their own meals. Previous years volunteers have taken turns cooking food from their home countries for the whole group. There are opportunities for swimming, fishing, rowing and hiking nearby. The harvest time allows picking berries and mushroom (have a person who can identify them with you). The Särestöniemi, Palsa, and Raekallio museums are near.

Language: English

Approximate Location: Kaukonen village in Kittilä municipality

Notes:  Since the work is quite physical, the workcamp can’t host people with disabilities.

We trust that the impact of our travels is a shared concern and if you can, please prefer more eco-friendly options than taking a plane.

Additional fee: Some SCI workcamps will have an additional fee of €50.00. The additional fee covers international insurance costs of the volunteer and a small travel fund to enable disadvantaged volunteers to join projects. If you apply through a partner organization, you will pay the fee directly to the hosting branch according to their instructions. Check here whether you’re applying through the SCI branch or partner: https://sci.ngo/about-us/our– movement/where-we-are

FI-KVT 13.2. Building community in a historical location at lakeside summer camp 19.8. – 27.8.2025

Number of Volunteers: 8

Description: Finnish summer cottage experience! Great camp for the first-timers! The Vähäsilta camp center is in an idyllic location on the shores of a lake, just half an hour’s drive from the city center of Tampere, one of Finland’s largest and most vibrant cities. In this workcamp, volunteers will participate in the maintenance of the camp center. The owner of the center, TampereMissio, offers non-profit organizations in the region free of charge, which means that the usage rate of the camp center is high throughout the summer. To make this possible, several collective work sessions are held at the center every year. These work sessions will, in the summer of 2025, partially be replaced by this international workcamp.

Type of Work: The tasks of volunteers are related to the maintenance of the property, including window cleaning, mowing the lawns, chopping firewood, cleaning and pruning bushes. The tasks do not require special skills. The camp hosts will provide guidance and take care of work safety.

Study Theme: TampereMissio is a non-profit social work organization. Volunteers will learn about the organization’s activities. It is also possible to organize introductions to TampereMissio’s various activities in Tampere as the camp center is located only a 50 min bus ride from the city center.

Accommodation: The accommodation is in shared rooms with women and men sleeping separately. Bed linen or sleeping bag must be brough by the volunteers themselves. Separate shower times can be arranged for male and female volunteers. Vähäsilta has a large, two-story, more than 100-year-old main building. On the ground floor, there are dining rooms, a large kitchen and water toilets. The ground floor of the main building is accessible. The accommodation space is on the upper floor, which is not accessible. There is a possibility to go to sauna, swim in the lake and row a boat.

Language: English

Approximate Location: Kämmenniemi, Pirkanmaa region, the camp location is in the countryside

Notes:  We trust that the impact of our travels is a shared concern and if you can, please prefer more eco-friendly options than taking a plane.

Additional fee: Some SCI workcamps will have an additional fee of €50.00. The additional fee covers international insurance costs of the volunteer and a small travel fund to enable disadvantaged volunteers to join projects. If you apply through a partner organization, you will pay the fee directly to the hosting branch according to their instructions. Check here whether you’re applying through the SCI branch or partner: https://sci.ngo/about-us/our- movement/where-we-are