ESC: Kuterevo Bear Refuge

Name: ESC: Kuterevo Bear Refuge
Start: 2026-08-26
End: 2026-09-12
Location: Kuterevo, Croatia

Code: 53362 Copied

Croatia European Voluntary Service Environment European Voluntary Service Environment Fixed dates

About the project

📝 Detailed information

💼 What the programme involves

Velebit Association Kuterevo (VUK) is based in Kuterevo village, a mountain community situated within the Velebit Biosphere Reserve. Since 2002, the organisation has been running Refuge for orphan bear cubs and at the moment it is taking care of 9 adult bears. The organisation is also engaged in documentation and preservation of cultural heritage, maintenance of peaceful neighbourly relations and promotion of the co-existence of civilisation & wilderness. During this ESC team, the volunteers will be engaged in diverse activities such as: supporting the local team in managing the Refuge, animal care, improvement and maintenance of the facilities in Bear Refuge.

🏠 Accommodation on site

The volunteers will be accommodated in houses of local people, in rooms they will share with other volunteers. The accommodation will be a few minutes walk from the Volunteers' Station, where they will be spending most of their day working and having leisure with other volunteers. Food will be prepared and eaten together in Volunteers' Station, and it will be vegetarian. Travel will be organised by the volunteer (ideally green), with help from hosting organisations for local transportation. Accommodation, food, pocket money and travel costs will be covered by the project.

🎒 Leisure activities

The volunteers will learn basics about bear biology and current situation in Croatia. Besides that, they will learn how to use tools properly, how to build with stones and work in a team. They will take part in an educational excursion to friends of the Refuge, beekeepers of Janja Gora from where beehives will be transported to Kuterevo. They will have opportunities to take part in workshops about pottery and wool felting. Finally, the volunteers will take part in the Mountain Spirit ceremony and join the unofficial club of Kuterevo Bear Friends.

⚠️ Requirements

The Participant profile: The volunteers should be interested in nature, coexistence and wilderness. They should be willing to work hard, and ready to work manually. They should also be ready to live with other people, share responsibilities and take care of each other. They should be mindful towards the local community, visitors of the Bear Refuge and organisations. Interested candidates should fill in this form: https://forms.gle/r6t2fmeYJWW4aAQd8 We will contact only those applicants who fill in the form because that means that you read the description until the end :) Please do not use AI for the application, because we can recognise the key words and all the applications will look the same.
Deadline: 05/08/2026 12:00

ℹ️ Additional information

The project is implemented under the European Solidarity Corps Programme, financed by the European Commission.
The participating organisations have to be mindful of these needs as they are responsible for providing a respectful and trusting hosting environment. At the same time, the organisations participating in the initiative devote a great deal of time, energy and resources to set up a high-quality activity; they should therefore expect that European Solidarity Corps participants show a similar level of respect for the local communities and the people that are directly concerned by the activities (https://youth.europa.eu/solidarity/mission_en).
What do we provide ?

Training before and after the project
Health insurance during your project
round-trip travel reimbursement
accommodation and food
pocket money
language course
Return Week-end
Youth Pass and SVI international Volunteer passport

Before applying for this volunteering project, you need to enroll yourself at European Solidarity Corps Platform (https://europa.eu/youth/solidarity_en) and specify your European Solidarity Corps Participant Number (PRN).
This organisation holds a European Solidarity Corps Quality Label.
Contact the ESC coordinator at +32 2 888 67 13 to get more informations.

Interested in this project? Create your account and apply online.

📅 Available sessions

HR53362

26/08/2026 → 12/09/2026

Closed

0 / 2

♂ 0/1 ♀ 0/1

Deadline: 05/08/2026

ℹ️ Key information

Age required

18–30 years old

Solidarity donation

0.00 EUR

French tax residents may be eligible for a tax reduction of up to 66% of their costs (membership, plane tickets, solidarity donation).

📍 Location

53220, Kuterevo, Croatia

Croatia

🌍 Location info

Local currency

Euro (EUR / €)

Timezone

Central European Summer Time

Local time: 21:04 (12/11/2026)

🛡️ Before you leave

Security information

📞 Contact us

[email protected]

+32 2 888 67 13

Contact form

✅ Features

🏠 Accommodation

Collective

🗣️ Languages spoken

English Croatian Serbian