Costa Rica · Volunteer programs
Greentalist health and safety, at the heart of everything we do
Greentalist health and safety is the foundation of every volunteer program we run in Costa Rica. We can’t promise an experience with zero risk no one honestly can, but we can promise one that is carefully planned, well supported, and built around the wellbeing of every volunteer.
- First-aid–trained leaders on every site
- 24/7 contact with our Operations Base
- Emergency medical cover & evacuation plans
Our philosophy
We don’t treat risk as something to eliminate we treat it as something to understand.
Real growth happens at the edge of the comfortable. Our programs put volunteers in new and challenging situations on purpose and our whole approach to health and safety exists to make that challenge safe, supported, and worthwhile. We identify hazards, reduce them to an acceptable level, and bring everyone into the process, so the experience stays demanding without ever becoming reckless.
A duty of care
Every leader holds a real responsibility for the people in their charge. Activities are assessed for the group in front of them, and no one leads anything beyond the scope of their training.
Shared responsibility
When people own their own safety and look out for one another, accidents fall. Volunteers help assess the risks of each phase not just follow rules someone else wrote.
Risk weighed against benefit
Managing risk well isn’t about avoiding it at all costs it’s about balancing it against what volunteers gain: leadership, teamwork, and confidence they carry for life.
How we manage risk
Risk is identified and reduced long before you arrive
We run a safety management system, not a one off checklist. Hazards are assessed at three levels the region, the project site, and the live situation in the field so risk is understood, written down, and brought down to an acceptable level at every stage.
Area assessment
Before we operate anywhere, we research the whole region: social conditions, health issues, and the nearest medical infrastructure. It’s reviewed every year.
Before a region opensProject assessment
Each site is checked for suitability and given its own written risk assessment and casualty evacuation plan, shared with the group at the start of every phase.
Before each projectDynamic assessment
On the ground, leaders and volunteers keep reading the situation and adapt as conditions change weather, fatigue, terrain reacting to risk as it rises or falls.
Continuously, in the fieldHow we weigh each risk
Every hazard is rated by how likely it is and how serious it could be. That rating tells us whether it’s acceptable as-is or needs control measures first the same simple scale, from trivial to intolerable, used across all our programs.
Your leaders & the Base
Trained leaders, and a base that never sleeps
You’re never on your own. Every team leader completes first aid training before the program, and our Operations Base stays reachable around the clock for the whole time you’re in the field.
- At least two first-aid–trained people on every project site, with fully stocked kits at each site, in every vehicle, and at the Base.
- Comprehensive induction training in risk management, emergency planning, and the safety culture for leaders and volunteers alike.
- 24/7 contact with the Base, with a staff member on duty day and night so any group can reach support at any hour.
- Daily check-ins from every project group, so the Base always knows where teams are and how they’re doing.
If something goes wrong
Prepared for emergencies, before they happen
We plan for both civil emergencies and medical ones before a program even begins. Every site has a casualty evacuation plan, and all volunteers are covered by comprehensive insurance including emergency treatment and repatriation if it’s ever needed.
On-site care
Minor injuries and illness are treated on site by first-aid–trained staff, with stocked kits always to hand.
Medevac
A non urgent move, at a measured pace, for further treatment when on site care isn’t enough.
Casevac
Immediate evacuation, coordinated from the Base with outside agencies as needed, to reach proper care fast.
Your day-to-day health
Staying healthy in the field
A lot of staying safe is simply staying well. Before you travel and once you’re here, we make sure you know how to look after your own health — and leaders set the example from day one.
Vaccinations
Your welcome pack lists exactly what’s required for the program area, following current World Health Organization guidance.
Hydration & food
We help you stay ahead of dehydration and keep food and kitchen hygiene high — especially while the group acclimatizes.
Clean drinking water
Clear procedures for choosing, treating, and storing drinking water keep waterborne illness from taking hold in the group.
Mosquitoes & wildlife
Practical protection against bites and sensible habits around local flora and fauna — the tropics’ most common hazards.
Across every activity
The same care, in every setting
Whatever the day holds — building, trekking, crossing a river, or simply getting from A to B — the same standards follow you into it. Each activity has its own policies, controls, and trained oversight.
Construction & PPE
Eye, head, hand and airway protection — with power and mechanical tools left to trained partners only.
Adventure activities
Real challenge with effective controls — exposure managed, never the experience watered down.
Water activities
River crossings and swimming run with a designated safety officer, set limits, and rescue gear on hand.
Transport & roads
Our own vehicles wherever possible, daytime driving only, and checks before every journey.
Common questions
Frequently asked questions
What safety training do Greentalist leaders have?
What happens if there’s a medical emergency?
Do I need my own insurance?
Is the drinking water safe?
What vaccinations will I need?
Are under-18s looked after differently?
Can my group reach support at any time?
The full picture
Read the complete Health & Safety Policy
This page is the summary. The full policy lays out every procedure in detail — risk management, emergencies, activities, health, and more. We’re glad to share it openly.
