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About Partners of the Americas

Partners of the Americas brings together citizen volunteers from Latin America, the Caribbean and the United States to build opportunity, and mutual understanding among people. The organization exemplifies the idea that people working together can make a difference. Partners envisions a hemisphere where opportunity is abundant for all and dreams are not bound by borders.

Partners pair U.S. states with the countries of Latin America and the Caribbean in international partnerships that focus volunteers' skills and energies on common concerns of social, economic, and cultural development. Partners draw on this network of enduring linkages among professionals, institutions and communities to mount a diverse array of activities and professional programs. These initiatives range from disaster assistance to cultural exchange, from strengthening democracy to preventing domestic violence, and from building the rule of law to better managing natural resources.

International Voluntary Service Activities

Partners of the Americas looks for a variety of volunteers and there are a number of ways to volunteer with the organization. Currently, the network is made up of around 7,000 volunteers from the US, Latin America and the Caribbean. The best way is for a volunteer to get involved with their local chapter of Partners of the Americas -- there is a chapter in almost every state in the US and most countries in Latin America and the Caribbean. These "Partnerships" are unique - each has its own particular mix of interests, activities and projects. Volunteers are active in areas like education, rehabilitation, agriculture, small business development, youth development, fund raising, advocacy and others.

To find a local chapter and learn how you can get involved, check the Partners web page. More than 600 Partners volunteers have traveled through the Farmer to Farmer Program which provides technical assistance to local agricultural producers, producer organizations, and agribusinesses. Through the program, US agricultural volunteers share their knowledge on an individual basis to help increase farm production and farmer incomes while preserving the natural resource base.

Another cornerstone volunteer program of Partners is the Education and Culture program, which promotes and spreads understanding, cooperation and knowledge throughout the western hemisphere. The program funds travel and projects designed to foster intellectual growth, increase participation in community affairs, strengthen linkages between educational institutions, and increase awareness of and sensitivity to cultural differences throughout the Western Hemisphere. Each year, Partners offers approximately 100 travel exchange grants to chartered Partners chapters for qualified adult professionals to visit their counterpart partner chapters for a ten-day visit.