This summer, voluntary workcamps organised by APARE (Association for Regional Participation and Action) will enable volunteers to commit their energy and enthusiasm to the protection of valuable heritage sites in Southeastern France, in Corsica as well as in Morocco.

Volunteers of all ages and all nationalities can spend two or three useful weeks between July and September on one of the twenty-five work sites in Provence and the Mediterranean. There is no upper age limit at all for adult workcamps but youth camps have a minimum age of 16.

For example, they could spend time learning dry-stone walling techniques by repairing stone-paved roadways at the foot of the Mont Ventoux, restoring a testimony to the agricultural past of an area near the Luberon, working on consolidating a chapel in the Alpes de Haute-Provence, restoring the stonework of the enclosing wall of the citadel in Saint-Tropez on the Mediterranean shore, or setting out a discovery path in Corsica. They could also choose to cross the Mediterranean Sea to take part in the restoration of a district of a Moroccan village.

Technical advisors will be present to introduce them to traditional building techniques such as dry-stone walling, stone dressing, and lime facing. In addition, a group leader will be in charge of group dynamics (budget, leisure activities during afternoons and week-ends…).

Taking part in an APARE workcamp is not only an opportunity to learn about heritage restoration and enhancement, it is also a unique time of experiencing life in an international group of people who have come together for mutual exchange and the discovery of sites of natural and architectural interest.

The registration fee for workcamps includes food and lodging, insurance and leisure expenses ­ 130 ¤ for adult camps lasting three weeks (95 ¤ for two weeks) and 305 ¤ for teenage camps lasting three weeks. Registration for workcamps in Morocco is under specific condition. Workcamps are taking place on summer from late June to early October 2008.