Frequently asked questions

How can I become a PBI supporter?

Check this list to see if you live in a country which has a Country or Associate group. Click on the country links and scroll to find the country group address.

If you have a Country Group, your participation would be very much welcomed, as volunteers are vital in maintaining the work of these groups. Generally at least travel and lunch expenses will be covered. Contact your local office for more information.

If you do not live in one of these countries, then we regret that, at present, you cannot be a formal member of PBI because we have no international membership structure. However, you can keep informed of PBI's human rights protection and peace education, and contribute to this work in the following ways:

Subscribe to our newsletter to keep informed about our work
Make a financial contribution to PBI's work by sending an international money order in US dollars, UK Sterling or Euros to the PBI International Office (address at the bottom of the page); or donate online.
If you want to pursue your interest in PBI's work further, consider the possibility of applying to volunteer with one of the projects. See the following questions and answers.

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How can I become a volunteer on a PBI team in the field?

Check this list to see if you live in a country which has a Country or Associate group. Click on the country links and scroll to find the country group address.

If you have a country group, you should contact them to find out how you can get involved in the group and what the procedures are for joining a PBI project. Many groups organise introductory trainings on the philosophy, mandate and principles and the work of PBI. If you are considering joining a team or getting involved in PBI in any other way it is essential that you attend one of these trainings.

You should study the pages for volunteers online, both in general and for the project you are interested in.

If you live in a place where there is no PBI country group, contact the office of the project you would like to join directly.

You should study the pages for volunteers online, both in general and for the project you are interested in.

If you are considering joining a project please consult with the Project Office about visa restrictions and the 'Own Country Rule', which states that citizens of one country cannot volunteer in a PBI project in their own country. (The only exception to this rule is the Indonesia Project that has Indonesian volunteers working on their Peace Education programme.)

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I'm interested in a paid job with PBI

As a largely volunteer organisation, there are few paid posts within PBI. However, whenever we recruit new staff, the posts are advertised on our web site, so please check the main page, country group and project pages from time to time.

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I/my organisation need financial help

We empathise with every individual and organisation that works for the peace and the respect of human rights, but unfortunately all the funds that we raise must be used to support our own projects and infrastructure. We were not set up to provide grants to other organisations. Nevertheless we can suggest an informal relationship, based on exchanging information; please look over our most recent Annual Review.

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I would like to become an intern

There are possibilities for internships with the PBI USA, PBI Germany country groups and the International Office. For more information on these internships, criteria and an application form, please contact these offices directly.

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I would like to volunteer as a translator

PBI functions internally in two languages: Spanish and English. So we regularly need volunteers to translate internal PBI documents and information for our website from English to Spanish and vice versa.

Consensus decision-making is a basic principle of PBI's ethos, so all decisions that have an impact on the whole organisation are taken by PBI's International Council after a full consultation with all PBI constituencies. Making sure that all documents relating to these decisions are available in both Spanish and English is therefore vital to PBI's functioning. By volunteering to help with translation you will play a very important role in the organization, while at the same time learning about our work.

We try not to send more than 1,500 words with each job, although sometimes we are short of volunteers and we might ask whether you could handle more. The flow of translations is difficult to predict, so there is sometimes a lot of work, sometimes very little. Although we set deadlines, we understand that these sometimes need to be flexible depending on what other commitments you have. If you are a translator of English and Spanish please download an application form and return it to the International Office.

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