• Buritica - Magdalena
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EL RIO FOUNDATION

El Rio Foundation works in a post-conflict zone on the North Caribbean coast of Colombia to provide sporting, educational, environmental and wellbeing programmes to positively impact our local community. We especially aim to provide free, fun, inclusive, impactful and reliable activities to all young people living in our local area.

We operate out of the multi award-winning Rio Hostel, Buritaca. Thanks to the support of our funding partners, hostel guests, crowd-funders, and the hostel itself, we now provide education and joy to 600+ children every week.

We are extremely proud that Rio Hostel was named Community Hero best hostel in the world by Hostelworld in 2024.

For the latest updates, please follow us @elriofoundation.

“We are fun, reliable, impactful and inclusive” 

OUR PROGRAMMES

We provide sporting, educational, wellbeing and environmental projects to positively impact our local community.

IMPACT STATS

To read our annual review from 2025 please click HERE.

Children taking part each week
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Guest volunteers
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Attendances at our clubs
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Academic Tutoring sessions each year
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CASE STUDIES/TESTIMONIALS

I would recommend volunteering with the Foundation at 1000/10. It is an incredible, unforgettable experience. The kids are open, happy, welcoming, curious, capable, powerful, and confident, in huge part due to the Foundation. They see that their potential is limitless and they strive to improve their skills and gain knowledge. I could never pick a single favourite moment because nearly every second of my stay was so joyful.’
Elias
EliasCommunity English teacher and Academic support volunteer
A sincere thank you to the El Río Foundation for everything you do, and may you continue for many more years transforming lives as you have done with my daughter's. I am very grateful from the bottom of my heart.
Paula Cáceres
Paula CáceresMother
In Villacuisa, Diomara has been recognised as the best English student in her school. In a family of 10, where no one had previously completed school, she and her brother Jeancao (also in Tutoring) are motivated and proud to learn, completely transforming how their family views education. Chess has also been an incredible tool to strengthen their focus, patience, respect, and commitment, with Jeancao the winner of the most recent regional chess tournament. Their class teacher also shared that their behaviour at school has never been better.
Lina Morales
Lina MoralesEl Rio Foundation Academic Tutoring and Community English programme lead
Language Exchange has been a great help in learning English, especially the dynamic of interacting with foreigners, which helps us become more fluent. I really like the classes because they are interactive, which makes learning more enjoyable.
Sarah Gutierrez
Sarah GutierrezLanguage exchange participant
El Rio Foundation did excellent work. Our students were very receptive to the methodology used by those involved in this wonderful work, especially in the physical exercises and recreational games, demonstrating the program's ability to motivate the Indigenous Wiwa children from the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta and other children!
Fernando Arias Castillo
Fernando Arias CastilloQ.de la Linea lead teacher.
I feel very happy with the project. Now I care more about taking care of the environment. I teach my friends about the importance of the environment, and I would like to learn more about how we can use clean energy. The future of our planet is in our hands, and we can do better.
Danna
Danna15 years old
Thank you so much for the love and teaching you give our children. My son enjoyed spending time with you and his classmates so much, and I loved seeing him happy and his enthusiasm for going to LKA every day :).
Anonymous parent
Anonymous parentend of year feedback
10/10!! Everything about the Foundation is fantastic and inspiring. So much joy and positivity. I loved every minute. So many special moments. One that was very memorable was doing the backdrop for the play with the kids from the Buritaca art class. They were so creative and seeing how much happiness it brough them was amazing.
Molly
MollyFoundation volunteer
The BEST experience ever! I was looking for something fulfilling for my final days of travelling and this was it. This experience made my trip. Not many hostels give back to the community. A beautiful experience with amazing people. I will come back.
Wednesday Football participant
Wednesday Football participantFoundation volunteer
The academic support from the Foundation in the afternoons has hugely strengthened my pupils' study habits and created a really nice routine for them. Indeed, the Tutorials have been really supportive in every way at a personal, family, community and school level. Before the programme, there was no support from home and now parents are taking more interest in their children's education. The biggest improvements I have seen are in the children's behaviour. They are more empathetic and are able to share and interact in a much more positive way.
Milagros Garcia Paz
Milagros Garcia PazQuebrada Valencia primary school
I am really grateful to the Foundation because they help us with our homework and, if we ever have a problem, they always help us.
Sharith
SharithVillacuisa
I am really proud of my decision to go to Tutoring. I have learnt to work in a team more and to have more respect, and besides I am learning another language. I really really really really really really love to go to Tutoring.
Adrian
AdrianLos Linderos
My favourite moments at Tutoring were learning English, doing division, doing my homework and when they help me to write in my notebook. I really like the new (volunteer) teachers, they are always kind to me and help me a lot. I am very proud of my progress in English especially. Tutoring is important for me so I can learn English and I feel free away from my house and my brothers, where it’s always very hot.
Maria
MariaLas Cabanas
I have seen lots of positive changes in my daughter this term. Her concentration has improved, she is much better at sharing and working in teams. She absolutely loves Tutoring and all the activities. The Foundation has helped her a lot.
Onaida
OnaidaBuritaca parent
At Tutoring, my children have learnt commitment, responsibility and motivation. They are much more disciplined, and their behaviour and also their English have improved a lot.
Neida
NeidaGuachaca parent
The biggest change I have seen in my daughter is that she now really enjoys English, maths and reading. Already she understands a lot and has much more knowledge. I feel very happy with your help. Thank you very much for helping our children 🙂
Martha
MarthaGuachaca parent
The LKA sessions have helped my son develop many skills. His vocabulary has improved a lot, he is more independent and the relationship with his peers has improved. He is more confident when speaking and he can now even pronounce numbers and colours in English!
Evier
EvierBuritaca parent
‘Because we only take care of what we know and only take care of what we love, we invite ourselves to know more about this territory through art and by experiencing nature.’
Andres Zuñiga
Andres ZuñigaEnvironmental Education lead teacher

BLOG EL RIO FOUNDATION

Please see our quarterly newsletters since 2024 below:

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OUR BRILLIANT PARTNERS

We are very proud to be working in partnership with:

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