South Africa Volunteer Experiences

Wildlife & Conservation Project - Chintsa, Wild Coast

The project can be exhilarating at times, for example when we do game captures and releases, elephant and buffalo tracking with telemetry, and animal rehab work. Then again some days can be a stretch, and even laborious at times. We do miles of fence patrols looking for snares, ring barking trees, and controlling erosion. But it’s important. This is not a safari operation and we don’t want to romanticize the work we do. It’s not always pretty or easy, but what we can tell you is that this is
real conservation and you as volunteers will ultimately make your mark on the conservation effort in Africa.

Come and experience life on a conservation project in a work/play, hands on learning experience. Some of the work is physical, some is observation, and
some is just good fun. We try and match the project to the volunteers own interests and abilities wherever possible. This is done in a relaxed African vibe.

The goals for this project are driven by a desire to not only conserve, but ultimately redress the imbalances of our natural resources due to human impact. The project has emerged as a collective effort between several land owners, and covers approximately 14 000 hectares (34 590 acres) ranging from big game country to active farms.

Project details

Project starts: every Monday
Location: Cintsa, East London
Minimum duration: 2 weeks

Projects sites

The project is carried out on three different sites:

Mpongo is an established Big 5 reserve where you are exposed to lots of African animal species including lions, elephants, rhino and many, many more. Sabati is a conservation area that we are developing at the moment, and have recently introduced a number of game species.

Kubusi/Matola is our wilderness camp and is situated in the deep gorge of the Kubusi Valley. Volunteers also work within the Matola Reserve, which has a large population of animal species.

We have incorporated a conservation project in combination with a few unique safari adventure activities which will bring a touch of pleasure

Volunteer tasks

Conservation volunteers will take part in the following aspects of conservation:

Animal rehabilitation
Botanical studies
Data collection for external conservation units including the Animal Demographic Unit (Reptile, Avian & Butterfly Working Groups)
Community training and schools awareness
Expanded topics for experience
Vulture and raptor studies (formal learning)

Working days

Programs run for 3 – 5 days a week, normally between Monday to Friday

Volunteer requirements

CV/Resumé
Basic level of competency in English
Copy of return flight itinerary
Acceptance subject to availability of position

Accommodation

Volunteer house

The camps are basic with showers, flushing toilets and simple basic rooms.
The volunteers will either stay in a cabin or tented camp.
Some of the camps only have a generator and no permanent electricity.
2 – 4 volunteers per room.

Meals

Breakfasts: yogurts, fresh fruit and cereal’s with toast and spreads.
Lunches: fruit, sandwiches.
Dinners: Good wholesome South African meals which include meat and vegetables.
A generous amount of food will always be available and no one will ever go hungry.

Transport

On project days the volunteers will be transported by private car or mini bus. The vehicles are
roadworthy and have all relevant licenses and liability insurance