Kariega Big Five Game Reserve Volunteer Programme

Program Description

Being a volunteer or research intern at the Kariega Game Reserve will provide you with the opportunity to make a difference, hone your abilities, take part in a genuine conservation effort, and come home wanting more.

Wildlife conservation volunteers will have the chance to have hands-on experience with these four sectors: Research, Education, Community Development and Conservation Management.

Research Projects include:

- Elephant Impact Monitoring
- Population of Leopards
- Lion Prey Selection Monitoring
- Rhino Monitoring
- Birds in Reserve Project

Conservation Management activities potentially include:

- Sex and age ratios recordings of specific species like elands and giraffes
- Alien vegetation control and bush encroachment control within the park
- Soil erosion control
- Clean-up operations
- Road maintenance and repair of river crossings
- Parasite control

Conservation volunteers potentially have these responsibilities:

- Capturing Wild Animals
- Game Introduction
- Fire Management

The game reserve also works to build communities including underfunded schools. Volunteers can be placed at this small school with local children from 4-15 years of age. Volunteers usually go to the school once a week in order to add to the children’s education. You might be required to teach classes such as English, Maths and Science or to maintain the school grounds or teach the children sports.

Highlights

Volunteering with Kariega will be an unforgetable opportunity as you work with conservation initiatives including species reintroductions and leopard monitoring. You will have the chance to work with the Big Five along with caring individuals from all around the world. You will learn the practical aspects of conservation management. Consider yourself an Assistant Conservation Manager as you collect data and add to the knowledge of conservation on the reserve.

Qualifications

- Ages 16 and upwards. Volunteers under 16 years old are only considered when accompanied by a parent/guardian
- Interest / field of study: conservation, environmental science, wildlife management, ecology or wildlife biology, wildlife journalism, wildlife photography, veterinary science, animal behavior studies.
- Personal qualities: flexible and adaptable
- Self-motivated: a carefully structured full programme is provided each week, but volunteers need to be adaptable to some programme changes depending on variables in the running of the project.
- Free time is also factored in, and volunteers need to be independent and mature enough to make constructive use of such recreational time.

Volunteer Types

What`s Included

The cost includes all food, accommodation within the Game Reserve (use of plunge pool, BBQ), linen (bedding), laundry and cleaning, all on-reserve conservation activities and training, WorkingAbroad backup and support.