Your work will be divided into four main categories:
Help us conduct elephant research
The Tuli region is home to a large elephant population, which is one of the most exciting things about the area. However, these gentle giants do have quite an impact on the environment with their 12 - 18 hour-a-day feeding habit.
For this reason, it’s important for us to keep track of their population growth and movement. As an environmental volunteer, you’ll have the opportunity help us do this by taking part in elephant research. For example, you'll help identify and record individual elephants and their family groups. You'll also learn how to spot and record movement patterns.
Anti-poaching patrols
Illegal poaching of bush meat is a major challenge to wildlife conservation in Botswana. As a conservation volunteer, you will help reduce poaching in the Tuli area. You will mainly do this by joining local staff members in removing snares around the wildlife reserve.
In 2017, our Conservation volunteers removed over 1,500 snares in Botswana. We've seen a decrease in the number of snares as well as an increase in the amount of wildlife in the past years. We hope that this might indicate a decrease in poaching activity, but we need you to help us continue these efforts.
You will never be expected to take part in any anti-poaching activities that could risk confrontation with poachers.
Water conservation
Water is scarce in Southern Africa, so we have to work to conserve it.
As a wildlife conservation volunteer, you will help us construct and repair waterholes, boreholes and rainwater tanks. This will ensure that water is caught up during the wet season and that there is lots of fresh water during the dry season.
Surveys
Keeping tabs on the movements of wild animals is no easy feat, but we manage to do a pretty good job with our ongoing surveys. During your time in Botswana, you may help us with a bird census, a crocodile census, spoor identification or compiling an inventory of all the mammal species in the reserve.
We’re currently conducting a survey of all the baobab trees in the reserve and doing a thorough vegetation mapping project.
By doing these surveys, you will help us prove this area of Botswana is unique, wild and an essential area for protecting biodiversity in Southern Africa. In turn, this helps us achieve the longer-term aim of establishing a legally binding conservancy for the central Tuli area.
