Start your conservation story with a bold adventure
“Life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all” – Helen Keller.
Most conservation careers don’t start with a dream job. They start with one slightly scary, slightly exciting “yes”.
Saying yes to a project in a new place.
Yes to joining a field team you’ve never met.
Yes to getting your hands dirty instead of reading about conservation from behind a screen.
That one “yes” can do a lot for you:
- It gets you out of your head and into real conservation action.
- It gives you stories you can actually talk about in applications and interviews.
- It shows you what parts of conservation you enjoy – and what you don’t.
And importantly, it proves something to you:
You can show up.
You can learn as you go.
You don’t have to have it all figured out before you start.
Whatever your background, real-world conservation adventures help you move beyond “one day” – so you can start living your career story now.
Often, the plan only becomes clearer after you’ve taken that first step.
“In the end, we only regret the chances we didn’t take.” – Lewis Carroll
This month, we’ve picked four conservation experiences that combine adventure (new places, new people, new challenges) with real career value (skills, contacts and experience that count).
If something both scares you and excites you a little, that might be a sign you’re onto something good.
If you said yes to one of these experiences, imagine where could you be in 12 months’ time?
Maybe this is the bold adventure your conservation career story starts with
Explore these Conservation Experiences
Nature Travel South Africa: EcoQuest
Explore the magnificent landscape of Botswana and South Africa on a course especially designed for safari newcomers. Gather rare and memorable insights as you encounter fauna and flora in their original form in beautiful Botswana or South Africa’s world-popular Kruger National Park.
Unleash your adventurous spirit
- Gain fascinating insights into life in the wild from professionally skilled course leaders who guide and support you.
- Take two daily trips through the stunning landscape for close-up wildlife encounters.
- Learn valuable information about native animals and their habitats, and how to orientate yourself in a natural environment.
Volunteering in Malawi – Wildlife Monitoring
Monitor Endangered species in the breathtaking landscape of Liwonde – observing iconic animals such as lions, cheetahs, hyenas and vultures, and collecting valuable data that will feed directly into local conservation strategies and shape the future of Malawi’s wildlife.
Unleash your adventurous spirit
- Learn about the social dynamics of groups and individual wildlife – and experience impressive events, such as a take-over of a lion pride by a new male, the training of an adolescent cheetah in hunting, or the fascinating interaction between vultures and other scavengers at a carcass.
- Contribute to monitoring and research work that helps fill critical knowledge gaps and supports national and regional conservation efforts.
Volunteer Abroad Seychelles: North Island Conservation
Actively contribute to nature and wildlife conservation in the Seychelles, one of the most biodiverse areas on Earth, and experience the incomparable beauty and fascinating biodiversity of a true island paradise.
Unleash your adventurous spirit
- Live in close harmony with nature in the middle of the Indian Ocean, far from the rest of the world.
- Contribute to a “Noah’s Ark” initiative, with the ambitious target to return the island ecosystem to its original state through renaturation measures.
- Patrol the beach each morning, looking for signs of turtles and their nests, as part of a team of research workers and volunteers.
Internships in biological research, sustainable agriculture and conservation in the Peruvian Amazon
Assist an international team of biologists and conservationists with projects spanning biological research and monitoring, sustainable tropical agriculture, and conservation in Peru’s remote Madre de Dios region.
Unleash your adventurous spirit
- Get training in basic field research skills (including off-trail navigation and use of GPS and GIS) and techniques used to study tropical biodiversity, ecology and conservation (e.g., experimental design, data collection, camera trapping, etc.)
- Learn to identify major Amazonian plant and animal groups (e.g. trees, mammals, birds, reptiles and amphibians, insects and other invertebrates).
- Have the opportunity to develop an independent research project on a topic you choose.
Looking for more ways to unleash your adventurous spirit? Explore all our Conservation Experiences with apprenticeships, internships and volunteerships around the globe.