Overview

One aim of the Alldays Wildlife and Communities Research Centre, based within the Limpopo Province, South Africa, is to benefit the local community and provide environmental education to children. As such, we are looking for hands-on and passionate volunteers to join our team and help support our activities within the community and at local schools. The project provides a fantastic opportunity to gain exposure to community projects and environmental education in a South African environment. You will be working with children and other community members whilst developing a range of skills, a perfect stepping stone for a future career working with communities, children or in environmental education.

Key activities

Volunteers will be required to conduct a variety of tasks while volunteering with us. Most of your time will be spent interacting with children in the local community. Main tasks include assisting teachers and caregivers at local schools and crèches, and helping with environmental education lessons. You may get involved with sports lessons, drama and art lessons, or one-on-one English lessons with children who need the extra help. Depending on the time of year and current projects, you may also be asked to get involved with other tasks, such as helping set up and run community events and help with administration. Outside of the classroom you will get involved in litter picks, helping with recycling and eco-bricking, and conducting snare removal sweeps on local farms. Volunteers will be expected to communicate positively, have excellent social skills and have knowledge of other projects at the research centre so that they can be conveyed and promoted.

What we are looking for

Everyone at the research centre is passionate about the work they do, so we are looking for someone who is excited to make an active contribution to the project. We are open to your background, what is important is that you are fluent in English and passionate about working with communities, children, and conservation. There are a few qualities that make you more relevant for the programme: prior experience with community work or at a school, or working in a rural southern African environment; being reliable, responsible, patient, flexible and motivated to work hard; enjoy working as part of a team and be happy to operate under the authority of teachers and field research coordinators, whilst being competent working unsupervised.

Salary and costs

This is a volunteer role so no salary is provided, however you will be exposed to a wide range of activities and therefore this could be an integral stepping stone to your next role.

You will need to cover your own accommodation and food costs at the research centre. Accommodation costs are currently ZAR1,500/week, or ZAR5,100/month for those who stay at least three months. Further reductions are offered for those who stay for more than three months. Volunteers will also be responsible for their own airfare and travel to the centre and medical/travel insurance.

The research centre is located in a rural location. Accommodation is two to six bed apartments with shared bathroom facilities (hot showers, flush toilets) and kitchen area equipped with a gas stove, fridge/freezer, tapped water, washing machine, and electricity.

How to apply

Various start dates are available in 2019 and 2020. To apply for the position or for further details please contact Dr Leah Findlay at l.j.findlay@durham.ac.uk. Please include a brief cover letter and CV. Please use your cover letter to explain why you are interested in working with us and to outline your relevant experience or transferable skills, as well as when and for how long you are available. Please also include contact details for two referees. Applications will be accepted until positions are filled.