Marine Conservation Volunteer

Vacancy: Marine Conservation Volunteer
Company: Greenforce
Category: Gap year projects (Conservation, Watersports & diving)

Dates: Ongoing

Cost: From £1600

Description:

Working alongside the Wildlife Conservation Society (Fiji) or the Bahamas National Trust (Bahamas) volunteers are trained to become marine researchers who will survey the reefs alongside our coastal camps.

With the aim of the projects to create a UNESCO Seascape (Fiji) and a National Park plus no take zones (Bahamas) volunteers are diving in bio-diverse hotspots that have never endured commercial diving. We dive train volunteers to PADI Advanced, plus EFR, and teach the necessary research techniques for the work that will be undertaken. Science training will also take place in the first couple of weeks, when volunteers work together to learn the fish and corals they are likely to come across.

Each day Monday to Friday the whole team will do two survey dives per day. The dives are lead by the two scientists on camp, as well as the expedition leader and dive instructor, who are also resident on camp. On Saturdays the group can opt to do a recreational dive, such as a deep dive, drift dive or night dive. Sunday is rest day when volunteers in Fiji visit the local village to go to church and lunch with local families, whilst a beach barbeque is typical in the Bahamas.

In the Bahamas volunteers spend one afternoon a week in a local school working on a marine conservation awareness project by putting on plays and playing educational games with the children.

Expeditions run for ten weeks in January, April, July and October, although anything from a four to ten week stay is possible.