South Africa Conservation

  • Who? Groups of 5 – 20 school students aged 16+
  • When? Projects have flexible dates and run all year round
  • Where?Legodimo reserve on the South Africa/Botswana border.
Volunteers and staff in Botswana, South Afica
Volunteers and staff in Botswana, South Afica

Groups working on our South Africa Conservation project will be involved in all aspects of work on our nature reserve Legodimo. Your time will be split between collecting scientific data and creating species lists, hands-on work doing tree wrapping, maintenance of water holes and building bird hides, and learning new skills such as animal tracking and GPS mapping. You will get the chance to do really varied and hands-on work, while living outdoors in the wild bush amongst elephant, zebra, kudu, impala, baboons, crocodile, hawks and hyenas.

Your group will work on average six hours a day; four hours of more strenuous work in the cooler morning and two in the late afternoon, with the middle of the day devoted to eating, sleeping, swimming, relaxing and keeping cool! In your spare time, you can swim in the pool, play ping pong, darts and cards, relax under the shade of the huge Nyala tree with a good book, watch a magnificent African sunset or sunrise, or find a quiet spot on the island in the river! Accommodation at base camp is in large but basic single sex dorm style bedrooms surrounding a large open air communal area with a fire pit and kitchen facilities, where much of the food is cooked over a traditional open braai - a kind of barbeque.

Legodimo reserve is on the frontier of South Africa and Botswana and is of global importance for conservation. Living in the heart of our own reserve on the Botswana side of the Limpopo River you will be in the midst of a wild landscape teeming with animals. The scenery is stunning, and our fully qualified staff ensures both safety and also that all our volunteers are well informed about their surroundings. South Africa is a unique environment in which to spend time volunteering abroad and is a thriving and lively destination for a work experience placement.