Elephant and Wildlife Monitoring And Conservation Education

Against the backdrop of the magnificent Victoria Falls just a two hour drive away, Hwange is the largest game reserve in Zimbabwe. The salt pans, acacia scrub and grassy savannah plains are home to a plethora of wildlife - in fact, some say that Hwange boasts the densest concentration of game in Africa. However, this might not always be the case. We invite you to join us in preserving this unique corner of Africa...


"The project has been an experience that I will always cherish. It out weighed all my expectations and the organisation of activities was far better than past projects I have been on. I feel I have gained a reasonable knowledge of Zimbabwe, its culture and people, its animals and plant life. The project provides volunteers with amazing once in a life-time experiences and on top of the obvious benefits to the lions it spreads awareness about Zimbabwe and its struggles. I hope to be able to return in the future." Emma Stud, UK.

Project Location: Located at our volunteer base camp in the heart of the African Bush, on the outskirts of Zimbabwe's largest National Park, two hours drive from the magnificent Victoria Falls.

Project Age Limit: Minimum 17 years, maximum decided on potential participants' health. An average or above average level of physical fitness is required for this programme.

Project Highlights:

One week introductory bush awareness course with our experienced professional guides

Participation in our studies monitoring elephant populations and biodiversity - this will take you to the far flung corners of the Park and offers an amazing chance to explore this Big 5 area

Camp out opportunities in the National Park surrounded by the African Bush

Wildlife population counts and snare checks on wildlife

A deeper understanding of large-scale wildlife management and in-depth exploration of Zimbabwe's most famous National Park and it's surrounding conservation areas

Community Involvement - We believe that our work would be incomplete if we were not involved in the development and assistance of the local communities. Join our team in their exciting Conservation Education work in rural schools

Project Travel Highlights:


During your stay you will have the opportunity to enjoy an optional extra excursion to some of the other spectacular spots that Zimbabwe has to offer, including our Antelope Park lion rehabilitation programme and the Victoria Falls. The Victoria Falls will be your entry and exit point from Zimbabwe, so this will give you the chance to stop over and enjoy some of the exciting activities on offer, including walking with lions, bungee jumping over the Batoka Gorge which flows below the Victoria Falls, or rafting the mighty Zambezi River.

Further Information on the Elephant and Wildlife Monitoring and Conservation Project:
The 4 weeks outlined below roll over continuously throughout the year. The Bush Awareness course starts on the 10th of each month, though volunteers are generally accepted outside of these dates as well. Please discuss with your Destination Manager.

Week 1 - Bush Awareness Course


Your volunteer programme begins with a one-week bush awareness course, which offers you an amazing insight into the characteristics of the African bush as well as local cultures and customs.

The Pathfinders bush awareness course involves aspects of the following:

Tuning in to the Bush: Lessons from the land - smells, sights and sounds

Cultural Familiarisation: Understanding the Shona & Ndebele cultures & beliefs

Logistical Planning: When to move, what to take, how to carry it

Edible Plants and Animals: What you can and cannot eat

Animal Identification: By shape, smell, and sound

Identifying Tracks: Matching the animal to the imprint

Basic Safety: Areas and situations to avoid

Dangerous Animals: The realistic threat and evasive actions

Basic Tracking: What to look for, what to avoid, common mistakes

Basic Navigation: Reading a map, using a compass, estimating time, distance, speed

Finding Water & Gathering Food: Seeking with all your senses, and tips for collection

Building a Fire without Matches: Finding the materials, effective techniques, safety

Basic First Aid: Emergency first aid and general health care

All accommodation will be tented camping during this week.

Weeks 2 - 4


As a volunteer you and the team will have access to the most remote areas of one of Africa's premier game reserves and its surrounding conservation areas, which are home to the Big 5. Including herds of elephant, buffalo, plains-game, lion and leopard. You will be helping to protect and conserve one of Africa's few remaining wildlife sanctuaries.

Generally, your work will include some or all of the following:

1. Elephant monitoring and wildlife monitoring for bio-diversity studies

Spending time out in the bush capturing data and observations will offer you a unique insight in to this Big 5 wildlife area.

Understanding the dynamics of each species population is essential to parks personnel when implementing management plans and conservation proposals. A realistic count and consistent analyses of the game present to date in Hwange and surrounding areas is necessary for management and strategic purposes. Results obtained from a combination of game drives, spoor transects, and dung transects can be utilized to produce a map showing locations of species groups and habitat range, in addition to providing an indication of resident species diversity and population abundance within the park.

2. Human-Elephant conflict research and intervention

Changes in local community boundaries and the home ranges of the elephant herds over the years in this area mean that man and beast are often faced with conflicting situations.

Local rural villagers whose first priorities are usually survival means that their perspective on elephants is often

a) As a potentially useful food source

b) As a menace when elephants are involved in destroying their precious subsistence crops

Ongoing monitoring of the impact of elephants on vegetation is of key importance in providing a basis for management decisions, as well as the implementation of preventative measures to reduce human-elephant conflict in the area.

The project will be at different stages over the next few months - so volunteers should be prepared to be involved in a wide diversity of project work as things evolved and develop, all of which are moving the project towards a common goal.

2. Maintenance of parks infrastructure
African Impact volunteers assist National Parks by maintaining infrastructure within the park.

3. Snare Collection and removal of snares from animals - Our project managers and their team work closely with local wildlife authorities to alleviate the unnecessary suffering of wildlife in this area by conducting regular snare collection and removal patrols along the border of the National Park.

Project Typical Day:

08:00 - Breakfast

09:00 - Leave camp with the project managers for a walk in the Dete Annexe to conduct snare sweeps and take down information on species sighted OR head out for an early morning drive, and conduct spoor transects and note down GPS locations and contribute to the monitoring studies

12:00 - You will be taken to Dete village where you are able to participate in the local Red Cross feeding programme, or plan for your next Conservation Education session

13:00 - Lunch and siesta until about 14.30

14:30 - 17:30 - Elephant Pepper programme, either: discussing new methods and areas of distribution of various deterrents with local villagers, working in the chilli pepper nursery, assisting in the planting and distribution of chillies to assist with human-elephant conflict resolution

19:00 - Dinner, which is often followed by elephant viewing at the base camp pan by floodlight as they come for their evening drink.

You will work 6 days a week with Sunday being more of a rest period, unless an emergency call-out occurs.

Village Community Project


We believe that our work in the Hwange area would be incomplete without contributions to the community. Volunteers will have the chance to be involved in the following areas:

Conservation Education - No Conservation Programme is complete without a community element. Community Outreach and Conservation Education is vital and needs to be conducted hand in hand with any field research implemented. It is important to explain to the local villagers the project aims, and why the project needs to be undertaken.

Red Cross Centre and Orphanage - Africa is home to many orphaned children, at the Red Cross Centre in Dete alone 300 children are currently being looked after. All time spent with the children is immeasurably important as many if not most have very few contact experiences and all they desire is attention and love which can be given by you. In addition to general time spent interacting, volunteers assist with a variety of activities from collecting firewood to serving food to the children.

Cultural Day - We take volunteers in to one of the local villages in the surrounding communal land and experience rural village life with one of our well-trusted local friends. See how their meals are cooked each day and taste the local produce, interact with the children and go exploring in the farmland.

Note on National Parks Conservation Work:
Regardless of your final itinerary at each National Park, please be prepared to remain flexible and trust that our experienced and dedicated project management staff will do their utmost to facilitate a placement for you that will be most beneficial to the National Parks, and that will provide you with the best insight into the beautiful Big 5 areas that you will be visiting.

Project Cost:

	GBP (£)	USD ($)
2 week placement	745	1490
4 weeks	995	1990

Project Cost Includes:

Project Fee: this entails financing that goes directly back into the project that you are involved with. This project fee facilitates funding for items such as park entrance permits, darting equipment and professional scouts that accompany you on all your activities

All transfers to and from Victoria Falls town to the Hwange project base on arrival and departure

Assistance in your projects by various trained guides and staff during your stay

Any wildlife education talks that take place during your stay and that you might wish to partake in

Full board and lodging which includes 3 meals a day

Unlimited tea, coffee and juice throughout the day

Laundry service during your stay

The service of a cleaner to attend to your room each day

Project Cost Excludes:

All items of a personal nature, such as curios, gifts, clothing (work and other)

Flights to Victoria Falls international airport

Email and telephone calls made during your placement (charged out at cost)

Any excursions over and above your planned itinerary in Zimbabwe e.g. visit to the Victoria Falls

Personal insurance cover for the duration of your placement, which is expected to include cover for repatriation

Project Orientation:

On arrival at the volunteer base, the following orientation will take place

You will receive your volunteer's manual which includes information that will help with your integration into the project, as well as give you further tips for your involvement at the Hwange programme

Introduction to all senior camp staff and heads of department

Familiarization of the area- including river's, internal roads and tracks and some of the wildlife species in areas that you will be working in

Familiarization with all duties you will be involved in

Project Support:
Throughout your placement you will have the support and guidance of our experienced volunteer coordinators. They are part of our greater African Impact support team, which will provide you with competent 24-hour field support and assistance.

Project Accommodation:

During the Bush Awareness Course you will be accommodated in comfortable and organised camping style with all equipment provided (please bring sleeping bags!)

During the rest of the programme you will stay in volunteer accommodation in the heart of the bush adjacent to Hwange. Volunteer rooms are simple yet comfortable, and you will share a room with no more than three other volunteers of the same sex (unless you've pre-arranged to share with a person that you are travelling with).

The volunteers have their own dining room and recreation room where Satellite TV, a library and various interactive games are available.

Project Meals:
Your home-from-home mother/cook, Gladys, will ensure that you never go hungry.
Breakfast may consist of cereals, porridge, or fresh fruit, yoghurt and scones.
Lunch may be cold meats and salads, burgers or lasagne - usually something not too heavy as the daytime temperatures can be quite high and this diminishes your appetite.
At night delicious meals are served in a buffet style after which volunteers are welcome to sit around the camp-fire.

Project Getting There: We will meet you at the airport!!
Your options are as follows:
Fly to Johannesburg International Airport, and connect to Victoria Falls International Airport where you will be collected and transferred to Hwange. This is a 2-hour drive. This is usually the most suitable option for travellers.

Note: as with all our programmes, the Hwange programme can be combined with any other African Impact project to provide you with added insight and exposure to our conservation/community development efforts and exciting projects. Please consult one of our Destination Managers for any assistance or advice.




www.happyafricafoundation.org
Regd UK Charity Number: 1123529

Pathfinders and The Happy Africa Foundation
Pathfinders is proud to have been instrumental in the establishment of The Happy Africa Foundation and continues to be one of the Foundations major supporters. Donations made to support our community and conservation initiatives by private donors as well as by Pathfinders as a voluntoursim company are managed and distributed on our behalf by The Happy Africa Foundation.

The mission of The Happy Africa Foundation is to empower the African people through the support of community and conservation based initiatives that operate at grass roots level.

Conservation Development:
The Happy Africa Foundation works together with local African communities to conserve and protect the environment, wildlife and cultures in areas where the Foundation is involved. Thus, the Foundation supports, financially or logistically (or both), local and international organizations that operate projects supporting conservation education and research at a grass roots level.

Community Development:
The Happy Africa Foundation strives to initiate, facilitate and support community development projects that are sustainable. As such, The Happy Africa Foundation makes every effort to ensure and takes relevant measures in assessing, planning and monitoring community development projects for the benefit of local African communities.

The Happy Africa Foundation provides travellers, volunteers and other donors with a chance to give back to the communities they visit or volunteer in on their African journeys, or that they wish to support remotely through donations.

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