Marine conservation holiday in Thailand
| country: | Thailand |
| location: | Koh Tao |
| departures: | 2010: 2 Jan, 16 Jan, 6 Feb, 20 Feb, 6 Mar, 20 Mar, 3 Apr, 17 Apr, 1 May, 15 May, 5 Jun, 19 Jun, 3 Jul, 17 Jul, 7 Aug, 21 Aug, 4 Sep, 18 Dec, 19 Dec |
| price: | From £725 - £1425 (14-28 days) excluding flights. Price includes PADI dive training course, all equipment and qualified instructors |
| vouchers: | Gift vouchers can be used with this holiday |
the amazing things you'll be doing
You will have the chance to join a local marine conservation project on the island of Koh Tao, learning about coral reefs and taking part in reef check dives and a range of other local environmental projects.
By increasing awareness and involvement, this project hopes to decrease our impacts on coral reefs and provide solutions to protecting and restoring the reefs around Koh Tao. The project is lead by a small and friendly dive school (run by a British diver) that is dedicated to the protection of the local environment. It is active on two fronts, surveying the reefs and collecting data, and implementing a range of local environmental initiatives. There are a number of different eco projects underway including: building and maintaining a coral nursery (bio-rock); beach clean ups; land development (tree planting, land cleaning etc); an educational programme with the local school; newsletter and website development. The projects vary by season and depending on the needs and resources at the time.
Koh Tao is a beautiful and fun island in the Gulf of Thailand, now one of the world’s top dive locations. The island of Koh Tao (population 5,000) is a dramatic mix of dense jungle and hilly terrain in its interior and granite outcrops and beaches along the coast.
Koh Tao is surrounded by an excellent range of dive sites, all within a 40-minute boat ride, where you will discover a mix of hard and soft corals and abundant marine life. The sites vary in depth from just a few metres down to 40 metres, there is little current and the water temperature is always warm, ranging from about 27°C to 31°C. There will be plenty of time to relax and when you are not diving you can explore the island, visit one of the beaches, take a hike up to one of the mountain viewpoints or just relax!
You will learn how to perform underwater reef surveys and then help with data collection. This will give you to opportunity to gain knowledge about coral reefs and their inhabitants and you will learn how to identify different fish species and types of coral. You will gain experience working with equipment underwater and also develop your buoyancy and navigation skills.
As well as the data collection, you will have the chance to participate in some of the other projects including transplanting corals onto an artificial reef structure (bio-rock) and local clean-up activities.
By increasing awareness and involvement, this project hopes to decrease our impacts on coral reefs and provide solutions to protecting and restoring the reefs around Koh Tao. The project is lead by a small and friendly dive school (run by a British diver) that is dedicated to the protection of the local environment. It is active on two fronts, surveying the reefs and collecting data, and implementing a range of local environmental initiatives. There are a number of different eco projects underway including: building and maintaining a coral nursery (bio-rock); beach clean ups; land development (tree planting, land cleaning etc); an educational programme with the local school; newsletter and website development. The projects vary by season and depending on the needs and resources at the time.
Koh Tao is a beautiful and fun island in the Gulf of Thailand, now one of the world’s top dive locations. The island of Koh Tao (population 5,000) is a dramatic mix of dense jungle and hilly terrain in its interior and granite outcrops and beaches along the coast.
Koh Tao is surrounded by an excellent range of dive sites, all within a 40-minute boat ride, where you will discover a mix of hard and soft corals and abundant marine life. The sites vary in depth from just a few metres down to 40 metres, there is little current and the water temperature is always warm, ranging from about 27°C to 31°C. There will be plenty of time to relax and when you are not diving you can explore the island, visit one of the beaches, take a hike up to one of the mountain viewpoints or just relax!
a day in a life of a volunteer
Depending on your current dive level (if any) you will start off by taking the PADI Open Water or Advanced course, before taking part in the conservation work itself. For the conservation project, you will receive a mix of classroom lectures and practical training and will have the opportunity to participate in a range of activities. You will learn how to perform underwater reef surveys and then help with data collection. This will give you to opportunity to gain knowledge about coral reefs and their inhabitants and you will learn how to identify different fish species and types of coral. You will gain experience working with equipment underwater and also develop your buoyancy and navigation skills.
As well as the data collection, you will have the chance to participate in some of the other projects including transplanting corals onto an artificial reef structure (bio-rock) and local clean-up activities.
volunteer travel - what's it all about?
Are you looking for an adventurous trip with a purpose, or on a gap year or career break? If you want to make a difference in some of the world’s most important conservation areas - and in community projects - then volunteer trips are for you! Volunteers tend to have a sense of adventure, and come from a range of different backgrounds and from all over the world. Edward Abbey said 'sentiment without action is the ruin of the soul'.
how this holiday makes a difference
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By taking part in this project you will be making a major contribution to marine conservation on Koh Tao. Through your reef surveys you will providing the data from which the reefs can be monitored and conservation strategies and activities planned. In addition you will be directly taking part in projects such as reef clean ups having an immediate impact on the environment.
As the island has become more popular the environment has come under increasing pressure, so there is a real need for action in order to protect the environment and maintain a balance between nature and the demands on it from diving and tourism, the fishing industry and the Thai community. This project is trying to facilitate this by bringing the different parties together, generating awareness about the need for action and implementing a series of in-water and on-land projects. This is a small project that is having a quick and direct impact on the island's environment. It has already made great progress including the development of a bio-rock artificial reef, island-wide clean ups, and an education programme with the local school. In addition to the direct benefit of the project itself, we try to ensure: Social responsibility: Before volunteers depart we provide them with a detailed information pack on the area they will be visiting. We try to educate and encourage our volunteers to understand and respect the local cultures and customs. Economic responsibility: The majority of the fee (approx 70%) that volunteers pay goes directly to the marine conservation project. This is a locally run organisation, providing employment for local Thai staff. While volunteers are in-country, they stay in locally owned accommodation and we encourage them to buy locally and support local businesses. Environmental responsibility: One of the main negative impacts of our volunteers travelling, is the carbon dioxide created from flights. We work with an Amazon conservation project that helps to ensure that carbon is sequestered through tree planting. While our volunteers and customers are overseas, we identify and encourage simple steps to minimise their impact on the local environment. And at our office in the UK we try to recycle as much of our office waste as possible, use recycled products where available, avoid printing (no brochures) and minimise energy usage. |
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