Tel. +44 (0)1273 600030 (UK)
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The Tuli Conservation Project is a long term, general study of the whole wilderness environment: The focus is on elephants and predators - their behaviour, numbers and movements but also on the relationship between those animals and the other animals in the area and the vegetation therein (general game counts, vegetation mapping etc.) The aim is to produce data which can be used by others doing specific research on any one of those areas and to show any variations on the various ecologies as time progresses. It is likely that this area will become a Trans Frontier Conservation Area and the data the project produces will be invaluable in providing a 'benchmark' of population densities and behaviour - and their effect on the vegetation prior to the TFCA opening boundaries and making the area accessible to populations from other areas such as Zimbabwe and South Africa.
Funding for this research project is facilitated solely by volunteer funds. There is a need for volunteers to assist in research of populations moving through this vast wilderness. A volunteer presence in the area also actively discourages poaching which has led to a fantastic increase in population size of these notorious and last truly wild elephant herds in southern Africa.
The volunteer camp is completely self sufficient and made of natural materials. All water is extracted from a borehole thus reducing water usage and there is no electricity, all energy is provided using paraffin. Meals are cooked over an African braii (bbq) and eaten under the stars. This is real bush living at it’s best!
We use a proportion of volunteer funds to sponsor the Callies football team in Mathathane, Botswana. This aims to install a sense of pride in the local community near the Tuli Conservation Project. We sponsored the team strip after several years of them having made a name for their team. Volunteers have at times enjoyed having a match against them!
As a keen conservationist, we are sure you are aware that air travel releases gases that contribute to global warming, such as carbon dioxide. In fact, your flight will be the largest environmental impact of your placement. In line with our Responsible Travel Policy, we've teamed up with an organisation called Climate Care, to offset any damage your placement causes the environment. Climate Care funds sustainable energy and forest restoration projects that reduce carbon dioxide on your behalf, by the same amount as your share of the plane emits.
We contribute over £22 per volunteer to Climate Care, which balances the carbon emissions from the flight, through Climate Care's energy saving projects, with no extra cost to you!
Our passion for the wildlife and communities of southern Africa drives us to support conservation and community intiatives that cannot be supported in terms of volunteering. A portion of the funds raised by your placement goes directly towards sponsoring communities and local conservation organisations in southern Africa.
Here are some of the groups we support:
Harmony Flats Nature Reserve:
We sponsor the Harmony Flats Working Group who volunteer in Harmony Flats Nature Reserve, managed by the Biodiversity Branch within the City of Cape Town. We recently provided uniforms for the working group, who care for the reserve and protect and conserve its heritage.
Callies Football Team, Botswana:
Sponsoring Callies football team in Mathathane, Botswana. Hoping to install a sense of pride in the local community near Tuli Conservation Project we sponsored the team strip after several years of them having made a name for their team. Volunteers have at times enjoyed having a match against them!
Lumikisa School, South Africa:
We provided the funds for a local school in the Acorn-Hoek community of South Africa to install a jungle gym playground and ensure it met safety requirements. Lumikisa School was struggling with suitable outdoor space for the children, the school now has a vegetable garden and fun playground. Schools are often a refuge for many children with difficult home lives and we are proud to have been involved with Lumikisa.
Supported Conservation Projects, South Africa:
Supporting our projects when the numbers of volunteers they receive cannot fund them, is paramount to us to ensure the projects we support and the families and individuals that rely on them can continue.
Office procedures:
- Our UK office recycles paper, ink cartridges, cardboard and glass. We carry out energy-saving practices such as turning off electrical equipment when not in use. All our staff are committed to protecting our environment and carry these practices through to their home life
- Where possible we use suppliers and printers who also have a strong environmental policy
- Projects recycle, save energy and minimize water usage wherever possible
- All our promotional material and other documentation and stationery is printed on recycled paper, or on paper from a certified sustainable source
We invite every traveller who books a holiday via us to send in a review. Because we don't run the holidays they're completely independent and unedited... remember to read between the lines though, as two people on the same holiday can have different views!
