Does anyone know of any organisations that allow foreigners to do voluntary environmental and conservation work without making them pay lots of money? I've been trying to research this on the web and so far all I've come up with are programmes that charge thousands of pounds to do the work. I want to do a work-travel thing in Oz, but I want to make it more meaningful by getting a month or two of voluntary work in. I'm happy to sort out my own food and accomodation.
I'd be grateful of any advice or experiences.
Anna
Reply to this Hi Anna. Have you thought about woofing? It's free and you can stay for a week or a month and move between places.
Another possibility is the NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service. Get to their home page and do a search for "volunteer". They have lots of programs. Probably similar organisations in other States will have similar programs. Their page is
here.
Reply to this Thankyou, there are some interesting ideas there.
I had not heard of the WWOOF's (Willing Workers On Organic Farms) before, have you had any experience of this yourself? Also, the National Parks and Wildlife Service gives me a lot to look through. I won't be going for at least 18 months so I have plenty of time to browse!
Anna
Reply to this I have a friend who used to run an organic sheep farm who invited Woofers to work for him. Mostly you worked for a morning and had the afternoon off. There were people from all over the world who worked there. It was a great environment.
Obviously, each place will differ as it is based on the personality of the owner/manager and I have heard of some not-so-good experiences but in the main people tell me that they have enjoyed what they have done.
There are a few people on travelblog who have done woofing. The only one I can think of off-hand is Kate Flowerdew (http://www.travelblog.org/Bloggers/KFlowerdew/). She and others may be able to give you some tips.
Give it a go - and let us know when you are coming to Oz. We might be able to give you some tips. Check out our blog at the least. We are a bit older than you but we've seen a bit of the world.
Reply to this Hey Anna
Depends what you are looking for. Woofing is something I would like to try but its generally not Environmental work. Its usually working for board and accom ona a farm or similar.
I know Conservation Volunteers charge people to do placements, but its not that much from my experience. We use Conservation Volunteers on our bush rehabilitation sites in Brisbane from time to time. They do this all over Australia.
I work in environmental management and we have a volunteer program and I can also put you in touch with a number of catchment groups in Brisbane. Im sure other States are similar. In regional areas your local 'Landcare group' is who you should contact - just do a google search for 'Landcare' in an area your interested in and your should find a lot of options. Alternatly try this link http://www.landcareqld.org.au/
These are wide-spread and the projects are varied. None of these charge from my understanding.
Good luck and if you want some more info drop me a line.
Cheers
Scott
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