Beach + Bush + Elephants

Live and work both at the beach + in the bush getting stuck into a fantastic mix of projects in each location.

Your time will be split between our tented camps at the coast, in the forested Shimba Hills with wild elephants and in the dusty bush close to Tsavo National Park.

OVERVIEW

Beach


Your first port of call will be at our tented camp at Makongeni - a short distance from Diani Beach on the South Kenya Coast, famous for its shallow, warm, reef protected water.  Here you‘ll experience a fantastic variety of restaurants, water sport centres, internet and shops galore. 10 minutes away is Ukunda town, home to the indigenous Digo people providing local culture and colourful market stalls. 



What will you do?
Teach children English and Sport at Makongeni School during term time
Help in local child care centres
Help construct classrooms
Work alongside local children to construct organic charcoal briquettes
Improve access to clean drinking water
Tree planting with primary school kids teaching them all about forest conservation
Help with landscaping, cultivating native tree species and planting seedlings

Shimba Hills - Mwaluganje Elephant Sanctuary


We are extremely lucky to have a mobile camp in this sanctuary with a 360-degree view over the herds of elephant. It has the densest population of elephants per square mile for anywhere worldwide.  The Sanctuary is community owned and here you'll play an instrumental role in developing initiatives aimed at reducing the human-wildlife conflict. The journey to Mwaluganje is a 45-minute drive from the beach that winds through stunning landscape. You'll work alongside the Wildlife Rangers, local communities and of course, the elephants! 


What will you do?
Monitor the elephants and help with their identification on game drives
Maintain/improve visitor facilities e.g. campsites, roads and fences
Help develop schools surrounding the Wildlife Sanctuary
Improve the gift shop and produce a range of quality elephant dung paper products that can be sold to increase revenue for the sanctuary!
Plant indigenous tree species in the sanctuary
Develop wildlife education programmes for the surrounding communities.

The Bush - Rukinga Ranch, Tsavo


The third phase is at Rukinga Ranch, a tented camp, about 4 hours from the coast, bordering Tsavo National Park. It is a permanent bush camp in the centre of Rukinga Sanctuary, set out like an African village, surrounded by endless views of the African Bush. There is one large mess area with a large campfire where you'll all hang out after a hard day's work.

What will you do?
Improve the rural primary school
Construct sports and play facilities
Provide teaching assistance and environmental education
Promote local micro-enterprise initiatives
Make traditional African crafts, such as beadwork, jewelry and furniture
Live with the Imani community getting to know what it’s like to survive in a rural community and gain a greater understanding of rural life.
Help to manage habitats, excavating waterholes and planting trees
Learn animal survey techniques, collect zoological samples and help to improving educational displays for the conservation centre
Monitor the usage of waterholes by wildlife
Wildlife viewing and recording
Elephant identification (up to 10,000 elephants pass through Tsavo!)