Volunteering in Africa
January 27, 2025

Discover Gap Year Volunteer Opportunities in South Africa: Make a Difference with Wildlife Conservation

Sandra Parmee

Digital Marketing Assistant

Something that used to be seen as a rather unconventional life choice is now a valuable addition to your CV: the volunteer gap year.

Because let’s face it - not everyone knows what they want to do with their life at 17 or 18 years old, and life often takes us on unexpected journeys - regardless of age. 

Whether you’re a school leaver exploring your options, in the middle of your career and looking to take some time out to travel and do the things you’ve always wanted to, or you’re considering changing careers completely and need some time to figure it all out; gap years have a multitude of benefits.

Travelling and volunteering can give you much-needed perspective and help guide you as you navigate your next step in life. 

A girl uses a GPS radio to track and monitor wildlife
Volunteering with Wildlife ACT could be the perfect way to spend your gap year

Top Reasons to Volunteer Overseas During Your Gap Year

Overseas volunteering is a great opportunity to learn, build character, make connections, and explore far-flung places.

It’s a year to press ‘pause’ on your life as it is - whether you’ve just finished school, university, or you want to take a career break. Spending this time making a positive impact on the world can lead to personal and professional growth. 

Soft skills such as communication, empathy and tolerance are highly valued in today’s workplace. Productive gap years demonstrate initiative, adaptability, and resilience, as well as prove that you can work well with others and be a valued member of a team. 

Why Choose a Gap Year in South Africa?

South Africa is a vast and varied country with no shortage of fascinating places to discover. From the azure ocean waters of Cape Town to the desert-like Karoo, you could spend weeks road tripping around the country and never get bored. 

Our South African volunteer projects are all located on the north-eastern coast, in the province of KwaZulu-Natal. You could find yourself deep in the ‘bush’ (short for bushveld i.e. subtropical woodland or savanna biome) at one of our Zululand projects, or exploring the verdant hills of the majestic Drakensberg mountains at our Southern Drakensberg Vulture Conservation Project

a herd of zebra with an antelope in the foreground
South Africa's wildlife is unparalleled. Photo: Zoe Phillips

South Africa has incredible wildlife to offer - you’re sure to tick some truly incredible sightings off your bucket list - but it also faces many conservation challenges. Some major challenges include poaching and the illegal wildlife trade, habitat loss and fragmentation due to a growing population, human-wildlife conflict, limited funding and resources, corruption, and lack of enforcement of conservation laws.

As a result, there is plenty of opportunity to help, and Wildlife ACT’s volunteer program is essential to the functioning of our monitoring and conservation work. We really value our volunteers and do our best to ensure you have an amazing experience with us. 

Many of our younger volunteers have a passion for wildlife and are exploring the idea of a career in conservation. Spending a few weeks in the African bush is a great, low-stakes way to explore your options. We’ve even had some volunteers who have decided to completely transform their lives and pursue a career in conservation after volunteering with us! 

Gap Year Volunteer Opportunities with Wildlife ACT

Wildlife ACT offers opportunities to make a difference in wildlife conservation. You can volunteer with endangered species in Zululand, or assist with vulture conservation in the Southern Drakensberg

All our programs offer the following: 

  • Hands-on conservation work (e.g., wildlife monitoring, habitat restoration).
  • An authentic experience of the African wilderness in protected areas.
  • Working with professionals who are passionate about protecting wildlife.
  • Contributing to real conservation efforts and protecting endangered and priority species

While there are many volunteer organizations in South Africa, Wildlife ACT is unique in that our projects have been approved and contracted directly by the management authority of each reserve, meaning that the work we do is vital and needed. 

Additionally, we partner with leading conservation organisations including WWF, Panthera, Endangered Wildlife Trust, and more. We are also the proud first-place recipient of the Best Nature Positive Tourism at the 2023 WTM World and Africa Responsible Tourism awards.

A male lion in the wild, at rest
Wildlife ACT focuses on protecting endangered and priority species in South Africa, such as Lions

How to Apply for Wildlife Volunteer Opportunities in South Africa

Applying to volunteer with us is straightforward: simply take a few minutes to complete our volunteer application form. You’ll find all the information you need about our programs on our volunteer page

No prior experience is needed to volunteer with Wildlife ACT. We’ll train and equip you with all you need to know, including proper use of telemetry equipment, using hand-held GPS devices, tracking animals using traditional methods, and more. 

You’ll gain a genuine understanding of the challenges facing endangered species across Africa, and what it takes to secure their survival for future generations. 

How to Make the Most of Your Volunteer Gap Year

Whether you’re taking a break from regular life after high school, during college, or mid-career, there are so many benefits to a volunteer gap year, such as widening your perspective, skill development and career enhancement, and making an impact. Many volunteers also use this time to decide if a career in conservation is right for them. 

To make the most of the experience, we recommend you try to involve yourself as much as possible. 

Two volunteers look through binoculars
Don't forget a good pair of binoculars!

Immerse yourself in South African culture

Experiencing a new culture is always exciting, and sometimes unsettling! Spending two weeks or more in a place really allows you to immerse yourself in the community around you. Why not try some local foods, learn about customs and traditions, and perhaps even try to pick up a few phrases of the local languages? Remember to practice cultural sensitivity and be respectful of others’ beliefs and traditions. This applies to the locals in South Africa as well as your fellow vollies!

 Learn as much as you can

It’s important to come into this experience as humbly as possible. Even if you’ve had experience with wildlife conservation work, there’s always something new to learn, and our monitors appreciate volunteers with positive attitudes and growth mindsets. Try to learn as much as you can about the work we do over the weeks of your volunteering journey. Don’t be shy to ask your monitor(s) plenty of questions, and really get involved in the daily monitoring work. New skills you’ll learn include proper use of telemetry tracking equipment, use of hand-held GPS devices, animal tracking, creating animal identification kits, etc.

Our experienced Priority Species Monitors will teach you all you need to know about monitoring wildlife

Contribute your unique skills and knowledge

At the same time, you probably have stuff to teach us, too. Whatever your field of expertise or past experience, share what you know with your monitor and fellow volunteers. And don’t be scared to get your hands dirty - our camps often need a bit of TLC, whether it’s helping with composting or repairing fences. If you enjoy crafting, why not decorate the camp with some of your creations? If you fancy yourself a bit of a chef, your fellow vollies are sure to appreciate anything you can cook up. Remember that all of your contributions are deeply appreciated and that the work you’re doing is contributing meaningfully towards our project goals!

Ready for a life-changing experience? Photo: Annika Persin

Balance work and leisure

As with everything in life, it’s important to strike a balance between work and rest. Monitoring is tiring work, and those 4AM wakeups can take their toll! Take some time in the day to relax, read, or have a leisurely nap. This way, you’ll stay energised and motivated for the duration of your volunteer experience. Get to know the other volunteers, have fun, and soak up this once-in-a-lifetime experience!

Spread the word

Once you’re back home, or perhaps even before that, we’d love it if you would share your experience with others. This helps to spread the word about what we’re doing here at Wildlife ACT, and could result in more people joining our programs. We also love it when ex-volunteers stay in touch and keep up with our work. And who knows, maybe we’ll see you again one day!

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