My 17yo DD wants to go to Africa to do wildlife conservation - how safe is it?

[Pickleperkins]

My DD is 17 and really wants to pursue a career in conservation. She has secured a travel award from school (a small amount - we need to cough up the remainder!) and wants to travel to Africa to spend 2 weeks on a wildlife conservation programme. I have read many mixed reviews about different companies and I am frankly scared for her safety. She isn't enormously streetwise (despite what she thinks) and the thought of what might go wrong is filling me with dread. Has anyone any positive experience of these type of programmes (particularly for under 18s) that they could recommend we look into? Thanks!

Normally I am all for encouraging kids to be more independent but 17 does feel quite young for this if she hasn't travelled much before. I did a similar trip at 21 - my first out of Europe on my own - and J'burg airport transfer on its own was quite daunting. Common to be approached to provide help with luggage etc. and then tips demanded. The conservation stay itself was fine but I will say the one I was on was nearly all gap year at the youngest and we had free weekends in the nearest city, which was fine but did run on slightly different 'rules' to UK. Think for me it would really depend on the 17 year old and how independent/confident/responsible they are normally.

Which company will she be going through? I am in South Africa and so can see what I can find out from this side.

Two weeks seems very short for this type of trip. There are gap programs available here and there is one in Zim, but it's for 3 to 4 months at a time.

Oh and to add, 100% true that almost all of these conservation schemes are actually just tourist traps. At best (and I like to think after all the research I did mine fell into this camp), they do no harm as are just another form of holiday. At worst (and I saw many like this/met people on them), they are actually breeding animals just so European kids can 'hand raise the abandoned lion cubs' etc.

What place is this?

Yep. And they could do so much more if people raised the funding, and then didn't spend most of it sending an untrained kid to Africa. I'm afraid that for me it leave a bad taste.

Hi @isthismylifenow she would be going in school holidays. She's been looking at Conservation Travel Africa, The Leap and a few others...

I don't know of either of these particular companies, but pricing for Conservation Travel Africa is aimed at Europeans for sure.

What about if she does a longer stint when she is finished school (I assume she is not yet). The one in Zim I referred to earlier is called Quest. The boys have a 7 month camp but there is a mixed one for 4 or so months. Then she gets to experience a few different adventures as well as some conservation work. There is another in SA but more of a gap year but also split into shorter 2/3 month camps. So not just conservation related.

Organised camp like these, safety will be a top priority, especially that one for under 18s. I assume they flight out as a group and then will have an escort from the company with them?

Just keep in mind, travel of a minor here is quite strict, in that your dd will need to have signed documents from both parents and birth certificate etc. Travelling alone (without parents) over age 18 will be a whole lot less red tape.

Thanks @isthismylifenow - lots to think about but my gut says wait a year or so.....

Ask her if she’d consider going to Sri Lanka instead. I went alone aged 24, so was quite a bit older. Felt very safe, absolutely beautiful country, and varied wildlife. Hoping to go back there some day when funds allow! I also wanted to go to Africa initially, but my mum wouldn’t have it.

No. I would be vey reluctant to agree to this.

How about she starts of doing some conservation or other independent travel in the UK/Europe first?

I agree, it seems similar to the cliche of rich, white private school kids going out to ‘build’ an orphanage or school when they have zero skills to do so and have spent big £££ on the trip. Don’t know whether that’s so much a thing these days but it used to be.

Agreed.

I am not affiliated with these companies but also have a look at Transfontier Africa which is based in SA. She has to be 18 to do this one.

Another one is Warriors Academy also in SA, but this is a much more varied programme, so more of a gap programme really. I am not sure of any age limits on this one.

Quest have two, one in Zimbabwe and the other in Eastern Cape, SA.

If this were my dc, I really would wait until she is 18 and then look to do something that she will gain more than just a two week holiday from.

Apologies, I just re-read your OP and see she has funding via her school. So she has to use it while still at school I assume?

Then I am not sure the above suggestions are what you are looking for.

Thank you @isthismylifenow . This is really helpful and I agree re the age thing

To be honest. The fu ding provided. The school award is minuscule in relation to what she’d have to raise/we’d have to contribute. My priority is her safety vs ensuring we use the award

Just FYI for future careers. I have a BSc and MSc in wildlife conservation. 6 months tropical ecology experience. 2 months European ecology experience. I have had data from my placements published. Could not find a job above minimum wage. Myself and 2 others with the same level of qualifications and experience now work in an office to afford to live in UK. I would seriously look at jobs and requirements/ wages before going down this career path. Placements were great fun, hard work and a great life experience but doesn't really set you apart.

If the award requires travel, I’d suggest she finds somewhere in Europe where she can work on habitat conservation with less glamour, distance and expense. (I used to volunteer on a rhododendron-clearing project, for instance.)

I know the people involved for the Zim expedition of this firm. DM me if you’d like more info. The farms are as safe as anyone can be in southern Africa. Travel to Zim is amazing but, of course, there will be risks. She needs to be met at the airport.

www.africagap.com/

Voluntourism and white saviourism are really less than ideal. There are so many more worthwhile things she could do.

Be really honest with her. It's not a conservation "job" it's a alternative form of backpacking holiday designed to make young people feel cooler than the other young ones drinking their way through Thailand. Are you really going to give her thousands of pounds for that?

If she's really into ecology and conservation there are respected alternatives closer to home, which are generally colder, boring and harder work. https://www.tcv.org.uk/

If she's an inexperienced traveler and not very independent it will be a real shock to the system. Having said that, an organised trip with a reputable agency will be safe (or as safe as can be).
But does she appreciate the irony in an unqualified teenager flying across the world in the name of conservation? I'd encourage her to reassess her motivations.

She can conserve wildlife in this country. Not over there

Does the award mean she has to go to Africa? I have looked at SPOT turtle protection volunteering in Cyprus for my son.