About Me and My
Trip
Having
completed my educational life in Devon until now, I have recently moved
to pursue a degree in Zoology at the
University of Hull. It is through the university that I was made aware
of
Operation Wallacea and the unique opportunities it offers. For me, it
will
unleash an endless list of possibilities, allowing me to pursue a
future career
in conservation which I eagerly work towards. I have signed up for a
four week
trip to Thanda reserve in South Africa this July where I will undergo a
week’s
bush training – learning essential skills that will benefit me in
future as
well as with my current studies – followed by two weeks field research
assessing elephant impact on vegetation to determine the best
management scheme
for the elephant populations. The final week will be spent completing
an Open
Water dive training course in Sodwana Bay, allowing me to contribute to
marine
conservation programmes in the future.
The
team I will be joining aims to address the issue of
elephant population expansion within the confines of reserves. The
restricted
movement reserves lead to causes excessive habitat damage where feeding
pressure is too high within an area. We aim to calculate what the
acceptable
levels of damage are within the particular habitat to avoid threats to
other
species in the reserve. This will help game managers decide whether to
expand
areas accessible to elephants as well as encourage private game
reserves, which
constitute to over 60% of protected areas in South Africa, to drop
their fences
to create contiguous areas, benefitting elephants and other species
within both
reserves and cooperation between game managers.
The expedition will cost me
£2,150, though with travel
and equipment added onto this, the total reaches just above £3,000.
Through
dedicated fundraising consisting of sponsored events, raffle ticket
sales, bag
packing donations and more, I aim to raise around £1,500 to support my
expedition. I write to encourage you to help me reach my target,
enabling me to
take this life changing opportunity which will benefit my future so
greatly. A
donation of any amount would be a massive contribution to help me pay
the expedition fee bringing me that one crucial step closer to
acheiving my goal.
