Voluntour

'Tell me and I will forget, show me and I may not remember, involve me and I'll understand.'

Tribe unknown.

What you will be doing

Highlights

Dolphin Project (Jan-Jan)
Whale Project (July - Oct)
Turtle Project (Oct - March)
Free diving reefs (Nov to June)
Scuba & shark diving (add on available)

Gather data with Angie while snorkelling with wild dolphins.
Land based dolphin & whale watch
Data entry & image crop & cataloguing
Dolphins of Ponta fin id project
Pre-tour orientation & preparation
Marine animal stranding project; skeleton preparation, cataloguing & reconstruction
Assist on marine mammal tours
Micro-plastic surveys, water sampling & beach clean-ups!
Social media and blog posts

Volunteer stays and Internships offer a unique opportunity for one to gain hands on experience that focuses on marine mammals and ethical, responsible and educational tourism.

For some it's a sabbatical journey tuning into mother nature and for others it is a platform to deepen their relationship with wild dolphins and to extend their knowledge base in a myriad of different ways.

One can expect to have regular in-water encounters with the local dolphins while assisting Angie both at sea and behind the desk. The project operates year-round with programs lasting four weeks. Additional weeks can be arranged upon request and shorter stays on group bookings.

Our volunteer stays cater for individuals as well as small groups and families, with the volunteer house accommodating a maximum of 6 sharing. Return transfers from Maputo International Airport are included, making for a hassle free journey.

Included

Accommodation at volunteer house in the village
Healthy & hearty home-cooked meals
Training for specific tasks
Field trips ~ 3 per week
Mentoring by Angie & the Dolphin Team
Contribution & Dolphin Pack (t-shirt, certificate of attendance, pictures & video's; information on the dolphins, research & interesting reference papers).
Return transfer Maputo Int Airport

Excluded

Visa, medical & travel insurance costs.
Soft drinks, alcohol, dining out.
Spending money, recreational & additional activities.
Research permit fees (interns)
Additional activities can be done in the area and include an array of scuba-diving courses and shark diving specialities; surf lessons, lighthouse walks, quad biking and paragliding.

Options

90 Night Volunteer R94 000
30 Night Volunteer R36 270
14 Night Eco-Volunteer R21 290
7 Night group / family 4 - 6 R14 470
Additional nights bed and meals R675
90 Night Student/Intern R84 609

INTERNSHIP / STUDY STAY

An intern is visiting as part of their studies for university and produces a report/paper in collaboration with DERC at the end of their stay. Interns are required in collaboration with DERC to submit a research proposal to the Department of Conservation Area's. Once approved permit fees apply. DERC will assist with this process. Minimum stay is 90 nights.
HOW DO I REACH YOU?

As of 2022 DERC has included transfer into the costs of our volunteer programmes. Pick-ups from Maputo International airport is available on most Mondays and is shared with other volunteer arrivals. Pick-Ups are scheduled for 11:30am, so please ensure you arrive before then. Pick-ups from Kosi Bay Border for SA and SADC arrival is possible.
WHAT SKILLS DO I NEED?

You will be required to be fluent in English, with Portuguese being a bonus. Some computer literacy will be needed for data entry, image cropping and social media updates. You will be required to have good people skills, be friendly and accommodating. A willingness to work as a team is required and the confidance to work on your own. You should be in good physical health, be comfortable on and in the ocean and promote the values of our project.
IS THERE AN AGE LIMIT?

From 18 to 70 (fitness important). Younger adults are welcome, however supervision is to accompany the group by means of a responsible adult. Applicants should be able to work in a group environment as well as take initiative when working alone. Some knowledge of computers is required and one should be enthusiastic and confidant to enter into the water as well as willing to lend a helping hand when necessary.
WHERE WILL I BE STAYING.

Volunteers and interns stay at our Dolphin Volunteer House. Our volunteer space is situated in the village of Ponta do Ouro, 5 minutes walk from the beach and 10 minutes walk from our Center. The house offers two bedrooms with double beds and a shared bathroom and is suitable for single volunteers, couples and small groups and families. The outside cottage has a large bedroom with on-suite bathroom and can accommodate two people. Volunteer House is available to those volunteering and interning and all stays include breakfast and dinner except on Sundays and major public holidays which is your day out and local cook Tina’s day off.
ARE MEALS INCLUDED?

Yes, one can expect healthy breakfasts filled with the likes of fresh fruit, cereals, yogurt, oats, and a cooked meal. Breakfasts are usually served after early morning launches. Dinners are served at around 6pm and include a menu that caters for both vegetarian and normal diets that draw on local traditional cuisine as well as locally sourced and grown foodstuffs. While volunteering with us one thing is for certain, you will not go hungry!
HOW SAFE IS PONTA?

The area is currently stable from any political unrest and borders South Africa to the south. Normal safety measures should be followed as with any country
MEDICAL FACILITIES, MALARIA & INSURANCE?

There is a local clinic & pharmacy in the village and across the boarder a state hospital (border hours 8am to 5pm). Ponta do Ouro is a low malaria area. Locals do not take meds. Travellers venturing north of Maputo should take malaria meds. Bring your own meds and repellant. Arrange vaccinations & travel medical insurance prior to arriving. Bring a ﬁrst aid kit & any necessary prescriptions for the duration of your stay. Bring your own motion sickness medication if you have a tendency to be sea sick.
WHAT ABOUT MALARIA & OTHER VACCINES?

Ponta do Ouro is located within a malaria zone. There have however been only 2 confirmed reports of malaria over the last 24 years. It is up to you as to whether you take anti-malarial medication. Locals do not. There are various homeopathic alternatives available. Travellers venturing north of Maputo should take malaria meds. Arrange vaccinations & travel medical insurance prior to arriving. Bring a small ﬁrst aid kit & any necessary prescriptions for the duration of your stay. Bring your own motion sickness medication if you have a tendency to be sea sick.
WHAT IS THE DIFFERANCE BETWEEN INTERN & VOLUNTEER?

Intern is visiting as part of their studies for university and produces a report/paper in collaboration with us at the end of their stay. Interns are required to apply to the Department of conservation area’s to undertake the collaborative research in the Reserve. Minimum stay is 90 nights.
DO I NEED A VISA?

You will need a valid passport with two bank pages and validity for at least 6 months. A Mozambican entry visa is required if your are not South African or belonging to one of the SADAC countries. Visa’s should be obtained prior to arrival. We will supply you with a visa request letter on request .
CAN I GET MY LAUNDRY DONE?

Yes handwashing by one of our housekeeping team is available at Mtn150 p/load.
COMMUNICATION & INTERNET?

There are FEW land lines in Ponta so a mobile phone & Moçambican SIM card are necessary. SIM cards can be purchased & registered in Ponta. We suggest Movitel for affordambe data connection. Wifi is limited however some of the restaurants have wifi.
CAN I BRING A CAMERA & LAPTOP?

Yes, please do bring your own equipment for data and image processing.
WHAT IS A DAY IN THE LIFE OF A LONG STAY VOLUNTEER?

Our mornings start early in Ponta! If we are launching one can expect to be up at sunrise in preparation for the day. After a quick cuppa and snack you will head down to our Center where you will assist with guest preparations for their encounter with wild dolphins in the open ocean. This normally takes about 30 minutes after which it's off to sea with the team to look for dolphins, whales during season and any other interesting marine megafauna that may be around. Once located, time will be spent collecting data that includes but is not limited to photography, environmental and behavioural. Cameras can be brought along to help with the project and your images / video will be added to our extensive data base. A set of steady sea legs, a good eye and some photography skills might find you behind the lens. Depending on behaviour, we will enter into the water for observations and further collection via underwater video and cameras. Volunteers will be asked to undertake certain tasks in the water which may include assisting participants. Once back on land volunteers assist with de-briefing participants, rinsing, sorting and storing gear. Breakfast is served at the Volunteer House thereafter. Midmorning to lunch will find you doing some office work where specific post launch activities take place that include camera cleaning, capturing and sorting of days images and data entry. After lunch the afternoon is spent on various projects that include skeleton and reconstruction, beach work (clean-up, micro plastic, water sampling) and land based observationstion. An early dinner and the evening is yours. Turtle season may find you accompanying local monitors on their routine walks which are set to the tide. Weekends are set aside for you time AFTER launches. If in the event there is no launch scheduled; for example a bad weather day, then you can enjoy and sleep in! Times are generaly quite flexable and time can be taken off for surfing and other activites, providing tasks have been undertaken.

A Day in the Life... Samara Mendes February 22 Early morning starts! On an exciting launch day, we are expected to be up and ready for the days dolphin encounters before the sun has risen – then off we go to the center were we welcome guests and allocate kit for their dolphin adventure. Once briefed and kitted out, we make our way to the boat where the real work begins; getting the boat on the water (it’s harder than it looks!). Once everyone is seated comfortably, we hand out life jackets and make our way out to sea – as a volunteer we are tasked with handing these out, ensuring all the guests are comfortable and always willing to help guests when needed. Once in the water we are tasked with capturing not only our Dolfriend footage but the guests too (they love photos!). Once we are back on land, we make our way to the cottage where we munch down on some tasty breakfast, and begin sorting through the morning’s camera footage and create a small edited video of the days sighting. During the day volunteers are tasked with logging data into various different google docs – ranging from client data all the way to turtle data (data handling is definitely time consuming!) Once a week we conduct a water quality test for ph levels, turbidity and oxygen levels and a micro plastic survey – were we meander down to the beach with a bucket to collect sand in order to conduct a micro plastic analysis. Volunteers are expected to read through the manual and conduct the tests as thoroughly as possible. * What I learned.. I came into this volunteering project only knowing the basics about dolphins (what you see on TV) – having this hands-on experience has allowed me to witness behaviours I wasn’t aware of. This opportunity not only allowed me to meet and get to know the resident dolphins and their personality traits but also witness first-hand the immense efforts organizations like DolphinCare put in to try and conserve, save and raise awareness for these majestic creatures. This knowledge will allow me to be able to identify facilities that partake in misconduct as well allowing me to become more aware of what I can do as an individual to contribute to these conservation efforts. * Dolphins I fell in love with... On my third launch day I had the privilege of having half a circle swim with Ginger! It felt incredible to know that she felt comfortable enough to have a small conscious interaction with me before moving on. She had me smiling like a clown underwater – for its not every day you get experience such trust amongst wild animals. Gandalf was a very friendly dolphin that decided to bless me with a full circle swim on my fourth launch. This curious male is easily identifiable by a small growth on his mouth – he came in really close and swam around me before moving on with the rest of his pod. When these conscious interactions happen, they somewhat take your breath away.