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ANIMAL CONSERVATION IN A WILDLIFE PARK IN BUNBURY, WESTERN AUSTRALIA
Work in a Wildlife
Park that has over 60 varieties of Australian native birds and
marsupials, located in the beautiful town of Bunbury, just south of
Perth. Popular activities in the Park are hand-feeding the free range
kangaroos that roam freely around the Park and entering into the large
free-flight aviary (for the brave) to hand- feed the parrots!
The park is an asset to Bunbury and the south west as it is a great
tourist attraction as well as benefiting the community and schools.
The Lonely Planet guide named Western Australia's
South West region as one of the TOP TEN most desirable holiday
destinations in the world for 2010 saying, "it offers variety in
spades!” And it does ... the sheer size, amazing
natural wealth, awesome scenery and huge variety of plant and animal
life make Australia an essential destination for anyone with a passion
for nature and wildlife.
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►SUMMARY
FACTFILE |
| Start Dates |
Available all year round - you can choose your
start and finish dates within this period. |
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Duration |
From 2
weeks to 12 weeks or longer, subject to visa restrictions |
| Requirements |
No qualifications or
experience required, but you should be 18 or over, adaptable,
enthusiastic and
have lots of initiative. You should also have at least a basic level
of English and
enjoy talking to people. |
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Price |
From
£1,095 for 2 weeks, ranging to £2,995 for 12 weeks.
Full Price List |
| What's included |
►Accommodation
►Food
►Meeting you at the Airport
in Perth
►Transfer to your project
in Bunbury
►Free weekend in Perth
during your placement
►Full
pre-departure support
►Local in-country team support and backup
►24-hr emergency
support
►1 free T-shirt |
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What's not included |
Flights, Insurance,
Cost of Visas (if a visa is required, but we'll provide necessary documents and
assistance), Transport to and
from your accommodation to your project (it's in walking distance),
►Return transfer to the airport
in Perth. |
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Who can do this Project? |
All projects are
open to all nationalities.
You need to be aged between 18 and 70+ |
Also on this
page:
PROJECT
OVERVIEW
You'll work with an
organisation that is dedicated to conserving Australia’s threatened
wildlife and ecosystems - it's an immensely worthwhile project which has
a very high level of personal satisfaction! The mission of the Park is
to provide a partnership with the community, promoting understanding of
the animals and plant life of the South West and an integrated resource
centre promoting environmental stewardship and sustainability.
The Wildlife Park is a community-based volunteer-run organisation
offering a variety of experiences. They consist of Native Animal based
experience, grounds keeping experience, retail/tourism experience, or a
combination to suit individual requirements. The Park attracts visitors
from all over the world, so by hosting international volunteers they
hope to provide an opportunity to enhance their knowledge and awareness
of cultural differences, exchange ideas and, in turn, make the place
more culturally sensitive and an enjoyable environment in which to work
and visit.
The Park also participates in a variety of
structured workplace learning programmes including, disability services and
other community work programmes.
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FREE WEEKEND IN PERTH DURING YOUR PLACEMENT
As an added bonus, you'll get a FREE weekend in
Perth to explore this delightful city!. You'll stay in a Backpackers situated in
the heart of Perth, on the doorstep of vibrant North Bridge,
famous for its bars, clubs and restaurants, and next door
to the train station for easy access to the surrounding regions and the port of Freemantle.
You'll be met at the coach station and taken to the Backpackers
where you'll do a little catching up, then you're free to explore
the city at your own pace and in your own time. You'll return to Bunbury
by coach on Sunday afternoon, ready to go back to your project on
Monday. |
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.WHAT YOU'LL GAIN FROM DOING THIS PROJECT:
The enormous satisfaction of helping animals and
the environment, and knowing that you made a contribution to their
wellbeing and sustainability.
New skills, more confidence, a greater understanding
of a different culture, invaluable personal and professional
development.
An entry on your CV or résumé that will put you head
and shoulders above most others in the job market
And best of all ... an unforgettable experience!
WORK CONTENT:
This project has a great deal of variety and you'll have lots of
opportunity to work hands-on with some of Australians wonderfully unique and
diverse native birds and mammal species. Other work activities that you can get
involved with include Grounds-keeping, which involves the hands-on care and
maintenance of hundreds of native trees and plants. You can also get involved in Retail & Tourism
if you want to.
This last activity is entirely optional, but is available if you'd like to get
tourism experience.
The Wildlife Park is a very friendly place and some of their local Bunbury
volunteers have been involved with the Park for many years. They also offer work
experience and community services for high school and primary school children.
YOUR WORK RESPONSIBILITIES:
Your main responsibility will fall into one or more of the following three areas
at the Park:
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Native
animal-based experience,
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Grounds-keeping experience,
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Retail /
Tourism experience (optional).
Native
Animalbased Experience:
This revolves around the daily care and maintenance of the animals
and the enclosures they are housed in. This includes routine cleaning,
feeding, feed preparation, enclosure maintenance, behaviour observation
and environmental enhancement.
The role of volunteer animal attendant is to assist the Wildlife carers
employed by the Park with their daily tasks. On a typical day you could
do cleaning and maintenance of the animal enclosures and surrounding
grounds of the park in the mornings, then stop for lunch at around
midday, In the afternoon you'll prepare the food for the animals by
cutting up fruit and vegetables, and then you'll feed the animals.
Grounds-keeping Experience:
This involves the maintenance of the Wildlife Park grounds and
facilities, including planting, mulching, repairs and general
grounds-keeping duties. Instructions are given to volunteers daily,
depending on what is required for that day. This activity is ideal for
you if you really like to get stuck into things.
Retail / Tourism
Experience (optional):
If you'd like to gain some experience in Retail & Tourism while on
your project, you'll get the chance to improve communication skills;
meet people and gain skills in retail sales as well as basic food
preparation and service.
Although many volunteers choose to focus all their efforts on working with
the animals, the Park is very happy when volunteers choose to get involved in
all areas of running the park, because this not only helps them to
sustain their work, it also gives you a broad spectrum of experience and
knowledge in what it takes to manage the facility. Thus you can also
gain experience in dealing with retail sales, customer liaison,
restocking of items, maintenance of the shop area, answering customer
queries, answering the telephone and helping with a vast multitude of
daily functions required to keep the Park functioning efficiently and
well.
You'll be a part of the Park team and they are particularly keen to
listen to and discuss any ideas you may have, especially if you have
specific skills or experience that might help them, such as in marketing
or education, for example.
PROJECT LOCATION - BUNBURY
This programme is located in Bunbury,
the third largest city in Western Australia.
The city is small but a major commercial centre in Western
Australia and acts as a hub to the local area.
Bunbury
is about 2½ hrs
drive south of Perth
on the South West coast of WA. Bunbury markets itself as the real
Australia. It is located on a spectacular peninsular surrounded by blue
waters of the Indian Ocean, Koombana Bay and the Leschenault Inlet. A
vibrant port city with a strong maritime history, Bunbury is renowned
for its quality lifestyle and unique blend of nature surrounds and top
quality facilities.
Bunbury's other features include Western Australia's southern-most
mangroves, rare basaltic rock and nearby Tuart Forest. A colourful
"cappuccino strip" of sidewalk cafes and a variety of waterside dining
options offer numerous opportunities to taste the wonders of the local
produce. These cafes and the award-winning restaurants and historic pubs
ensure the atmosphere hums! Bunbury is surrounded by forests, national
parks, beautiful waterways, historic towns and hundreds of vineyards,
not to mention the incredible coast-line.
CLIMATE
Bunbury has a Mediterranean climate with warm to hot summers and cool
winters. Rainfall is received in the form of cold-fronts during winter
but the weather is rather pleasant for the rest of the year. In summer
(December to February), the average maximum temperature is 28°C with an
average minimum temperature of 14°C. In winter (June to August), the
average maximum temperature is 19°C with an average minimum temperature
of 9°C.
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OPTIONAL ADD-ONS
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
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