Responsible tourism is about travelers making informed and responsible choices and planning trips which don’t negatively affect the country or communities they’re visiting. When volunteering, it’s critical that travelers choose a volunteer organization or charity with a proven ethos and philosophy around sustainable responsible tourism, and ethical practices (like no cub petting or walking with lions). This applies both to their work with local communities, wildlife and the volunteers themselves. So, good to really check out the company that you want to get involved with.

On one of my most recent journey’s back to Africa, and after much research, I decided to go and work/volunteer with the company Africa Impact. So off I went, I hoped on a plane to Kenya where I stayed in the middle of the bush at the Naboisho Conservancy and worked alongside Africa Impact employees.

I did a variety of things whilst I was there. For instance, I went out on a lot of research game drives every day and collected data for conservancy management by monitoring big cats, including lions, leopards and cheetahs. This data collection helps to protect these endangered predators.

I also immersed myself in this fascinating Maasai culture/community as I volunteered alongside some of the Maasai safari guides from the Koiyaki Guiding School, and got several opportunities to visit different schools and spend time with some of the students, where we discussed the importance of wildlife conservation for future generations to come.

Enjoy the video!