Elephant and Endangered Sea Turtle Coastal Conservation in Thailand

‘If only every student could do this. It changes your life in all the right ways,’ says Chris Heritage, parent of Luke Heritage, one of our teen volunteers who has participated on two GVI programs, one in Costa Rica and another in South Africa.

We are a parent-run organisation that is incredibly serious about health and safety, and increasing the impact, as well as the long-term career benefits of our programs. Our programs help young people develop the skills to select a career path that is personally fulfilling, and live a life aligned to the well-being of our planet and the global community.

GVI is a proud member of the Gap Year Association.

Ken and Linda Jeffrey, whose son Sam volunteered with GVI in Thailand, talk about how the experience affected Sam. He also went on to volunteer with GVI again in South Africa. ‘I know it sounds like a cliche but in a sense, he did go away as a boy and he came back as a young man. Both of us could recommend GVI without any hesitation to any other parent thinking about exploring an opportunity for their children to explore the world and to see different parts of it.’

All of our programs have short-, mid- and long-term objectives that align with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs). This enables us to report on our collaborative impact across the world in a streamlined manner, measuring which UN SDGs we are making a substantial contribution to. Furthermore, this will help our local partners and communities measure and visualise their contribution to the UN SDGs.

Prior to your arrival on base, you will be educated about the UN SDGs. Then once you arrive on base, you’ll learn about the specific goals we have in this particular location, our various objectives, and also clarification of how your personal, shorter-term involvement contributes to these.

Our aim is to educate you on local and global issues, so that you continue to be an active global citizen after your program, helping to fulfil our mission of building a global network of people united by their passion to make a difference.

Environmental work

Tourism is growing at an incredible rate in Southern Thailand, often with little consideration for the effects on the environment. We work with the community to increase awareness of the importance of preserving their natural resources. The environmental issues that Thailand faces are many and varied. These include poor quality water, air and soil, as well as biodiversity loss. In addition, poaching, kidnapping of wild animals, deforestation, and unsustainable tourism threaten Thailand’s land and marine habitats and wildlife. Fortunately, the Thai government is constantly updating and improving environmental legislation and practices. In line with this, we assist local and international non-governmental organisations and community groups  by working towards contributory conservation outcomes.

Sea turtle conservation project

A large part of the environmental project work involves working alongside our partners at the Royal Thai Navy Sea Turtle Conservation Centre, which usually takes place two days a week. This is a  head-start centre. Turtle hatchlings are reared until they are between six and nine months old before being released back into the wild. Green turtles are the most common, with hawksbill, olive ridley, and leatherbacks also found in this region. Turtle populations the world over are threatened, and it is estimated that only about 1 in 1000 hatchlings survive to reach adulthood naturally. These statistics are exacerbated by beach erosion, resulting from tourism development. Head-start programs aim to increase the survival rate by protecting the hatchlings until they reach a size where they will face a reduced  risk of predation. The work you will  carry out includes scrubbing the tanks to ensure that the turtles have a clean environment to live in, washing the turtles with an antibacterial solution to reduce levels of infection, and applying antifungal and antibacterial treatments to any wounds the turtles may have. We also conduct research at the centre –collecting data on turtle morphology (weight and measurements) and infection rates, as well as some behavioural research to monitor the effects of enclosure enrichment. We hope to use this data to gain further understanding of the best methods of turtle husbandry. This project runs all year round and if you are lucky enough to be on the project during a release date, you will assist in releasing hundreds of young turtles into the ocean.

Island conservation project

We conduct year-round biodiversity research on nearby islands such as Kho Kho Kao. We conduct surveys and run camera trapping research on the islands to build  a picture of the biodiversity there. Travelling to these islands is an amazing experience. You will learn to set up and position the camera traps, interpret photographs, and enter them into the database. The islands are remote so there is no Wi-Fi, dry toilets are used, and we sleep in hammocks. The aim of this research is to provide motivation for the islands to gain formal government protection. We have already confirmed the presence of some critically endangered species on the islands, which proves they are of great conservation value. Through our continued and expanding research, we hope that we can further educate local authorities about the ecology of the islands and their importance of conserving these ecosystems. 

*Please note that we only travel to the islands once a month, so participants who only visit for two weeks might not get the opportunity to conduct island surveys.

Bird conservation project

Another element to our conservation work involves carrying out bird surveys twice a week – which usually start at around 06:00. The surveys are conducted in and around the local area throughout the year. Commonly identified species include the Pacific swallow,  Asian palm swift and the red-wattled lapwing. Birds are an important part of healthy ecosystems and as such, building species lists and monitoring populations and patterns of migration is a valuable way to build a picture of how well nature is doing in an area. Participants are provided with training on how to identify birds in the field. Currently our data is submitted to a citizen science project called eBird. We are also in the process of developing this project to create our own research plan.

Plastic pollution cleanups

Plastic pollution and litter is a huge issue in Thailand, particularly on the coast. Throughout the year we carry out beach, mangrove, lake, and village cleanups in our local area in Phang Nga. Litter is one of the greatest environmental challenges conservationists are facing today. Through regular cleanups we hope to make a difference by not only removing litter, but also by engaging with and participating alongside the local community members –raising awareness of the effects of waste on the environment and the need for effective waste management. In addition to working with members of the local community, we have joined forces with a partner called Trash Hero to maximise the impact of our cleanups. Trash Hero is a volunteer-led movement that drives change within communities around the world, motivating and supporting them to clean and prevent plastic waste. We often use the waste that we collect to create ecobricks.

Coral research

During the dry season (November to April) we carry out a weekly snorkelling survey on nearby coral reefs, such as the reef off the coast of Kho Kho Kao. We monitor the health of the coral, and also look at the variety and abundance of fish species present. Coral reefs are incredibly important ecosystems which are vital to the health of our oceans, which in turn means that they are vital to humans too. Globally, coral reefs are being affected by overfishing, climate change and irresponsible tourism. We aim to monitor the reefs close to where we are based – looking at how well they are doing and establishing if there are any actions that could be taken to improve or protect them further. Through these surveys, we are also able to assess the recovery of the marine ecosystem in the area following the 2004 tsunami. We work  in partnership with Green Fins Thailand. The data we provide to them is entered into the citizen science databases, iNaturalist and eOceans, which contribute to research and monitoring of the world’s coral reefs. 

*Please note that you will not be doing any scuba-diving while conducting these surveys, only snorkelling.

Mangrove conservation project 

We work with the Department for Marine Coastal Resources (DMCR). We assist with planting and cleanups, and identify and monitor the different species. Mangroves are essential to coastal conservation, and they absorb more CO2 than the Amazon rainforest. We work across six different mangrove sites – planting and then monitoring them to see which species currently grow in which site and which other species start to appear. Research has shown that managing suitability by having the right species in the right areas is crucial for their long-term viability. In addition, we take boats or kayaks out into the mangrove forests to collect trash and clean up the environment – which usually includes sightings of many interesting species of crab.

Beach profiling project

We measure the beach at different points along the coast and create graphs and data sets that can be shared with the DMCR. Using this data they can see what is happening to the beachline over time due to climate change and development. This is critical to understand the shifting animal and plant life along the coast as the beach recedes. We have found that some beaches have lost the forests that used to run alongside them, while others have shown signs of new wildlife springing up.  

Butterfly conservation project

There are a number of different locations (including the mangroves) where we catch and identify the butterfly species that are present. Some of the species we have identified include the grass blue, cerulean and gram blue butterfly. This data is entered into iNaturalist, which is another citizen science app. The newly planted mangroves are famous for attracting many types of beautiful butterflies. Butterflies are an indicator species that can tell us the overall condition of the area and habitat. 

Below is a list of core ethics and best practices we believe are essential to the operation of high quality, ethical volunteer and sustainable development programs. We believe that all responsible volunteer and sustainable development operations should focus upon these principles. If you are considering volunteering, these are some of the key considerations you should question, to ensure that your time and money contributes towards positive change.

We want to constantly develop our own understanding of ethical best practice. In so doing, we aim to provide an exemplary industry standard for other education institutions, international development organisations, and social enterprises. Our Badge of Ethics stands for the drive to always do good, better. Find out more, click on the Badge below.