Under
18

Growing Wild

LocationGVI Asia,
Thailand,
Ao Nang

Sea Turtle Conservation and Adventure Teen Volunteering in Thailand

Volunteer with sea turtles and renovate schools with other teens, while you explore Southern Thailand.

Durations: 2 weeks
Fieldwork hours20 hrs of fieldwork per week
Participant ratio1:6 staff to participant ratio
Free parent consultation
Apply now

Program information

Join an international group of like-minded teens to learn about and contribute to the United Nations Development Goals, UN SDGs, #4, Quality Education, #14, Life Below Water, and #15, Life on Land. You will have the opportunity to spend time volunteering at a sea turtle conservation center, collecting plastic pollution from beaches, and renovating classrooms at local schools. Afterwards, hike through tropical jungles to view spectacular waterfalls, kayak through mangrove forests, and visit on some of Thailand’s most beautiful temples and beaches.

Under 18s brochure

We've got amazing programs tailored for young adults.

Download

Everyone’s invited. Get up to 80% of your program fees covered.

GVI Foundation Grants are now available for conservation programs abroad. Up to GBP 5,000 based on your motivation and circumstances.

Enquire
Apply
Book with confidence
Travel flexibility, because life happens! Modify your booking, even up to 48 hours before departure. T&Cs apply.
Overview
Dates & Prices
Itinerary
What's Included
Speak to alumni
MEET THE TEAM
Arrivals &
Flights
Your Impact
Our Ethics
Program ethics
Qualifications & Training Options
Parent Info
Support & Safety

Program overview

Known for its tropical climate, incredible landscape, spectacular biodiversity both above and below water, and awe-inspiring Buddhist monuments — Southern Thailand remains an ever-popular tourist destination. Our teen volunteer program in Thailand, allows volunteers between the ages of 15 and 17 to contribute to our ongoing sustainable development projects in the region. GVI has successfully been operating ethical and responsible programs for under 18s since 2012. Since then, it has treated health and safety as a number one priority and takes extra measures for its under 18 programs. As such, it is also a British Standards 8848 compliant provider.

After volunteering, teens will join a guided tour of the region, learning more about conservation, responsible tourism, and local Thai culture by visiting several National Parks and the city of Phuket.

Teen volunteering opportunities include working at a local turtle conservation headstart centre, run by the Royal Thai Navy, cleaning the tanks and providing medical treatment to green sea turtles and tracking their growth, collecting marine debris including plastic pollution waste from the beaches, and carrying out renovation work at local schools.

All teen participants are greeted by GVI staff at their arrival destination and supported throughout their GVI program. Teens with less time on their hands can also choose to book onto the program for one week. This allows them to complete volunteering projects included in the two-week program, but not the adventure activities.

Highlights

  • Protect the endangered green sea turtle and prevent plastic pollution.
  • Sample authentic Thai dishes firsthand and visit Thai Buddhist temples.
  • Take an adventure hike through tropical jungle to view spectacular waterfalls or go kayaking through mangrove forests, and visit on some of Thailand’s most beautiful temples and beaches.
  • Live, volunteer, and explore Thailand with teens from around the world, making new lifelong friends in the process.
  • Successfully complete this program and get a professional reference from your program manager. You’ll also have the option of earning a certificate endorsed by the University of Richmond if you choose to complete our included online leadership course, which is valued at £295.
  • Contribute to UN SDGs, #4, Quality Education, #14, Life Below Water, and #15, Life on Land.

Program details

Program type
Under 18
Location
GVI Asia , Thailand , Ao Nang
Focus
Marine Conservation , Animal Care , Multifocus

Dates and prices

Select a start date:

Grants available for up to GBP 5,000 or 80% of program fees

GVI Foundation Grants are now available for conservation programs abroad. Everyone's invited to apply. Amounts based on your motivation and circumstances. Apply by 30 Sept.
Payment plans. Flexible payment plans allow you to pay in instalments.

What happens next?

Once you apply, a personal Enrollment Manager will be assigned to walk you through the rest of the process.

Itinerary

The following itinerary is an example of the activities and project work that participants might get involved in on this program. More specific details of the program are finalised several months before each start date.

Day 1

Welcome to Thailand! We’re off to a street market to get a taste of local flavours and learn a few Thai words, including how to place a food order. Also on the schedule: a traditional welcome dinner.

Day 2

First up is orientation and health and safety training. Then we’ll head to the Big Buddha to learn more about Buddhist beliefs and tradition.

Day 3

Spend time at the tsunami museum, a monument to the resilience and recovery of the village. Then head to a traditional Thai cooking class!

Day 4

Hello, turtles! At the local turtle conservation centre, you'll learn how and why they’re endangered and what is being done to protect them.

Day 5

More turtles! Today, you’ll clean tanks and help out with any minor medical treatments. You’ll also collect data for our citizen science database.

Day 6

A community and culture day. You’ll meet and mingle with members of the local community and attend a Muay Thai class, a traditional Thai self-defence technique.

Day 7

Now that you’ve met community members, dedicate some time to local initiatives by working together on sustainability projects around the village.

Day 8

Start the day with a Thai language class before heading out for an afternoon of fun in the sun on one of Thailand’s famous beautiful beaches.

Day 9–12

These three days are dedicated to Thailand’s greenest and most biodiverse conservation area – Khao Sok National Park. You’ll hike, survey wildlife and travel via traditional long-tail wooden boats across Cheow Lan Lake.

Day 13

After spending the night on a floating bungalow in one of the oldest forests in the world, we head back to Phang Nga for a final Thai feast.

Day 14

Goodbyes are never easy. Share your experiences, tell your stories and make sure you know how to stay in touch as we head back to the airport.

What’s included?

What's included
General
Food
Safe and basic accommodation (usually shared)
Airport pick up (unless stated)
All project equipment
24-hour in-country support from local staff
24-hour emergency desk
Activities
Sustainable project work
Data collection and research
DofE Residential activity provider
Pre-program training
Pre-departure webinar
Pre-departure training (online)
University of Richmond endorsed leadership course
Welcome training
GVI welcome presentation
Health & safety
Local culture & environment
UN SDGs
Impact & ethics
Child protection
Career services
PDF reference
Certificates
Program certificate
University certificate – specialisation (University of Richmond)
PVSA certificate
What's excluded
Not included
Flights
International and domestic airport taxes
Medical and travel insurance
Visa costs
Police or background check
Personal items and toiletries
Additional drinks and gratuities

Speak to alumni

If you’d like to find out what the experience of joining a GVI project is really like, simply contact us and we’ll put you in touch with one of our many Alumni.

We’ll try to match you to an Alum based on your location, nationality, age, stage of academic career, gender, and program interests. This allows you to gain insights into the experience that is most relevant to you.

Depending on your location you might be able to speak to an Alum over the phone or online, or meet up with them face-to-face at a coffee shop nearby. We also run a series of small events around the world where you can speak to GVI Alumni, Ambassadors and staff members.

Get a first-hand perspective

Meet us

Meet the team

 

 

Get acquainted with the GVI Asia, Thailand, Ao Nang family

Eve

Conservation Program Coordinator

Meet Eve our Conservation Program Coordinator in Ao Nang, Thailand. She was born in the United Kingdom but has since lived and worked in many countries across Europe. She is ext ...

Arrivals

We meet you at the airport.

When it comes to support, we ensure that each participant is provided with unparalleled, 360 degree support, from your initial contact with the GVI Family, all the way through your program, and even after, as you become part of the GVI Alumni Team.

As part of this promise, we will ensure, whenever possible, that one of our dedicated staff will be available to meet you at the airport. In most locations, we also set up a Whatsapp group to help with managing airport arrivals.

We will arrange with you prior to your departure that, should you arrive in the agreed upon pick up window, a member of our staff will be there to welcome you, easily identifiable in a GVI t-shirt or holding a GVI sign and wearing a friendly smile.

This means there will be someone there to greet you as you land, and from there you will be transported to your GVI base to start your adventure and meet the rest of your team.

Flights

Find your flights with our partner, Student Universe.
Flights are not included in your program fee
Visit Student Universe

Please note that if you use this service delivered by Student Universe and / or if you buy your ticket through this portal you are agreeing to the Student Universe Privacy Policy and Terms and Conditions. Your agreement regarding flights will be between you and Student Universe or as per their terms and conditions.

As GVI is providing this portal as a service we are not responsible for the accuracy of this site.

We are also not responsible for any loss, damage (including loss of profits or consequential damages), injury, illness, harm or death in relation to your flight and travel arrangements.

Your Impact

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.

Project objectives

 

GVI Ao Nang Long-term Objectives:

1. Promote sea turtle and dugong conservation.

2. Provide long-term and consistent data to conservation partners.

3. Increase public awareness of environmental issues and importance of environmental protection.

4. Assist with local marine and coastal waste management efforts.

5. Educate and train participants on biodiversity, survey techniques and marine conservation.

Our Ethics

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.

Our 10 ethical commitments

01

Locally Driven, Collaborative Projects

We aim to design all our projects in collaboration with local organizations and communities and ensure that they are locally driven.

02

Clear Objectives & Sustainable Outcomes

We aim to clearly define short-, mid-, and long-term objectives with sustainable outcomes for all our projects.

03

Impact Reporting

We aim to track, record, and publish the impact of each of our projects.

04

Working Against Dependency

We aim to build in-country capacity by assisting local organizations in becoming self-sustaining.

05

Responsible Exit Strategies

For each local organization we work with, we aim to have a plan in place for withdrawing support responsibly.

06

Clear Roles & Specialized Training

We aim to ensure that every participant is assigned a clear role and that they are fully trained and supported to carry out their work by specialized staff.

07

Respect for all

In all our actions we aim to respect the skills and efforts of all and seek to protect the rights, culture and dignity of everyone who engages with GVI.

08

Local Ownership

We work to ensure that credit for the results of any project, along with any data collected, research conducted, or Intellectual Property developed, remains the property of local organizations.

09

Transitioning from the Orphanage Model

We do not condone and aim to withdraw support of orphanages and residential care centers.

10

Child and Vulnerable adult policies

We will live by our Child Protection and Vulnerable Adult policies.

Continual Development

As an organization, GVI is committed to striving toward best practice, and to educating both our potential participants, our partners, and the world at large about them. Both the volunteering and sustainable development sectors are increasingly, and rightly, under scrutiny. Many recent local and global articles highlight poor practices and questionable ethics. GVI is widely recognized for striving to apply global best practice in the volunteering, education and sustainable development sectors throughout our operations by reputable organizations such as ChildSafe.

However, global best practice is always evolving and we dedicate both time and resources to engage with internationally respected experts and learn from the latest research to ensure our programs both fulfil their potential to create maximum positive impact, and minimise their potential to create unintentional negative impact. Along with and as part of the sustainable development and volunteering community, we are constantly learning and applying this learning to practice. We do not always get everything right, but we seek feedback from our community members, partners, participants and our staff, and react accordingly. We know are already doing a great job, and feedback we have received confirms this, but we aim to do even better and are continuously refining our operations to improve upon our already excellent reputation.

Program ethics

No orphanage programs

We don’t support or allow participants to work in institutional residential care facilities, also known as orphanages. We partner with ReThink Orphanages and Freedom United.

Learn more
Child and vulnerable adult protection policy

Our Child and Vulnerable Adult Protection Policy requires all our staff and participants to complete a criminal background check and to learn why you shouldn’t reveal a child’s identifying factors in photographs. We support the ChildSafe Movement.

Learn more
No medical volunteering

We don’t offer any programs where our participants engage in medical treatment. This is because our participants aren’t typically qualified to do this work and would therefore not be able to do this work in their home country. Our participants only assist with public health programs.

Learn more
No disability support programs

We don’t offer any programs where our participants work directly with people with disabilities. This is because our participants aren’t typically qualified to do this work and would therefore not be able to do this work in their home country.

Learn more
Aligned to local objectives

Each one of our initiatives is aligned to objectives set by a local organisation or professional. Our staff and participants work to support these local actors in achieving their specific goals.

Local employees remain employed

Our participants don’t replace the staff employed by local organisations. Rather, they support currently employed staff with achieving their objectives. Our goal is always to increase local capacity to address local problems.

Local employees remain focused

Participants require training and support to ensure that they carry out tasks correctly. Our staff provide this training and support so that local staff can focus on what is truly important to their organisation at the time.

No entertainment-based activities

We don’t support the use of wild animals for entertainment purposes. This includes riding animals, having them perform tricks, feeding or bathing them or getting close to them to take photos

No orphaned animal sanctuaries

We don’t encourage, support or allow the rearing of “orphaned” wild baby animals kept at a “sanctuary”. The conservation value of these types of programs is negligent and would only ethically be used in extremely rare cases

Guidelines for touching or movement restriction

When wild animals are restricted for conservation purposes we follow the guidelines of Fair Trade in Tourism South Africa (FTTSA), approved by the Global Sustainable Tourism Council.

Animal welfare guidelines

We ensure that the Five Freedoms of Animal Welfare are followed. These include the freedom to express normal behaviour and freedom from distress, discomfort, hunger, thirst, fear, pain, injury or disease.

Local community empowerment

We ensure that conservation efforts are also always locally led, that community needs are front-and centre of any conservation effort and that our participants, projects and partners work to increase local community engagement in local conservation efforts.

Learn more
No veterinary programs

We don’t offer any veterinary programs or animal rescue and rehabilitation programs. We don’t allow participants to do any work they would not be able to do in their home country.

Learn more

Training

A GVI program is an investment in your career. No matter which you choose, you will be working toward improving your employability by mastering new social skills, gaining further technical expertise and earning qualifications in many cases. Most of our staff are, in fact, GVI Alumni, and we have helped many of our Alumni discover, move toward, and earn their own personal dream jobs. Each program includes introductory workshops, ongoing presentations, as well as on-the-ground professional support provided by our very own trained staff members. In addition, our training programs are critical for helping us to ensure the long-term impact of our sustainable development projects around the world.

For all GVI participants

Orientation: Travelling Responsibly and Ethically

Learn about the importance of child and vulnerable adult protection best practices and how to apply them while on project.

Orientation: UN Sustainable Development Goals

Introduction to the history and evolution of sustainable development, the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs) and how these related to your project work.

Orientation: Further Opportunities for Impact

Learn about our country locations and further opportunities available to you during or after your program.

For all participants at Ao Nang

Fieldwork training

Thai lessons

Project objectives and procedures

Intro to coastal conservation

Species identification

Survey techniques and equipment

Data collection and entry

Orientation training

Local area and hub orientation

Hub projects, partners and objectives

UN Sustainable Development Goals 

Role of the volunteer and making an ethical impact

Language and culture

Health and safety, including risk assessments and emergency action plans

Community: human empowerment

Learn about our empowerment principles.

Conservation: survey techniques and logistics

An introduction to different survey techniques and best practice guidelines for surveys; introduction to different types of data and how to record information via a datasheet.

Conservation: biodiversity & target species identification

Learn about biodiversity and how biodiversity is measured, and classifying different species and how to identify species that indicate the health of the habitat.

Marine conservation: pollution and plastics

Learn about issues with plastic and measures that can be taken to help reduce plastic consumption.

Marine conservation: coral reefs

Learn about what a coral reef is, its importance, how it is formed, how this ecosystem works.

Certificates & qualifications

GVI Online Leading Teams for Impact course (optional)

Leadership is a critical skill set for anyone looking to make an impact or drive sustainable development. Develop your own leadership style and learn how to set achievable objectives, give effective feedback and manage conflict successfully. After successfully completing the course, which you have the option of doing prior to your in-country program, you’ll receive a certificate from the University of Richmond.

This online course, valued at £295, is included in all volunteering programs. Full course details can be found here.

Duke of Edinburgh Award

Young British nationals looking to earn their Gold Duke of Edinburgh Award and improve their employability can use GVI’s teen programs to complete several of the required components like volunteering, physical fitness, skills-development, completing an expedition, and learning how to thrive in a residential context. The Duke of Edinburgh Award can be used to enhance your personal statement on your UCAS application.

Parent Info

‘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.’

Parent Info Pack

Download the Parent Pack and learn more about:

Our staff: All our projects are run by staff, selected, vetted, trained, and managed by our central office.
Health and safety: Our safety practices include a child and vulnerable adult protection policy and high participant ratios.
Staying in touch: See what’s happening on base, by following a hub’s dedicated Facebook page.
Free parent consultations: We would love to talk to you about exciting opportunities available for your child.

Download parent pack
View our Parent Info page

Support & Safety

We won’t sugarcoat it — traveling abroad is usually a complex process that carries an element of risk. But this is exactly why we’re passionate about providing extensive support throughout the process as well as the highest safety standards during the in-country phase. We believe that volunteering abroad should not only be impactful, but an enjoyable experience that carries as little risk as possible. This is exactly how we’ve been able to maintain our reputation as the most highly respected volunteering organisations in the sector over the past two decades.

Safety

View support and safety protocols
View support and safety protocols

Support

View risk mitigation
View risk mitigation

Health and safety case studies

How GVI upholds health and safety

It takes courage to book a GVI program, get on a flight, and head off to somewhere new. Volunteering offers a level of cultural immersion that typical backpacking or holidays just ...

GVI's commitment to safety and security

As the saying goes: ‘Expect the best, plan for the worst’. Cliched or not, we take it to heart. This tenet is at the core of how GVI operates when it comes to promoting the health ...

How GVI remains prepared for natural disasters

The weather isn’t just a topic for polite small-talk here at GVI. We have emergency action plans in place for all scenarios. So when the weather, or other natural forces, takes a n...

How GVI manages participants expectations

Once GVI has matched a participant to a program that suits their passions and goals, our team aims to set the right expectations for them. In the event that false expectations arou...