ADVENTURE | WILDLIFE | CONNECTION | SUSTAINABILITY | IMPACT
The objective
To have a great adventure. Students leave the program having made long-lasting relationships with fellow students, conservation professionals, local people, and the wilds of Africa.
Young Conservationists is a leadership program that aims to connect students through exploration and push them to the edge of their comfort zone, while exposing them to the diverse challenges and successes associated with wildlife conservation and sustainability in a modernizing Africa. The program partners with local organizations that are demonstrating distinguished conservation and sustainability practices to provide invaluable experiential learning opportunities.
“During my two weeks in Kenya, I learned not only about myself, but also the world around me and how I could use my career to better it.”
The program will explore questions about how to develop sustainable conservation initiatives in challenging socio-political environments where local communities and wildlife species are threatened by changing climates and increasing levels of vulnerability.
You will learn about…
climate change and environmental resilience
wildlife tracking and animal behavior
ecosystems monitoring and reporting
sustainable resource management
population development and impacts on habitat
human wildlife conflict and mitigation methods
endangered species protection and anti-poaching strategies
the value of stakeholder engagement, including youth conservation education
advocacy — messaging, marketing and fundraising
preservation of cultural assets
community ownership and management of natural, social and cultural capital
The students will interact directly with conservation professionals, seeing firsthand the programs in action.
The students will engage with community members and local students their own age to learn directly from them how those sustainability programs play a critical role in the future.