Any person aged 18 or over may join the Azafady Conservation Programme as all required skills are taught. However the programme does often attract those who are, or have been, studying related courses or are conservation professionals, and if you do have particular skills in relevant areas this will enhance your contribution.

Volunteers should be prepared for physical work in a hot climate, adventurous road journeys, and long walks to reach remote and beautiful project sites. You will be camping for the duration of the programme and meals will be simple, mainly consisting of rice and beans, supplemented with fresh fruit and vegetables when available.

The work and lifestyle is challenging but incomparably rewarding and should be within the capabilities of any reasonably fit person. Although being in good physical shape is important, the ability to exhibit tolerance, patience and a good sense of humour when things get tough is just as essential. You will be asked various questions relating to these factors on the programme application form.

Costs

To have the opportunity to participate on the Azafady Conservation Programme, we ask volunteers to raise a minimum donation of £600 for their first 2-week module, £550 for their second 2-week module and £500 for all subsequent modules. This is made up of an initial non-refundable deposit which secures your place on the scheme, and the remaining balance which is due three weeks before departure.

The minimum donation is a donation to support the charitable work of Azafady (registered charity number 1079121). Funds generated by the programme support Azafady's projects in Madagascar, with some 90% of all donations to being spent in direct pursuit of our charitable aims.

Don't let the size of the required donation put you off! Azafady is there to support volunteers in raising this donation, with a wealth of fundraising experience and resources available to volunteers. All volunteers receive a substantial fundraising manual and can use resources such as raffle tickets, collection boxes, Christmas cards, posters, online fundraising pages, and even a lemur suit!  You are of course welcome to simply pay the minimum donation from your own funds, although we do hope that, through fundraising activities, volunteers will assist us to raise public awareness about the threats to the people and environment of Madagascar.

Separately volunteers need to cover their own pre-departure costs including flights, visa, personal equipment, medical preparations and vaccinations, which are typically in the region of £1,000 - £1,500 (these can sometimes be fundraised too, with the prior agreement of Azafady) and a standard country registration fee of £95 paid to Azafady. The registration fee (due 3-weeks prior to departure) covers all aspects of police and commune registration costs in Madagascar, as well as compulsory inclusion in Azafady's comprehensive travel insurance policy which Azafady purchases for every volunteer (details of the policy can be provided on request).

Apply Now

To apply for a place on the Azafady Conservation Programme you can download an application form or request one from info@azafady.org. Although we do need to receive a signed hardcopy of the form, if you would prefer to complete it in editable Word format then please download it here.

Complete and return your application to Azafady and we will endeavour to inform you within seven days whether we can offer you a place. Places are limited and with the success of the Conservation Programme to date, we anticipate a high demand for places. So even if you are only thinking about joining, please complete the application form to let us know that you are interested and to reserve your place.

For more information download the Azafady Conservation Programme Guide.

In 2012 the programme is running on the following dates (shown in 2 week blocks with 2 weeks representing 1 module):

January - March	July – September
6th January – 19th January 20th January - 2nd February 3rd February - 16th February 17th February - 1st March 2nd March - 15th March	4th July - 17th July 18th July - 31st July 1st August - 14th August 15th August - 28th August 29th August - 11th September
April - June	October - December
4th April - 17th April 18th April - 1st May 2nd May - 15th May 16th May - 29th May 30th May - 12th June	5th October - 18th October 19th October - 1st November 2nd November - 15th November 16th November - 29th November 30th November - 13th December