Volunteer Programs in West Sussex, England

This project is based at the Knepp Estate in the Low Weald of Sussex, Britain’s premier and most famous rewilding site. The 3500-acre estate is being returned to a pre-human habitat by almost abandoning human intervention in managing the landscape and allowing fields to revert to natural vegetation. The course aims to give participants experience in field survey techniques that are likely to be encountered when undertaking a field ecology or climate change career. Thus, practicals involve completing pollinator surveys and identifying bee and hoverfly species, mapping areas using UKHab, quantifying the biodiversity score of an area using the DEFRA biodiversity metric, quantifying carbon storage in a range of habitats, and learning how the voluntary carbon market works. In addition, the course includes evening presentations from professional ecologists or climate change specialists who share how they developed their careers. Two courses are available, which you can complete within 5 days or 2 weeks.