Marine and Coastal Ecosystem Monitoring Program
Programme overview
The goal of our field volunteer program is to contribute to sustainable development in the area of the Inner Ionian island archipelago in Greece, and is part of the kalamos and Kastos sustainable development program. An important goal of this, is to help educate and inspire people from around the world with respect to sustainability and nature conservation. It is based in the Kalamos Island biological field station. Volunteers work on a pre-agreed plan with us based on the structure of our program.
About the organisation
We are a not for profit non governmental grassroots organisation registered as a not for profit company and based in Greece composed of a dedicated group of people driven by our desire to protect the environment through specific courses of action such as environmental conservation projects and scientific research targeted towards sustainable development. Key to this object is the achievement of environmental justice in a given area and the conservation of biological diversity.
Our organisation is governed by a board of directors. A voluntary international advisory board provides advice on various issues . Our organisation is operated primarily by volunteers and a smaller number of members of the organisation.
We achieve our goals by providing solutions to local environmental problems through targeted conservation actions, empowerment and education of local communities to protect their environment, relevant legal actions and the provision of viable sustainable economic alternatives to human practices that are environmentally destructive. The logo of our organisation is a symbolic representation of the focus of the organisation in conserving and restoring organisms and ecosystems that support them that are either relatively large in size, great in age for their species or both and specifically large sized individuals particularly within each of three ecological groups highly threatened by human interference: cetaceans, terrestrial herbivores and large sized and/or aged floral organisms.
About the programme
There are two ways you can participate in our work. The first is by participating in one of our pre-arranged activities for the field season. The second is to organize an activity for each volunteer individually in one of our thematic areas of work. We work out a pre-agreed plan on an individual volunteer basis which can include a mixture of activities both pre-arranged and an individual basis one in one of our thematic areas.
We currently have four pre-arranged activities. These are:
- Building the Kalamos Island Eco-community and experimental organic fruit and vegetable farm
- Feral cat monitoring program for Kalamos, Kastos and their satellite islands
- Marine ecosystems monitoring program
- Ornithological habitat surveys
Location
Kalamos island biological field station
Duration
Minimum 15 calendar day participation and up to a calendar year. Starting dates throughout the year.
Costs and pre-requisites
20 euros per person per calendar day.
There is a two stage application process.
What’s included
- All necessary training and orientation including assistance where needed, is included for our pre-arranged activities and up to a point that is pre-agreed for stand alone projects in one of our thematic areas.
- Related transport in the general area of the project (Kalamos, Kastos and the satelite islands) for persons involved in our pre- arranged activities
- Equipment for our pre-arranged activities and up to a pre-agreed point for stand alone projects in one of our thematic areas
- Accommodation and other related facilities such as shared kitchen facilities, laundry and drying facilities, shared toilet and shower facilities access and also station areas for for work are included and are covered by the fee
- A basic housekeeping facility once a week is also included which includes linen and bed sheet changes
- Full access to wifi internet and computers is also included
- Τhere is no meal plan – Kalamos is in an area where food can be purchased easily from local shops, super markets etc however.
- If you plan to come as a group (five people or more) then arrangements can potentially be made for a meal plan at an additional cost. Contact us to discuss further if you are interested in this option.
How to apply
