📝 Detailed information
🏢 About the local organisation
BEAR SANCTUARY Prishtina was founded in 2013 by FOUR PAWS International to rescue brown bears which were kept in captivity. At our sanctuary, 20 bears are provided with proper care which consists of plenty of space where they can pursue their instincts, adequate diet, veterinary treatment and enrichment.
The sanctuary is open for visitors and is helping to raise awareness about the need to preserve wild animal species in Kosovo. Visitors can see bears in their natural environment and learn more about the species and other animal welfare/nature protection topics. Since 2018, an Environmental Education Centre enriches the visitor & education offerings of the sanctuary and provides insight into a wide range of topics surrounding local environment, nature and wildlife.
💼 What the programme involves
Volunteers will work on collecting and processing information about plant species around the sanctuary, finding the importance these plant species have on lives of a wide diversity of animal species living around, on the environments as well and also on developing some methods/tools for providing this information for visitors.
Volunteers will also work in helping the animal caretakers with their daily tasks (preparing the food and enrichment for bears, cleaning, etc.), monitoring bears at the sanctuary that includes observation and writing notes about bears’ behaviours, participating in workshops and discussions about animal welfare and taking pictures and video footages at the sanctuary.
The volunteers will work 5-6 hours per day, 5 days per week.
🏠 Accommodation on site
Participants will stay in shared rooms in our education center in BEAR SANCTUARY Prishtina. We can also provide volunteers with sleeping bags and mattresses. Also, the food items and cooking facilities are provided while volunteers have to cook for themselves (vegetarian food).
There are two toilets and two showers with hot water.
📍 About the location
The camp will take place at BEAR SANCTUARY Prishtina located 20 kilometers from Prishtina near the village Mramor. The Sanctuary is surrounded by the forest and meadows, where locals raise their cattle (cows, sheep, goats), and is far enough from traffic and other noises, thus represents a peaceful environment for residences of the Sanctuary.
⚠️ Requirements
The volunteers are expected to do physical work and to be willing to learn. The work will require to be affiliated with plant and animal species, writing, for some teaching skills, and making and editing photos and videos.
Both volunteers with previous experience in this kind of work and those without it are welcomed, there is space for everyone who has the desire to protect natural values.