African Impact is World's Top Volunteer Abroad Organization

Founded 14 years ago, African Impact is a volunteer abroad organization that believes in giving a hand up, not a handout.

That means a variety of things for the Cape Town, South Africa-based company, which runs and manages dozens of community development and wildlife conservation projects across 11 African countries.

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As part of its award-winning lion conservation program, for instance, volunteers travel to the Zimbabwean bush and help educate young children about the importance of protecting the endangered, majestic cats. At other locations, it means volunteers provide education focused on income generation or health education. There's also a dolphin conservation program in Zanzibar and a Maasai literacy project in Tanzania, to name a few of the ongoing efforts.

But at their core, the organization’s many efforts are driven by one key principle:

“Our main ethos is empowerment,” Olivia O'Prey, African Impact’s brand manager, told TravelPulse. “It’s about providing people with a skill that can be sustainably used, and giving people tools and skills to sustainably make better lives for themselves.”

African Impact was recently named the world’s Top Rated Volunteer Organization of 2017 by one of the leading authorities on meaningful travel—GoAbroad.com.

Each year, GoAbroad compiles a Who’s Who of international travel based on reviews provided by more than 30,000 program participants. For 2017, African Impact was not only named the top volunteer organization in the world, but it also received a nod for its Hands-on Lion Conservation Project, which was recognized as the Top Rated Volunteer Abroad Program.

“2017 was a record-breaking year for us.” African Impact’s Managing Director, Andrew Procter said.

“We won numerous awards, but being named the Top Rated Volunteer Abroad Organization in the world is something else entirely. It really brings home the commitment and passion of every single member of our staff, as it is based solely on volunteer feedback. I am incredibly proud of who we are, what we stand for and what our volunteers are achieving in Africa.”

African Impact is unlike many other volunteer travel organizations in that it creates, operates and manages the community projects and conservation efforts that visitors participate in. That’s a significant departure from organizations which simply connect travelers with existing, local community programs.

“We work with local community leaders, go to local community meetings and find out where there is a need, and then build up those programs ourselves,” explained O’Prey.

It all began with African Impact’s co-founder and managing director, Greg Bows, who started one project at a game preserve in Zimbabwe when he was just 18 years old.

That was more than a decade ago, and the organization now offers at least 70 volunteer projects. That first itinerary in Zimbabwe, however, is still in existence: A lion conservation project that was named the best volunteer experience in the world for 2017.

The only program of its kind on the continent, the lion conservation effort allows volunteers to help protect the future of Africa’s lions, becoming a member of the pride while walking alongside the iconic cats, learning about lion behavior and carrying out key research activities.

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The experience also includes opportunities to camp under the stars on overnight horseback safaris, care for rescued African elephants and participate in optional excursions to see Zimbabwe’s natural wonders and wildlife areas. This includes visiting Victoria Falls, going rhino trekking in Matopos National Park or taking a day trip to the Great Zimbabwe Ruins, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

In addition to its focus on giving local communities a hand up, African Impact is fond of saying that it creates life-changing journeys for its volunteers, leaving them awed and inspired by the people and places that they visit.

“There’s so much to be said about what volunteering does for local communities,” said O’Prey.

“But one of the biggest things we see, with every single volunteer that comes through, is how the perception that they have of the destination and the people they are going to meet, is so radically changed once they’ve spent time here.”