Environmental Volunteering

Helping to make our environment a better place can be a very fulfilling experience. Many volunteers work on conservation activities across NSW in areas such as bushland regeneration, landcare and coastcare activities and rehabilitating injured wildlife.  They also help remove rubbish from our environment through events such as Clean up Australia Day.

Government

The NSW Department of Environment and Climate Change (DECC) welcomes active community participation in the conservation of the State’s natural values, culture and heritage. DECC incorporates both the National Parks and Wildlife Service and Botanic Gardens Trust. There are three categories of volunteering on the DECC website:

• NSW National Parks - volunteering opportunities within parks situated across NSW
• Botanic Gardens Trust - volunteering opportunities at one of the three botanic gardens in NSW – Sydney, Mount Annan and Mount Tomah. 
• Sustainable Living - volunteering opportunities which can be undertaken in your local  area.

There are 13 Catchment Management Authorities (CMAs) across NSW. Many CMAs have conservation projects that volunteers can be involved in. Go to the link above and from there open the CMA website that covers your local area. Go to that website and search for 'volunteer' using the site’s search functionality. 

The NSW Department of Lands welcomes volunteers for Crown Reserve Trust Boards – local community members who look after public assets such as showgrounds, sports fields, parks and reserves. Trust membership is an interesting and valuable voluntary role, with the reward of contributing to the local community and making a difference. Lands actively promotes Trust Board membership under the theme ‘it only takes a small effort to build a community’. Find out more about Crown Reserve Trusts, or apply for Trust membership.

The NSW Department of Primary Industries (DPI) coordinates the Fishcare and State Forests volunteer programs. Fishcare is a program for volunteers who are interested in fishing and the aquatic environment. After training, volunteers talk to anglers about fishing rules and responsible fishing, and help in a range of other activities. Forests NSW, part of NSW Department of Primary Industries, provides a range of volunteer activities in State Forests across NSW.

Centennial Park – The Centennial Parklands Trust in Sydney also has a volunteer program. Volunteers take on a range of visitor-related and environmental tasks. Go to the link above to learn more.

Taronga Zoo – Taronga Zoo also has a bushland regeneration volunteer group, follow the link for details.

Local Council

Your local council website is a good place to start if you want to find out about local environmental volunteering opportunities. Go to your  local council website for volunteering opportunities to assist the environment in your local area. The NSW Government’s Local Council Search will be able to tell you which local council area you live in. You may need to use the Council website’s search function, or look under the local community directory.

Non government organisations

Landcare is a network of local volunteer community land conservation groups who work to protect and repair our environment through practical activities such as tree planting, removing weeds, combating erosion and salinity. Landcare includes Bushcare, Rivercare, Coastcare, and Sustainable agriculture groups. To find groups in your area follow Landcare’s get involved link, check the National Landcare Directory or if you are in the Sydney Metropolitan area you can find a Bushcare group in your local council area.

The NSW Wildlife Council is a state-wide council of animal rescue and rehabilitation organisations. See the list of member organisations such as WIRES (Wildlife Information and Rescue Service), Friends of the Koala, Whale Rescue ORRCA and many other regional and local groups.

Conservation Volunteers Australia welcomes volunteers to participate in a broad variety of conservation projects all around NSW and beyond. Click on the link above and then on NSW on the map of Australia to find local projects.

The NSW National Parks Association has Naturekeepers, Harbourkeepers (Sydney) and Coastkeepers volunteer programs as well as office-based and other one-off volunteering opportunities.

The Nature Conservation Council (NCC) is the umbrella organisation for over 120 environmental groups in NSW. The NCC site has a list of current volunteer opportunities at the NCC or you can browse the list of member organisations to check for volunteering opportunities. You may need to contact member organisations by telephone as not all have websites.

Clean Up Australia coordinates Clean Up Australia Day on the first Sunday in March each year. Join a group or organise your own Clean Up Australia Day group.

Greening Australia is an organisation working to restore the health and productivity of the Australian environment. Opportunities for volunteers include tree planting and helping at community nurseries. Check their website for more detail.

Earthwatch involve volunteers in scientific research.  Volunteers are able to join an expedition in the field that interests them, contributing hands-on support to scientists conducting research.

For other ideas, open Google, click on pages from Australia and search using key words such as volunteer and geographic location  e.g. 'environment volunteer Marrickville'.