I am a student at The Cedars Academy in Birstall, Leicester that was approached by Camps International to join them on an expedition to Tanzania in 2018.

Tanzania is East Africa’s largest country and for many it’s the ultimate wildlife destination; National parks and wildlife game reserves cover a large proportion of the landscape. A mix of lush tropical forests and savannah grasslands, Africa’s tallest mountain, Kilimanjaro, dominates the skyline. However poverty is widespread in rural Tanzania, many don’t have access to clean drinking water, healthcare, education or proper sanitation.

Much of the project work I will be involved in focuses on improving the quality of life for local communities. Projects are based around the needs of each community at that time. I could be involved in building homes and classrooms, making school furniture, painting classrooms or constructing water tanks. There are lots of environmental and wildlife conservation projects to get involved in too, helping to restore and protect some of Tanzania’s most vulnerable habitats and animals.

There are personal benefits too, including a Safari in one of Tanzania’s premier National Parks and an opportunity to climb to the summit of Mount Meru which are once in a lifetime experiences, the views of Kilimanjaro in the distance will be well worth the hard work.

Presented with such a life changing opportunity, I have signed up to join them on a four week expedition to Tanzania in 2018, and now need to raise the remainder of the £5000 funds to cover the both the costs of the trip and charitable donation towards the community and conservation projects.