Conservation Project in Peru for Lancaster Graduate

When did you decide to take a gap year and why?

I decided in my final year at university to take a gap year after graduating. I wanted to follow my degree with a masters but wasn't sure if this was the right choice at the right time. I have always wanted to take some time to go travelling and this seemed like the perfect time.

Where did you go and why?

I went to Peru, South America. The conservation project Travellers Worldwide advertised was the best value for money I could find and encompassed a broad range of skills, experience, and opportunities that other projects lacked. Also, Peru really appealed to me because I have never been to South America and I wanted to build the conservation project into a 4-month trip where I could go travelling afterwards and explore the continent and its culture.

Which different options did you consider?

I spent months searching the internet for gap-year projects, considering a variety of themes such as community work, and teaching English. In the end I narrowed my search down to conservation-related projects to follow on from my degree and pursue my interests in these areas. I ruled out projects that focussed purely on one specific conservation task e.g. projects where you spent all of your time with turtles, or all of your time with monkeys as I wanted a