Operation Wallacea Malta (www.opwall.com) organizes international wildlife conservation expeditions for Maltese and Gozitan Secondary School, Sixth Form and University students and teachers at biodiversity hotspots across the world! Students and teachers are taught scientific methods on how to research wildlife in a manner that is directly applicable to students’ O-level and A-level material. This provides students with the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to apply their science material out of the classroom and in the field with professional scientists. The data that the students help collect are published in peer-reviewed scientific journals.
Since 2015, over 160 Maltese and Gozitan participants have attended Operation Wallacea expeditions, including work with indigenous communities and professional scientists in Tropical Rainforests and Savannahs and also SCUBA diving at bio diverse coral reefs! Expedition sites attended by Malta volunteers include: Romania, Croatia, Indonesia, South Africa, Cuba and Honduras.
The aim of organizing these expeditions for students is to ensure that Maltese and Gozitan students acquire international opportunities and experience to enhance their CV and become competitive for future employment and post-graduate university enrollments. Moreover, these expeditions qualify students as Open Water PADI SCUBA divers and trains them as research assistants, providing them with innumerable opportunities both within Malta and internationally upon their return.
These expeditions also allow students and teachers to network within the international scientific community. Moreover, many Maltese and Gozitan students that have joined Operation Wallacea expeditions have then completed degrees in relevant subjects and go on to careers in wildlife conservation or field research! We have received feedback from teachers in Malta that students tend to perform better academically after their Operation Wallacea expeditions.
- Benedict’s College Secondary School
- Bishop’s Conservatory Secondary School
- Sacred Heart Minor Seminary Secondary School
- Martin’s College Secondary School
- San Andrea Secondary School
- Junior College Sixth Form
- Giovanni Curmi Higher Secondary School
- Sir M.A. Refalo Sixth Form
- Aloysius’ College Sixth Form
- Martin’s College Sixth Form
- University of Malta
