GVI Blog

GVI Blog

5 Of The Most Common Challenges Faced By South African Entrepreneurs

by janajansenvanvuuren | Apr 18, 2018 | Business, Cape Town, Internships, Personal Development

Like in many new businesses around the world, most South African startups aren’t able to last past the three-year mark. However, there are specific contextual constraints unique to the region. Below we have listed some of the main challenges faced by South...

How Much Do You Know About Cambodia? [QUIZ]

by janajansenvanvuuren | Apr 11, 2018 | Kampong Cham

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The Art/Science of Zoological Medicine

by lucyspelman | Apr 5, 2018 | Conservation, Jalova, Study Abroad

In my field, zoological medicine, anything is possible: glue-on shoes for a rhino with sore feet, an ultrasound for a gravid komodo dragon or a silica gel shake-and-bake treatment for a mite-infested cockroach. With 1.3 million species and counting, I learn something...

Find Your Next Adventure [QUIZ]

by janajansenvanvuuren | Mar 28, 2018 | Personal Development, Travel, Volunteering

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‘How I Became Who I Am Today’ The Story Of Lao Novice Monk, Valee Isin-Xiong

by valeeisinxiong | Mar 28, 2018 | Community Development, Luang Prabang, Personal Development

After graduating from a temple school in Luang Prabang, novice monk, Valee Xiong, didn’t know where life would take him. What he knew for sure was that he didn’t want to commit to full monastic life, but finding a job to support himself, food, running water and...

How To Save The Planet In 30 Days

by janajansenvanvuuren | Mar 22, 2018 | Conservation, Sustainability, Volunteering

Earth Hour on the 24th of March, is all about creating awareness of how unnecessary energy consumption contributes to global warming. But energy management isn’t the only impact humans have on the planet and that is why we want to help you do more to preserve the...

Finding My Natural Habitat | Q&A With Leah Brown, South African Wildlife Project Base Manager

by janajansenvanvuuren | Mar 19, 2018 | Conservation, Limpopo and KZN, Travel, Volunteering

Leah Brown, the manager of our wildlife conservation project in South Africa’s Limpopo region, talks to us about her career journey and the big cat that started it all. What First Inspired You To Get Into Conservation? Like many people, my first interaction with...

‘What’s Your Plan A?’ Q&A With GVI Founder, Richard Walton

by janajansenvanvuuren | Mar 19, 2018 | Personal Development, Responsible Travel, Sustainability, Travel, Volunteering

What’s Your Plan A? 20 years ago a young explorer with a passion for travel, culture and working with local communities, decided, along with a good friend, to take a group of about 20 volunteers on a marine expedition to Roatán island in Honduras. Today, GVI connects...

‘It Takes A Village To Save The Planet’ The Story of GVI CEO Steve Gwenin

by stevegwenin | Mar 19, 2018 | Community Development, Conservation, Personal Development, Responsible Travel, Sustainability, Travel, Volunteering

Getting away from the icy waters of the Arctic and into the warm waters of the tropics was all Steve Gwenin, a young marine biologist, wanted. One online search opened the door to unique destinations he could never have imagined. What he found along the way was not...

‘Changing Course’ The Story Of GVI’s First Volunteer

by andreamackay | Mar 19, 2018 | Conservation, Personal Development, Responsible Travel, Sustainability, Travel, Volunteering

When Andrea Mackay flipped open a diving magazine in early 1998 she had no idea that what she found inside would change her life or indeed, the lives of many others. Andrea was one of 21 volunteers to join the first ever GVI program. 20 years later, she considers many...