We have a number of talks coming up about our expeditions, register for a talk by clicking here!

  • CONSERVATION RESEARCH EXPEDITIONS

    Learn how biological data collected by volunteers is being used to help with wildlife conservation all over the world, and how you could get involved.

    • Contribute to collecting long term biodiversity data

    • Work alongside researchers in the field

    • Obtain a large wide range of research survey skills

    Worried about funding? Professional fundraising and grant application support available

    Our 2026 research assistant programme will be available from Friday 12 September 2025!
    Click here to view our previous online version.

     

  • FIND OUT MORE

    Jump to our available virtual talk dates or check if we’re coming to your university this autumn!

     

     

All Available Talks

  • WEBINARS/VIRTUAL TALKS

    Talk Date Time Link
    International Conservation Research Expeditions Tuesday 14th October 2025 1pm (BST) | 2pm (BST +1) | 8am (EDT) Register here!
    International Conservation Research Expeditions Tuesday 14th October 2025 6pm (BST) | 7pm (BST +1) | 1pm (EDT) Register here!
    International Conservation Research Expeditions Tuesday 21st October 2025 1pm (BST) | 2pm (BST +1) | 8am (EDT) Register here!
    International Conservation Research Expeditions Tuesday 21st October 2025 6pm (BST) | 7pm (BST +1) | 1pm (EDT) Register here!

     

    Bookings for 2026 are now live (click here), by paying a deposit now you can get a head start on fundraising and select your country. If you need additional help and support please don’t hesitate to email us expeditions@opwall.com

     

    IN PERSON TALKS

     

    Want to come along to a talk in person? We’ll have speakers visiting some of the universities around the UK! To find out if we are coming to your university see the table in the dropdown below.

Upcoming In person Talks
University Date & Time Room & Address Google Map
Bangor University Date and location to be confirmed – express an interest to receive talk updates
Cardiff University Date and location to be confirmed – express an interest to receive talk updates
Keele University Tuesday 14th October – 5pm HNB0.26, Hornbeam Building,
Plantation Park, Keele, Newcastle, ST5 5BG
Map
Oxford Brookes University Thursday 16th October – 1pm Sinclair 3.10,
Headington campus, Gipsy Lane, Oxford, OX3 0BP
Map
Royal Holloway, University of London Date and location to be confirmed – express an interest to receive talk updates
Trinity College Dublin (TCD) Tuesday 28th October – 2pm Botany Lecture Theatre, Botany Building
College Green, Dublin 2
Map
University College Dublin (UCD) Date and location to be confirmed – express an interest to receive talk updates
University of Aberdeen Date and location to be confirmed – express an interest to receive talk updates
University of Birmingham Date and location to be confirmed – express an interest to receive talk updates
University of Bristol Date and location to be confirmed – express an interest to receive talk updates
University of Dundee Date and location to be confirmed – express an interest to receive talk updates
University of East Anglia (UEA) Monday 20th October – 1pm EFRY 1.01, Elizabeth Fry Building,
Norwich, NR4 7TQ
Map
University of Edinburgh Date and location to be confirmed – express an interest to receive talk updates
University of Exeter, Penryn Campus Date and location to be confirmed – express an interest to receive talk updates
University of Lincoln Date and location to be confirmed – express an interest to receive talk updates
University of Manchester Monday 13th October – 12pm Room 3.214 University Place,
176 Oxford Rd, Manchester, M13 9PL
Map
University of Nottingham Date and location to be confirmed – express an interest to receive talk updates
University of Oxford Date and location to be confirmed – express an interest to receive talk updates
University of Plymouth Monday 20th October – 5.30pm Rolle Building Room 001,
Drake Circus, Plymouth PL4 8AA
Map
University of Salford Monday 13th October – 5pm PG10, Peel Building,
Salford, M5 4WX
Map
University of St Andrews Monday 27th October – 5pm MBS: 103 – Seminar Room 1, School of Medicine,
N Haugh, St Andrews, KY16 9TF
Map
University of York Date and location to be confirmed – express an interest to receive talk updates
  • ALREADY BOOKED?

    For all the questions you have and all those you never even knew you had!

    We cover everything from the next steps in expedition planning, what type of walking boots to get, if you need to buy equipment for snorkelling or learning to dive, when to start looking at vaccinations and travelling after your expedition. All sessions are recorded and if you miss any you can revisit them all at anytime. Find the monthly meet-up page on our fundraising page linked below.

    Fundraising?

    The main issue facing many of us not joining an expedition is expense! Find out how to access funding to support the costs of an expedition, equipment and travel.

    To register, visit our fundraising page at the link below (the password for this will have been sent to by our fundraising team).

    Travel Advice

    When it comes to booking travel there are many tips and tricks to getting the best deal and also ensuring your tickets are as comprehensive as possible. Come along to find out what we recommend and how to get the best of your options available.

    Monthly Meet-ups
  • Careers in Conservation Talks

    2024/25

    A comprehensive guide on the various routes into a career in wildlife conservation and the different jobs available in the sector. Followed by a Q&A with our fantastic panellists:

    • Erica McAlister – Entomologist and museum curator. She is an expert in flies and is senior curator at the Natural History Museum, London.
    • Dr Ian Hendy – Senior Lecturer in Tropical Marine Ecology, Marine Restoration & Conservation, and Blue-carbon at the University of Portsmouth
    • Helen Starmer-Allen – Assistant Ecologist, associate membership of CIEEM, FISC level 3

    View the recording of this talk here.

     

    • Dan O’Neill – Wildlife filmmaker & field biologist – Dan is also the presenter and a producer of a 5-part series, Giants (can be found on Amazon Prime).
    • Charlotte Palmer – Project Manager for the West Norfolk Nature Network Landscape Recovery DEFRA Pilot
    • Amy Ross – Conservationist and ecologist, specialising in species recovery and lepidoptera

    View the recording of this talk here.

     

    Careers Fairs

    We’ll also be visiting a number of fairs based at Universities around the UK, come along and visit us at our stall to chat about everything available to you!

  • Optoberfest Scientific Mini-Conference

    Opwall hosted our first ever Optoberfest scientific mini-conference last year! We will be continuing this event and hosting again for 2025. We’ll be presenting on Thursday 9th October – Friday 10th October 2025.

    Optoberfest gives us a chance to showcase some of the amazing science stories and research results from our global network of field sites, and for you to ask our speaking panel of international scientists questions about their work.

    Watch all the 2024 talks at opwall.com/optoberfest or register to watch our 2025 Optoberfest! You can also read all about the 2024 event on our blog here.

    Thursday 9th October – Friday 10th October 2025.

    • Dr Tom Martin –  Operation Wallacea – 30 years of biodiversity research – an overview and celebration of Operation Wallacea’s achievements over the last three decades
    • Dr Rowan Watt-Pringle – Hasanuddin University – Navigating real-world difficulties in research
    • Hrvoje Cizmek – 20,000 Leagues – Biodiversity research in the Adratic ecosystems of Silba Island
    • Mădălina Marian – Adept – Socio-economic incentives to preserve the last medieval agricultural landscape in Europe
    • Dr Jon Chamberlain – University of Essex – Scalable Solutions for Monitoring Marine Ecosystems
    • Dr Sam Jones – Georgia Institute of Technology – Testing the mechanisms of elevational range limitation in Central American cloud forest songbirds
    • Damaris Lander – Oxford University – Who will rule the reef? Modelling future benthic communities in Utila.
    • Dr José António L. Barão-Nóbrega – Fantastic Beasts: A voyage through the world of Crocodiles, Aguadas & Calakmul
    Watch here
Fairs

 

University Fair Name Date Time Location
University of Dundee Go Global Fair Tuesday 28th January 2025 11am – 4pm Dalhousie Foyer, Old Hawkhill, Dundee DD1 5EN
University of Glasgow Summer Abroad Wednesday 29th January 2025 11am – 3pm Glasgow University Union, 32 University Ave, Glasgow, G12 8LX
University of Hull International Opportunities Fair Wednesday 5th February 2025 1pm – 2pm Exhibition Hall (Ground Floor) Brynmor Jones Library
University of St Andrews Green Careers Fayre Wednesday 12th February 2025 12pm – 2pm
University of Southampton Careers Day Thursday 13th February 2025 10am – 3pm School of Ocean and Earth Sciences
Aberystwyth University Careersfest – Sustainability theme Tuesday 18th February 2025 12pm – 1pm Presentation – 3.34 Edward Llwyd, Aberystwyth University, Penglais Campus
Aberystwyth University Careersfest – Sustainability theme Tuesday 18th February 2025 1pm – 3pm Stand – Gwendolen Rees building, Aberystwyth University, Penglais Campus
Newcastle University Blue Planet recruitment fair Tuesday 26th February 2025 10am – 3pm The Boiler House G.03, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 7RU
Canterbury Christ Church University Natural and Applied Sciences Research and Employability Fair Wednesday 26th March 2025 11am – 5:30pm

 

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About Operation Wallacea

  • We’ve been running award winning biodiversity research expeditions for the last 30 years ensuring volunteers around the world gain valuable research experience and allow them to build a practical skill set with real biodiversity research.

    From tropical rainforests and European grasslands, to coral reefs and Mediterranean seagrass meadows, our network of over 200 academics and field research specialists lead vital large scale, long term projects that inform conservation management strategies and save species at risk of extinction.

    By this specialist led research model volunteers gain experience as research assistants. We also have extensive options to collect and use data for independent research projects, dissertations, masters thesis and PhD data collection.

  • Our conservation volunteer’s work has:

    • Describing 81 species that are new to science

    • Had publications in almost 700 academic papers in peer-review journals

    • Been used to lobby governments to create 6 Protected Areas and National Parks all over the world

    • Supported communities to establish income streams that work in harmony with the environment

  • INTRODUCTORY VIDEO

    Check out this short video about Opwall and our projects. To see the extended version we put together click here.

Browse the website

Why not use this opportunity to take a look at our website, we've included some helpful links below

Wallace House, Old Bolingbroke, Spilsby, Lincolnshire PE23 4EX, UK
| +44 (0) 1790 763194 | info@opwall.com