Engineering at Native ARC

Native ARC welcomed 17 volunteers from the Engineering Team on a crisp November morning. The team were treated to a brief site tour and induction, where they met birds, reptiles, kangaroos, Vinnie the resident wombat and the dingo pups. After the meet and greet, the team were shown the day-to-day tasks that the regular Native ARC volunteers would typically carry out. The tour provided the team with an opportunity to get a feel for the site and it helped to create an awareness and understanding of who they would be supporting on the day – the animals and Native ARC’s regular volunteers!

Dean, manager of Native ARC, emphasised that because the regular volunteers are occupied carrying out the day to day tasks, they often don’t have the time (or skills) to carry out work on the bigger projects. This is why teams like Woodside have been such an asset over the past 4 years for organisations like Native ARC.

The team lived up to the expectation, splitting into mini teams to complete several tasks. One group went to Vinnie’s enclosure to stir him up and relevel his burrow! Wombats need mental stimulation that would otherwise abound in the wild, so they gave him the project of rebuilding his home. The others split into two smaller groups and worked on a tedious and fiddly, yet highly important task involving attaching wire mesh to the enclosures to protect the animals from unwanted predatory snakes.

The teams also worked on: cutting up fruit for the wildlife to nibble on and hanging up washing; digging and clearing an area for the duckling’s enclosure to go over; and finally enriching animals' enclosures by placing new perches and branches for them to interact with.

To see more of the team in action click here!