What Do Volunteers Do on an MCP Marine Conservation Programme?

Volunteers on a Marine Conservation Philippines (MCP) placement learn to dive or build on existing dive skills, train as scientific divers, and then survey the same coral reefs week after week to feed the organisation's long-term monitoring data. Between dives, they join community projects such as youth education, mangrove planting and beach clean-ups, and they live and share meals on base with volunteers and staff from around the world. No previous diving experience is needed, and volunteers typically stay 6–24 weeks, with new intakes starting every other Monday.

The core work: scientific diving and reef surveys

The survey work is described by MCP as the heart of its volunteer programme. The sequence is:

1. Dive training or skills building — you learn to dive, or develop the skills you already have, through PADI courses taught by MCP's own instructors, ranging from Open Water to Divemaster.
2. Scientific diver training — you train as a scientific diver before joining survey work.
3. Repeated reef surveys — you then survey the same reefs week after week. The fish and reef surveys feed MCP's long-term monitoring data, which is why consistency across weeks matters.

MCP reports that its teams carry out more than 2,000 reef surveys every year, and that it has trained more than 120 government divers.

Community and coastal work between dives

Volunteering is not only underwater. Between dives, MCP lists:

• Community work — youth education and support for local Marine Protected Areas.
• Mangrove planting — MCP reports more than 31,000 mangrove trees planted with partners.
• Beach clean-ups — weekly coastal clean-ups in Dauin and Dumaguete City.
• Plastic removal — MCP reports more than 17.9 million pieces of ocean plastic removed.

Where the work happens

MCP is a registered Philippine non-profit, active since 2015, based in southern Negros Oriental. Its own survey teams cover the reefs of three municipalities on the south coast: Zamboanguita, Siaton and Santa Catalina. Through support for the BATASS and BATMAN municipal alliances — including training government dive teams and joint work on Marine Protected Areas — its work reaches nine more municipalities, and the weekly clean-ups bring the total to 14 municipalities across Negros Oriental. MCP states it is partnered with ENRD, DENR and local government units.

Life on base

Volunteers live on base with volunteers and staff from around the world, sharing meals and simple living. MCP describes volunteers as typically aged 18–60, and notes that progressive discounts apply to longer stays. It also cites a rating of 4.9 out of 5 across more than 130 independent reviews.

Is this the right fit for you?

If you are looking for a short holiday dive trip or cannot commit several weeks, the 6-week minimum stay is the main constraint to weigh. If you want structured scientific diving training alongside community work in a live-in team setting, the programme is designed around exactly that.