Involving new audiences with conservation volunteering

As part of our funding from Heritage Fund Scotland, Make Your Mark supports several member organisations each year with funding and co-design expertise to co-create a volunteer taster session with a marginalised or underrepresented group in their area. One of these co-designed volunteer taster sessions was hosted by Amphibian and Reptile Conservation and AMINA Muslim Women's Resource Centre.

Volunteer taster sessions are informal ways for people to learn more about an organisation and/or volunteer role. They can help to alleviate any questions or concerns that people may have about volunteering and/or introduce people to a new topic or activity.

The process

To co-design taster sessions, Make Your Mark uses the following process:

1. An online meeting with a co-design facilitator. This meeting with a co-design facilitator from Make Your Mark supported Amphibian and Reptile Conservation to develop expertise and skills in partnering with groups to plan inclusive events.
2. An online meeting with a prospective partner organisation. Make Your Mark used its network of community groups to help Amphibian and Reptile Conservation connect with AMINA Muslim Women's Resource Centre. The co-design facilitator from Make Your Mark chaired this meeting to set out the budget available, as well as the process and expectations for each organisation involved.
3. An in-person co-design workshop. Amphibian and Reptile Conservation and participants recruited by AMINA came together to discuss the content and structure of the taster session, specifically focussing on what types of activities they’d be interested in and participants’ accessibility needs.
4. An in-person volunteer taster session. The content and structure of the taster session was informed by the co-design meeting with the partner group.

The outcomes

In October 2024, 8 participants recruited by AMINA attended a co-design workshop with Amphibian and Reptile Conservation (ARC). The participants were given an introduction to ARC and did a nature meditation. They then contributed to shaping the plan for the follow-on taster session. The group expressed some anxieties around reptiles and amphibians, indicating that it was not a subject matter that they had ever considered engaging with. They were nervous at the prospect of having direct contact with any reptiles or amphibians, but were keen to learn more about animals by visiting a zoo. They also liked the idea of doing hands-on activities like building insect hotels or mini-ponds, or something creative related to reptiles and amphibians. They further specified that for any travel outwith Glasgow, it'd be ideal if a mini bus was hired as they'd all feel more comfortable travelling together.

To increase the women's familiarity with reptiles and amphibians and tap into their loves of crafts, we organised a follow on stained glass session at Jangling Space in Glasgow in February 2025. The ladies were given close up photos of reptile and amphibian skin to use as inspiration for creating their stained glass patterns. The close looking at photos of reptiles and amphibians sparked interest amongst participants, with some noting how beautiful the patterns were.

We then organised the final taster session at Edinburgh Zoo in July 2025. Courtesy of Edinburgh Zoo staff, participants received a guided tour of the Zoo, followed by an animal handling session where they could choose to hold or touch a Giant African Land Snail, a stick bug, a corn snake and an armadillo. Despite the group's initial anxiety around reptiles and amphibians, a majority of the women chose to touch and hold the animals and said they were surprised at how much they enjoyed the experience. Following a break for lunch, Edinburgh Zoo staff then facilitated a volunteering workshop for participants to create mini bug hotels to take home and place in their garden. The day concluded with some free time to explore the zoo before heading back to Glasgow.

Feedback from the taster session was overwhelmingly positive. 90% of participants said the session increased their health or wellbeing, 80% said the session made them feel more connected to local places and 70% said the session helped them develop skills.

Participants also gave a range of positive comments, including:

• "The workshop was amazing; actually touching the snail, cricket and holding the snake."
• "[I enjoyed] exploring different animals, insects and habitats. Zoo trip - making bug hotel. All the activities were great."
• "I really liked the animal handling."
• "Found the zoo leaders very good. It was an informative session. Enjoyed making insect hotels."
• "Organisers and zoo staff was amazing. It was a great opportunity."
• "Staff was very friendly and helpful. Very happy with all."

The only suggestion for improvement was having more time to explore at the zoo.