Have you ever wondered what is going on in one of ARCHELON’s Sea Turtle Protection Projects? Get a taste of the volunteering actions in the new video filmed on the beach of Rethymno...

Every year, from May to October, i.e. during the sea turtle nesting season, volunteers from all over the world arrive in Zakynthos, Peloponnese and Crete, Greece. Determined to offer a part of their summer to the sea turtles, they camp at the organized Research Stations that ARCHELON operates in these areas.

The film "Volunteers protecting sea turtles in Greece" was created in collaboration with EyeQ Productions based in Heraklion, Crete. The production team met Lydia Koutrouditsou, ARCHELON’s Project Manager for Crete, who welcomed them to the Rethymno project.

"We chose to live with ARCHELON volunteers in Rethymno and record their daily life. We wanted to understand why so many people from all over the world choose to spend their summer protecting sea turtles. Our experience there, the smiles and stories of the volunteers as well as the little turtles we saw running towards the sea, was our answer!", says director Vangelis Kalaitzis from EYEQ, who took over the mini doc.

"We collected a large amount of material of great interest, which could become a longer documentary. But we had to make a shorter film that still captures the energy and the work that happens there", he adds.

The film was shot in Rethymno, but the work and the lives of the volunteers are similar in all the sea turtle protection projects that ARCHELON has been organizing for almost 40 years.

"At the end of the projects on the nesting beaches every year, we ask the opinion of all the volunteers on various issues related to their experience, through a questionnaire", says Fryni Papanikolaou, ARCHELON’s Volunteers Officer. "In the summer of 2022, however, we had the opportunity to capture their views and experiences at the Rethymno project through this short film", she continues.

If you are wondering what your participation in one of the projects could be like, you can watch the short film on ARCHELON’s YouTube channel and... apply here.