Volunteering

The Channel Islands Naturalist Corps is a volunteer program jointly managed by Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary and Channel Islands National Park. Volunteers are trained to serve as naturalists on whale watching vessels in the sanctuary, lead island hikes in the park, participate at local outreach events, and conduct citizen science, including the collection of valuable photo identification of marine mammals.

How to Apply

Please note that due to high volunteer retention within the Channel Islands Naturalist Corps program, the sanctuary and park select a new cohort of volunteers and offer new training classes every two to three years.

We are currently recruiting volunteers to join our 2027 cohort. Interested applicants should apply on volunteer.gov. Applications will be open until 5pm PST on Monday, November 30, 2026.

For information please contact channel.islands@noaa.gov and chis_volunteer@nps.gov.