Globerovers Magazine, July 2019

“The smallest act of kindness is worth more than the grandest intention.” ~ Oscar Wilde
Volunteering
Serious questions to ask yourself
Volunteer Tourism, quaintly
nicknamed “voluntourism”, is a
booming travel trend estimated
to be worth $2.6 billion and
involve over 20 million travellers annually.
A growing number of people (especially
millennials but reaching all demographics)
are unsatisfied with their vacations being
all about them and wish to “give back” to
the communities they are travelling in. It
can seem like a win-win situation, both
being a more immersive kind of travel and
By Claire Bennett, Learning Service
Claire lives and works in Kathmandu, Nepal, and freelances
as a trainer and consultant. She is passionate about global
education, ethical travel and ensuring good intentions are
put to good use.
Claire recently released her book: Learning Service: The
Essential Guide to Volunteering Abroad.
For more information about volunteering, visit
www.learningservice.info
also of benefit to others, but in fact it can
be complex to get it right, and there are a
few ethical issues to consider to ensure that
your good intentions are put to good use.
Volunteer trips can be a hugely rewarding
form of travel, but they can’t be
undertaken lightly. In this post, we share
some important questions that will help
you decide if volunteering is for you, and
help you pinpoint what you would like to
get out of the experience.
Photo: Pixabay
Question 1: What has attracted you
to volunteering abroad?
It is important to be honest about your
motivations to ensure you have a successful
and satisfactory time volunteering. Try to
identify a combination of motivations that
relate to both what you want to give and
gain.
If you are drawn to volunteering from
a desire for adventure, or snazzy brochures
of elephant trekking in exotic locations,
take a step back and ask yourself if what
you really need is a vacation. Volunteering
is hard work! Even though you may be in a
wonderful place and will also have time to
explore, the reality is that you may spend
the majority of your time in an office or
doing manual labour.
If you find you are mainly motivated
by the thought of doing some good in the
world, remember to be realistic about the
amount that you can contribute with the
time and the skills that you have. Even if
you plan to volunteer for many months,
you are likely to make only a small contribution
to bigger changes that will be led by
local professionals.
If your interest in volunteering mainly
stems from your desire to learn and for
personal growth, be sure that you are honest
with the organization that you volunteer
with. You may want to look for a program
with good training programs and systems
of support.
142 Globerovers · July 2019