Helping or Hurting

http://goodintents.org/staffing-or-employment/voluntourism-what-could-go-wrong

Posted by Dr. Finzer on April 5

This is an important piece for any college student thinking about volunteering abroad to read. A lot of well-intentioned people are getting taken in by voluntourism companies that are just trying to make a buck. These companies don’t actually care about the end results, and the volunteer ends up hurting, rather than helping.

http://www.handsupholidays.com/tours/mayans-mountains

Ultimately, it comes down to whether or not the program has a long-term commitment to the region. Short-term engagements tend to be misguided; long-term commitments tend to see flaws and fix them.

Remember the Heifer representative? He said that they do not take Americans/volunteers abroad unless they have extremely specific and expert skills (and in this case they are probably paid). They tend to employ skilled local professionals to lead the project, and then train the beneficiaries to lead themselves. The benefit is much more lasting this way.

On the other hand, having a lot of young people with the desire to make some type of difference is a beautiful thing, and I wish the author had acknowledged that. A lot of the simple things we can do are absolutely beneficial, and even naïve, short-term projects can be a great experience for both the giver and the recipient, with the right leader.

Habitat for Humanity is one of those groups where unskilled volunteers can make a lot of difference, and the more people involved, the better. They plan the house; you swing the hammer. As long as there is a team of construction professionals overseeing the work, a simple house can be built well in this manner. Habitat for Humanity actually does take young, unskilled volunteers abroad to do this:

http://www.habitat.org/gv/default.aspx

http://www.habitat.org/ivp/