IE alumna reflects on voluntourism abroad

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By Leah Derksen '23MEd

Wanderlust, travel-bug, van-life…many people want to be out and about, doing something, seeing something, experiencing something. I am no stranger to these feelings. As an international educator, I too look for meaningful experiences in cultures other than my own. I have spent time living, teaching, and travelling in South East Asia, and now in the Gulf region of the Middle East. My time living in spaces that I am foreign too has brought the politics and power differentials that come with living abroad and travelling into focus for me. I have continued to ponder these ideas through focusing on International Education and Social Justice during my Master’s of Education.  

Just as I do, many of us want to have a positive impact while travelling and form deeper connections with cultures that are new to us, and voluntourism seems to offer an opportunity to do this (voluntourism is a portmanteau referring to short term volunteer opportunities engaged in by tourists). Sometimes voluntourism is organized by a third party. This is the style of trip where an outside organization does everything for you; they organize your accommodation, food, volunteering experience, etc. With organizations like these, it can be next to impossible to know where your money is actually going. While these experiences may be presented as ‘making a difference’ in the community, often they entrench colonial ideas of white-saviourism, take work away from local crafts people, put volunteers in positions that they aren’t qualified for, and sometimes do more harm than good for the community or cause supposedly ‘receiving help’. If you aren’t already aware of some of the drawbacks of voluntourism, Guttentag’s article “The possible negative impacts of volunteer tourism” (2009) provides a helpful guide.  But I’m not here to expound on the evils of voluntourism. I’m here to tell you about my experiences as a voluntourist and some things you can look for to indicate that an organization would actually benefit from your help. 

Over the past few years I have taken part in voluntourism experiences at multiple locations in South East Asia both for recreational and educational purposes. I investigated grassroots conservation organizations as part of my Master’s degree work, so I entered my volunteering experiences with a critical eye. In all of the locations I have volunteered at in this capacity, I felt that the organization benefitted from my work, I knew what my donation to the program went towards, and I felt that my work was directly aligned with a cause the community at large supported. This stands in opposition to other experiences I have had as a volunteer in my teenage years where, in retrospect, I see that my volunteer experience served me rather than anyone else. 

Let me share with you my experiences with Friends of the National Park Foundation (FNPF) in Bali, which was one of the locations involved in my master’s degree work. Due to my interest in grassroots conservation and my proximity at the time to Indonesia, I began looking for conservation organizations in the area. I started with a general google search and read websites until I found an organization that accepted short term volunteers and had a mission statement with which I identified, with specific attention being paid to whether or not leadership of the organization was local or international. After discovering that FNPF is founded and directed by a local and that their conservation efforts are paired with community development goals, I decided to get in contact with them. They are an organization dedicated to “Protecting Indonesia's endangered wildlife + restoring forests + helping local communities” (fnpf.org). On the island of Nusa Penida, they work in reforestation, monitoring the population of Bali starlings, and providing education to local children through after-school programming. I was able to work with them for 2 weeks in November, 2022 and a week in March 2023. The Nusa Penida centre is about an hour boat ride from Bali on a beautiful island. I spent my time there doing a variety of tasks including observing Bali Starlings (the subject of conservation for the Nusa Penida centre), planting seedlings, shredding coconut for oil at the community centre, and helping with English lessons at a local school. The conservation coordinator was thankful for help as having volunteers for bird observation freed up his time to do other things which require more expertise. The volunteer coordinator who also provides educational programming was able to benefit from my knowledge of classroom management and curriculum planning from my experience as a teacher. I had enough spare time to enjoy the island as well, hiking to the incredible beaches, swimming with mantas, taking in the vistas from the top of the island, and enjoying local cuisine with the FNPF staff (or desperately trying to finish assignments I had been neglecting while enjoying the island life). This experience was fulfilling for me because I genuinely helped the organization, I formed friendships with the workers, I was able to enjoy the island, and I was confident that my fees and donation were being used for the direct benefit of the human and wildlife communities. 

Author (Leah Derksen, middle) with FNPF Nusa Penida employees.

I believe that more opportunities like this one exist; opportunities for people to travel and have fulfilling volunteer experiences that do good for the organization and surrounding community. In order to help discern what might be a good organization to volunteer with, I take time to do research and ask myself some guiding questions. It’s easy to get caught up in the glamour of a new idea or location, so I make sure that my decisions are grounded in fact and that I’ve taken time to be logical rather than impulsive or emotional about my decision to partake in a volunteer opportunity. 

Here are some questions I ask myself when considering a voluntourism experience:

1. Is it a grassroots organization, or is it internationally funded and administered? Who is making the decisions about what is done in the organization? Usually, the more local leadership involved, the better. 
2. Is there a required donation to the program in order to volunteer? Is your donation made directly to the organization you will be working with, or is it going through a third party? It should be clear who is getting your money, how much goes towards things like room and board, and what the donation will be used for. 
3. Are the required activities within your skillset? Are you being asked to build a house while you have no carpentry experience? Think again. Or are you asked to perform basic tasks like painting fences, washing dishes, etc that you are capable of doing well. Remember, hanging out with children at an orphanage is great, but consider how much it benefits the children to have strangers in for a few days at a time and then leaving again. Is it good for you or good for them? Often, volunteer jobs that actually make a difference are not glamorous. They involve menial labour that free up those with expertise to make better use of their time. 
4. Is there an application and vetting process? Is the organization accepting of just anybody, or do they want to get to know you a bit before you show up? Applications, interviews, and personal communication are all good signs. 
5. Is there a minimum required time commitment? While good can still be done in a short visit, generally when you take time to ‘get to know the ropes’ your work becomes more valuable to the organization as you need less oversight. Generally 2 weeks is a good place to start, but the more time you can commit, the better. 
6. Are you doing this for a photo-op or because you actually care about the cause? Have you researched the cause and the organization ahead of time to understand their goals and action plans? Consider your place as a tourist and understand that you can make contributions based only on your expertise, and if you are not versed in the cause of the organization, expect that unskilled labour will be your contribution.

While volunteering for unskilled labour may sound drab or uninspiring, I have made many treasured memories as a voluntourist. My experiences have been mostly with wildlife conservation organizations which benefit from willing hands to chop food, scrub pens, shovel poop, collect wild fruits and insects, or observe animal behaviour. I have had the opportunity to feed otters, weigh a pangolin, clean bear paws, and enjoy watching animals engage in enrichment activities that I helped provide. Because of my experience as an educator, I have also been able to offer insight on educational programming, but the vast majority of my time volunteering has been spent in manual labour tasks. I have been able to connect with workers, learning about why they engage in the work they do, how community attitudes toward conservation have grown and changed as they work with the organization, and the idiosyncrasies of each animal in their care. I have share many meals, celebrated in success, and commiserated in frustrations with those who dedicate their lives to the cause of conservation. 

My time as a voluntourist has emphasized to me the importance of local governance in environmental conservation organizations and that international partners should not discount local expertise. I extend this learning to my practice as an educator as well, looking to involve regional customs and find leadership from the community wherever possible. My time as a voluntourist has also enabled me to see and experience things that aren’t accessible to tourists without community guides. This has allowed me to gain deeper insights into local customs and more effectively navigate cultural barriers encountered as an international educator. 

I have been fulfilled and satisfied through my work as a volunteer and believe that, with some careful consideration, others too can find such beneficial experiences. I encourage others to pursue voluntourism, but to do so carefully and thoughtfully, putting in the research required to ensure that good rather than harm results for the community that will be hosting you.

Reference:

Guttentag, D. A. (2009). The possible negative impacts of volunteer tourism. International journal of tourism research, 11(6), 537-551.