In light of the coming months, this question has been on my mind a lot recently and so today I have spent my time looking into what has been said on the subject. The idea being to enlighten me a little so that I can perhaps reduce the negative effects of my trip, and maximize the potential benefits in undertaking this project.

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Does volunteering do more harm than good?

The desire to give your time and energy to someone is inherently laudable, as is the desire to volunteer. However, there are a number of reasons why volunteering, specifically in developing nations, can do more harm than good. This article discusses both the possible benefits a volunteer can provide, and why it might not be wise to follow through with these good intentions without fully examining the consequences for those we seek to help.

“Service to others is the rent you pay for your room here on Earth.” — Muhammad Ali

On the surface, the benefits of volunteering abroad are quite straight-forward. Immersing oneself in a different language and culture, providing services to developing areas, and gaining a greater global perspective are all positive outcomes that can be obtained. However, in order to increase the chances of success, careful research and planning prior to embarking on this journey should take place.

Offering time and skills for long-term benefit

The key goal of a volunteering project should be to provide positive, long-lasting contributions in the regions receiving support. Building a classroom so that children can receive a better education, and helping to install running water at a location previously without clean drinking water shows clear, long-lasting benefits.
In Teaching, there is huge potential to provide lifelong skills, both on an academic and personal level. Whether you are a trained teacher, or have gained know-how during your career, transferring knowledge that can be used to aid the person and their community, can provide very positive outcomes to volunteer work.

Shorter term ‘focused’ volunteer work

When the project is clearly defined, the length of time spent working is not of key importance in being able to provide clear benefits. The focus here is the relevant hands-on skills that you can provide directly to the mission. This could take the form of teaching English at the local school, assisting in building new homes, environmental cleanup tasks...

Other, more personal, benefits to volunteer work can include gaining confidence, challenging yourself, and learning new skills. However, this journey should not be of personal focus if the goal is to provide the best outcomes for those in need.

“If you find yourself volunteering abroad only to have something to put on your resume, or get a new profile picture for Facebook, you need to redefine your priorities“. - Ayushi Patel source

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Personal gain and poor allocation of funding

What some don’t foresee is that it is not as simple as flying off and trying to change a community. It takes time, careful planning, and a thorough understanding of what is required from the individual, as well as the current situation in a region, before one can attempt to help it. There is a balance between supporting on a day-to-day basis, and empowering a community so that it can benefit long into the future - It is the difference between provisioning food for a month or so, and helping build an irrigation system so it can grow, consume, and sell its own additional produce.

It is also easy to criticize the amount of money heading into volunteerism abroad programs without the transparency of where this money is being allocated. And indeed, the same could be said of well-known charities like the Red Cross. The below is an expenditure chart for the volunteer organisation, Projects Abroad.

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Organizations which show a large percentage of administrative costs, could well be devoting an unbalanced amount of money to staff, reducing the cash used to directly benefit those they are set up to aid.

There are hundreds of organizations that encourage people to volunteer, but on many occasions these trips do more harm than good for local communities in the developing world. There is the potential that:

• Volunteers can take away jobs from locals

• The money would be better spent creating new industries and building infrastructure which would reduce the dependency on the developed world

• The funds and time allocated to a project are spent ‘looking after’ volunteers ill-equipped for their chosen project

• Emotional attachments are formed with the visitors, which can then be detrimental when the volunteer returns home

• 'False promises' are made and 'false hope' is given

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Summary

Careful planning and consideration must be taken prior to undertaking volunteer work abroad, and it is clear that unless we possess time and transferable skills, it may be a better option to travel and spend money in developing countries to provide growth in, at least, the tourism industry.

Some possible steps to consider before undertaking volunteer work could include ensuring that the project is:

• sustainable and addresses the key problems, e.g. education and poverty

• A true partner with the community

• Transparent with regards to any funds taken

• promoting cross-cultural understanding

• doing more than stroking travellers' egos

• established with track record of positive output

Heartfelt efforts to help, without fully understanding the people and project we are seeking to aid can potentially only make matters worse.

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If you have done any volunteer work in the past, i would be very interested to hear about your experiences, positive or negative.

Thanks for reading today

Asher

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References

The realities of volunteering abroad
Before you pay to volunteer abroad, think of the harm you might do
Pros and Cons of Short Term Volunteer Programs
Giving Back: A Special Report on Volunteer Vacations
Beware the 'voluntourists' doing good
Does voluntourism do more harm than good?
When Volunteering Abroad Does More Harm Than Good
Volunteering in Africa – pros and cons
Pros and Cons of Volunteering Abroad
The Pros and Cons of Volunteering Abroad With a Local Organization
Where Does the Money Go When You Volunteer?