Volunteerism: A Potential Trojan
Horse for the Locals We Aim to Help
After deciding to delve into the
world of voluntourism I quickly noticed one overriding fact; the majority of
academic journals I came across focused on the positive effects that voluntourism
had on those travelling, rather than the positive effect these individuals were
having on those they had set out to help. With this in mind I started to
reflect on my past experiences with voluntourism. Two years ago I travelled to
South Africa for the soul purpose of volunteering. I spent two weeks working at
a Cheetah rehabilitation centre, and two additional weeks volunteering at a kid’s
sports development program on the outskirts of Cape Town. Along with these
programs I collected and donated over 400 pounds of used soccer equipment while
traveling around South Africa. More recently, this May I worked with a friend
who lives in Paraguay to organize the donation of over 100 pounds of soccer
equipment to the children of an underprivileged township on the fringe of
Asuncion. And most recently spent the day with the children of a favela here in
Curitiba donating soccer equipment once again. Needless to say, I have fallen into the trap of voluntourism. And
like millions of others I have neglected to focus on the effect that my trips
have had on the communities that I have volunteered in, but rather focused on
how they have affected me. With eyes newly opened to the possible effects of
voluntourism (volunteerism) I feel it necessary to look back and reflect on the
whole story of my trips, since th e opinion of the volunteer only represents half the story.
donating soccer equipment on the streets of South Africa |
Donating used soccer boots to a school in Johannesburg |
Volunteering at a cheetah rehabilitation centre |
Volunteering at Cheer for Peace in Curitiba |
Although not a new phenomena,
Voluntourism has expanded exponentially since 1990 with more the 1.6 million
travellers a year defining their vacations as having a volunteer component.
With this rising popularity researchers have been compelled to examine why so
many individuals are willing to spend money to benefit others. Joseph E. Casey
a research psychologist explains his take on the situation within his journal
“A personal Journey in Volunteerism”. Casey states that volunteering allows
people to “acquire new knowledge, develop new skills, hone existing skills,
advance ones career, and make new acquaintances”. Casey then furthers his
argument by explaining the more complex needs that volunteerism fills. He
discusses how in the western world those of us who are successful owe it partly
to the hard work of others who have helped us along the way, and with so many
others helping us it is almost impossible to repay them all. This is where
volunteerism comes into play. Casey states that volunteerism is a means for
western professionals to gain the “satisfaction of paying back [those who have
helped them] with [their] readily available and highly regarded currency of
expertise”.
Casey’s understanding of why
people engage in volunteerism is not far from how other researchers explain its
popularity. And it is this understanding that is so harmful. Daniel A.
Guttentag’s journal “The possible negative effects of volunteer tourism”
discusses the many ways that research into voluntourism has overlooked the
destructive effects that come with it. Throughout his paper Guttentag outlines
4 main negative effects all of which stem back to the westerners heightened
perspective of themselves as being able to save the lives of those less
fortunate simply because they are Westerners, or “professionals” in one aspect
of life.
The first possible negative
effect discussed by Guttentag is the chance of neglecting the ideals of the
locals. Since many volunteerism projects are put on by private companies they
rely on the income that comes from the paying voluntourists. This can become
detrimental when the tourists wants do not coincide with what is best for the
local community. The second chance for harm comes when unskilled workers
volunteer in positions that they are not qualified for, which may cause “a
hindering of work progress and the completion of unsatisfactory work”
(Guttentag). The third issue discussed is the decrease in a need for paid local
labour jobs and an increase in the dependency of locals. Next Guttentag explores the issues related to
“othering” the locals. This stems from the use of the locals as a group by
which we can juxtapose ourselves to make affirming conclusions about our own
culture. Finally the problems associated with culture change are discussed,
which results from the fact that many volunteer programs connect wealthy
travellers with poorer regions. By doing so the local regions are exposed to a
way of life that is often out of reach, initiating a longing for a lifestyle that
is unfeasible.
With a new understanding for the
potential dangers of volunteerism, my reflection on past trips has become
tainted, as I now see the potential flaws in the structure of organizations I
have participated in. In regards to neglecting the ideals of the locals, I can
say without a doubt that my time spent working at a Cheetah Rehabilitation
centre in South Africa did not fall in line with the immediate needs of the
locals but rather was based on fulfilling an experience that many voluntourists
(myself included) desired. And to further the harm done, my lack of experience
with large cats caused my time spent there to be more hindering than
beneficial. In comparison, the many child sports programs I’ve taken part in,
including the one put on by Footlball for Kids Foundation this past Sunday have
allowed me to have a more productive role due to my “expertise” in the sport of
football. Unlike my lack of knowledge with large cats I can say I have a decent
knowledge and ability to play football, which has been a gateway to forming true
mutually positive relationships with the many kids I’ve encountered. Regardless
of whether it’s been in the townships of South Africa, a fringe town of
Paraguay’s capital Asuncion, or the favelas of Brazil one thing stands true,
football is still the same game I’ve grown to love. Despite your location fancy
foot work will always be admired, a nutmeg (caneta) will always bring laughter,
and juggling a ball will always bring out tricks that will be celebrated by all. Through the use of football I was not
only able to act as an expert, but I was also able to avoid othering of the
locals.
Lack of expertise with Large Cats |
Playing soccer in Paraguay with the locals |
When comparing this Sunday to
past trips I can say that the program had put in important measures to ensure
that the division between the volunteers and local children was limited. This
was done by providing activities that were mutually enjoyable. The first means
of integration that I noticed was the sharing of food. Rather than providing
different meals for volunteers and the children there was one meal provided for
all to share. This instantly created a commonality between what could have been
seen as “us” the volunteers, and the “others” and allowed for the formation of
bonding to start. However, more importantly the use of sports is what blurred away
any lines of division. Through the use of football as a full day activity we
were able to relate to the children as fellow footballers, rather than view
them as objects of pity due to their under privileged situation.
The two areas
where I felt there was room for improvement came in potentially encouraging dependency
on volunteers and encouraging culture change.
During my stay
here in Curitiba the most shocking information I’ve received came from a fellow
classmate who lives here in Curitiba. She stated that our donations made in
Curitiba would go unappreciated since it is a very common practice here to
donate to the poor. She also hinted to the harm it did by explaining that the
people in many of the favelas have come to expect these donations rather than
work to further their own lives. However, during my time in Vila Torres I did not catch on
to many hints that this was true. Most of the children did not have shoes but
rather wore old worn out sandals. Their clothes were by no means clean but
rather were decorated with stains. Based on these observations I found it hard to
believe that these kids often came into contact with donations. However, this
could be my own ignorance and desire to believe that I have done something good
that blinds me to these facts.
Finally the
concept of culture change, is where I believe that we may have caused more harm
than done good. On the positive side I believe that by giving out a single type
of jersey to all the kids we created a sense of uniformity, which did not
initiate jealousy between the children. However, the donation of the football
boots to only a few of the children is where I feel we may have caused harm. By
giving out pairs of boots to only some of the children we have created division
between those who have and those who do not, and as explained to us by a local
volunteer, these are the types of goods that these children long for but, are
often unrealistic desires. By donating boots to some of the children we have
made these desires a reality for some, but also increased the pressure on
others to adapt to new social standards, which they may never be able to
achieve.
When reflecting on the project
our class took part in this past Sunday I can feel both ashamed by the flaws of
our actions and proud of the overall way that the event played out. Although we
could have put in more effect to insure that we didn’t impose culture change on
the group by putting more thought into our donations, I have a positive
feeling towards the work we did, mainly because of the attitude I approached
our volunteer efforts with. I did not attend the event put on by Football for
Kids Foundation with the intention of changing the lives of the children of the
favela but rather as a chance to learn from the children and form positive
relations with them, which, I believed was fundamental for helping to avoid
harming the local community in the ways outlined by Guttentag.
At the end of the day there is no way I can be
sure how my involvement with foreign communities has affected them. As much as
I’d love to believe that I have done enough to positively impact the life of a
child, it is egocentric to believe so. And as such it is only fair for me to
send out a genuine thank you. Thank-you to all the communities that have
welcomed me into their homes and allowed me to form sincere friendships. Thank-you for teaching me to change my perspective on life, you have
made me a better person today than I could have ever dreamed of being.
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