Mistakes to Avoid when Training Volunteers

The folks at Volunteer Teacher Thailand offered up this great blog post about mistakes they’ve seen made when training volunteers. I think its a great list to start with, what would you add from your experience??

1. Fail to explain the problems volunteers are addressing within the specific cultural environment. It is vital to give volunteers – caring, intelligent people but probably lacking local knowledge – a clear understanding of the local culture and how they fit into it. They need to know the root causes of the problem, how it is being tackled, how they are helping and what difference they are making to the local people, animals or environment.

2. Fail to explain local cultural etiquette, acceptable ways to dress and the kind of behaviour that local people will find respectful and will, in turn, respect. This extends, importantly, into conveying that volunteers are serving the local people and need to adapt to the culture.

3. Fail to explain in detail what the volunteer work involves and how to do it. Getting the best from volunteers and leaving them satisfied with their experience is a skill that should include carefully and kindly making sure everyone knows: a) the work and how to do it; b) the structure of the work, when and where, and the time off; and c) the respect felt by the organisers for people giving their time, within or outside their professional skills, to improve the chances, say, of 500 poor children a week learning English.

4. Fail to balance work demands. Too little work for volunteers is as bad as too much; and the tasks need to take into account the volunteer’s ability and suitability to undertake them.

5. Fail to give constant onsite supervision, help and training. This needs to be done lightly, with tact and with the understanding that the volunteer is a person of value who just has not come across this kind of situation before. The worst mistake is to let anyone take this coordinating/training role who thinks it is a personal ego trip. Post-service help should include a certificate and an open invitation to ask for an employment reference.

 

This list of training mistakes was compiled by staff volunteers at Volunteer Teacher Thailand, which gives English lessons in schools and among adults in the tsunami-hit areas of southern Thailand. Further details on VTT’s website at www.volunteerteacherthailand.org

Thirteen Tips for the Accidental Ambassador

Just back from an amazing Adventure Travel World Summit, fantastic travel folks and some great brainstorming, what a week! If you didn’t go this year I highly recommend trying to make it to Scotland next year.

One of the key people I met was Jeff Greenwald of Ethical Traveler, a really inspiring guy who is trying to make a huge difference through his website. Jeff’s team created “Thirteen Tips for the Accidental Ambassador” a quick reading to prepare those traveling abroad to do so responsibly.

I recommend sharing this, or something like it, with all of your clients – the more education they can have before they go in country the better experience is for both them and the communities. Jeff has some great bookmarks printed with this info on it that would make great pre-departure gifts, and no he is not a client – I just think this is a great idea.

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At Ethical Traveler, our focus is on the positive impact travelers can have by being open, informed, and willing to immerse themselves in other cultures. In creating these following suggestions, we’ve drawn inspiration from our own journeys—with an emphasis on the person-to-person aspects of travel. 1) BE AWARE OF WHERE YOUR MONEY IS GOING, and patronize locally-owned inns, restaurants, and shops. Try to keep your cash within the local economy, so the people you are visiting can benefit directly from your visit. 2) NEVER GIVE GIFTS TO CHILDREN, only to their parents or teachers. When giving gifts to local communities – from schoolbooks to balloons, from pens to pharmaceuticals – first find out what’s really needed, and who can best distribute these items. [See: "A Fistful of Rupees: Coping With Begging on Third World Trails"] 3) Before visiting any foreign land, TAKE THE TIME TO LEARN BASIC COURTESY PHRASES: greetings, “please” & “thank you,” and as many numbers as you can handle (those endless hours in airport waiting lounges, or aboard trains and boats, are all opportunities for this). It’s astonishing how far a little language goes toward creating a feeling of goodwill.

Photos by Sebastian Copeland Click the photo to view the slide show. photo © Sebastian Copeland

4) REMEMBER THE ECONOMIC REALITIES OF YOUR NEW CURRENCY. A few rupees, baht or pesos one way or another is not going to ruin you. Don’t get all bent out of shape over the fact that a visitor who earns 100 times a local’s salary might be expected to pay a few cents more for a ferry ride, a museum entrance, or an egg. 5) BARGAIN FAIRLY, and with respect for the seller. Again, remember the economic realities of where you are. The final transaction should leave both buyer and seller satisfied and pleased. Haggling for a taxi or carpet is part of many cultures; but it’s not a bargain if either person feels exploited, diminished, or ripped-off. 6) LEARN AND RESPECT THE TRADITIONS AND TABOOS OF YOUR HOST COUNTRY. Each culture has its own mores, and they’re often taken very seriously. Never, for example, pat a Thai child on the head, enter a traditional Brahmin’s kitchen, or refuse a cup of kava in Fiji! 7) CURB YOUR ANGER, AND CULTIVATE YOUR SENSE OF HUMOR. Anger is a real issue for westerners—even the Dalai Lama remarks on this. It’s perversely satisfying, but it never earns the respect of locals, or defuses a bad situation. A light touch—and a sense of cosmic perspective—are infinitely more useful. As former Merry Prankster Wavy Gravy says: “When you lose your sense of humor, it’s just not funny anymore.” It makes an enormous difference if you ARRIVE WITH A SENSE OF THE SOCIAL, POLITICAL, AND ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES faced by the people you are visiting. Our site will direct you to good profiles of most travel destinations; we also recommend you read the political and historic sections of your guidebook (Lonely Planet, Moon Publications, and Rough Guides are especially good for this). Many countries offer English-language newspapers, as well. 9) LEARN TO LISTEN. The ability to listen is the essence of diplomacy, on both the personal and international levels. Many of the world’s conflicts arise when people feel marginalized. Travelers from the USA in particular should be aware that many people—especially in developing countries—believe that having the ear of an American is tantamount to having the ear of America. So wherever you’re from, listen well—and with respect—to all points of view. 10) LEARN TO SPEAK. People from wealthy and powerful countries often express their opinions as if they are the absolute truth. Such preaching invites anger and resentment. We suggest tempering conversations with phrases like “I believe,” or “My view is,” rather than, “Everybody knows….” 11) The single most useful phrase any traveler can learn: “CAN YOU PLEASE HELP ME?” Rarely, in any country or situation, will another human being refuse a direct request for help. Being of service, and inviting others to reciprocate, is what the phrase global community is all about. 12) LEAVE YOUR PRECONCEPTIONS ABOUT THE WORLD AT HOME. The inhabitants of planet Earth will continually amaze you with their generosity, hospitality and wisdom. Be open to their friendship, and aware of our common humanity, delights, and hardships. 13) NEVER FORGET KURT VONNEGUT JR’S BEST LINE: “Peculiar travel suggestions are dancing lessons from God.” In other words: go with the flow, and give free rein to your sense of adventure! (Note: Colorful bookmarks featuring the “13 Tips” are available from Ethical Traveler for a reasonable price. Minimum order = 500. Please contact us to inquire.) Please visit www.responsibletravel.com/Copy/Copy100061.htm for another good list of cultural and moral considerations.

Voluntourism – the high road or the low road?

Great thought provoking article written by the folks at Voluntours in South Africa.

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“Is it just a matter of time before

South Africa features as one of

these ‘irresponsible’ volunteer destinations?”

Although it is ultimately the volunteer who decides with which organisation they want to volunteer with and who will receive their hard earned money, it is vital that organisations provide responsible and ethical programmes. It is disturbing to see more and more articles online in which volunteers are over-promised and under-delivered. Is it just a matter of time before South Africa features as one of these “irresponsible” volunteer destinations?

UK volunteers have been scammed time and again, read about some of their experiences at the Telegraph and at The Times Online

Admittedly there is a growing awareness from consumers that they should do their homework properly. But even then, many websites look “responsible and ethical” – they use all the right terminology, are picked out by search engines looking for these key words or phrases. “Green washing” is difficult to see through and many websites promote themselves as ethical and responsible organisations.

Voluntourism in South Africa is booming! Every day we come across another operator starting up. Some plagiarising material from our own website without even attempting to change the wording. On face-value these websites looks good and say all the right things. But look a bit deeper and the cracks start to emerge. Some of them are not registered companies, some do not list their company registration number, some operate without a physical address, some only have a mobile number to contact them on …. and the list goes on.

The global trend of large wholesale tour operators offering voluntourism products has come to South Africa. A potential shortcoming in a lot of voluntourism models is that they operate their programmes like a normal retail travel booking – your community placement or should I rather say “booking” is automatically guaranteed and your money is taken. Importantly no screening or matching of skill takes place. What this means in practice is that the receiving community – in some cases vulnerable communities, with little rights and influence, often with OVC (Orphans and/or Vulnerable Children) in their midst – has no say on who comes into their community or what they will be doing. This “push” approach to volunteering does not always take into account the needs of the community and brings its own set of risks. In a worse-case scenario these operators could be sending paedophiles to work with children.

Voluntourism has many risks that communities themselves may not be aware of. Despite these risks, they often “buy-in” to voluntourism because of the promise of a monetary donation. One of the risks being that dependency is created and/or increased. And in some cases, the community often does not have the capacity to effectively utilize the large number of volunteers sent to them. If voluntourism is to make a sustainable contribution to communities then it is important that they do not replace local labour, but rather should work with local labour. Much of the “work” that volunteers are asked to do can and should be done by employing local labour. Should volunteer programmes be geared more at passing on higher-order skills than doing basic maintenance and repair work?

Volunteers should look beyond marketing-speak when selecting their volunteer organisation. Look at the way the organisation presents and markets itself, and what’s in it for the community. Some volunteer placement companies offer very short-term placements – this can range from a few half-days to a day or two where they are told they can make a difference. While others, offer a day or two in the community to “pass-on-skills” before driving their tour-bus onto the next waiting community. How best can the needs of the community be served? Are volunteers really able to pass on skills in a day or two? Should operators be educating their clients on the pitfalls of short-term volunteering or are they meeting a demand?

South Africa’s voluntourism market needs to look at the real issues before offering a community-based project. As a voluntourist destination, South Africa should be providing an ethical product and not placing our communities at unnecessary risk. As an operator you need to ask yourself, have you thought through the implications and risks of offering a community-based volunteer programme?

Should there be an independent body to “accredit” or certify responsible operators or programmes working with minors? Should we looking at best practice in the UK and the US where it is mandatory for anyone wanting to volunteer with children / minors to have a police clearance issued? Do you see the voluntourism industry regulating itself or will government step-in?

VOLUNTOURS published a Code of Good Practice: Volunteering in South Africa and we encourage other organisations to join us and adopt this Code thereby making South Africa more of a responsible volunteering destination.

Scholarships and Voluntourism – How Can They Work Effectively?

David Weindling of the Farther Foundation talks about how they select students to support and travel providers to partner with in order to have the best shot at good outcomes.

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At Farther Foundation, we provide deserving, low-income high school students opportunities to learn, grow and succeed by participating in educational travel programs. We believe travel is singular in its ability to open the eyes and unbind the aspirations of students whose experiences rarely escape the boundaries of their own neighborhoods. Inspired by experience students become active and engaged learners, full of potential and more fully aware of the world and its opportunities. More and more these days, educational travel incorporates service as a key part of its itinerary.

Farther Foundation scholarship students are currently traveling and volunteering in Vietnam, Ghana, El Salvador, Argentina, Peru, Costa Rica and Hawaii. We do not require applicants for our support to choose a program that includes service learning, but our scholarship selection committee knows that such experiences can be particularly rewarding, inspiring and enlightening.

To ensure that the students we support have the best experience possible we look to work with the best possible partners.

The travel programs and providers we work with have established relationships with organizations that provide service opportunities that are designed and well supervised as appropriate for our high school aged participants. Our travel partners also make it a priority to reach out to underserved, minority and low-income students. They have developed an expertise in successfully integrating individuals of disparate backgrounds into a cohesive group that reaps benefits from its diversity. Travel providers our scholarship recipients are traveling with this year include: The Road Less Traveled, Putney Student Travel, Visions Service Adventures and AFS.

A successful outcome is not just contingent on the experience provided however, it is also dependent on the experiences and expectations each student participant brings to the program. We require all candidates for scholarship support to submit an application in conjunction with an “Education Partner”. Education Partners are schools and community based organizations that provide students with extra-curricular support such as; tutoring, mentoring, internships, after-school programming, leadership training, and college preparatory activities.  These partnerships ensure that our applicants are students who have been proactive in seeking opportunities and that they are receiving ongoing support to help them succeed.

It is neither simple nor easy to overcome negative influences and years of lost opportunity.  But, at Farther Foundation we believe that by building strong partnerships and augmenting existing networks of support with unique, inspirational and transformational travel experiences we can make a real and lasting difference in the lives of deserving students.

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Farther Foundation is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization providing scholarships to low-income students to inspire them to reach their highest aspirations through educational travel experiences. www.fartherfoundation.org.

Voluntourism: Should Volunteers Work with Kids?

Daniela Papi from PEPY Ride and I are starting to do a little research into the best ways for volunteers to work with kids.

Should it be at least 1 month? 2 weeks? Can it be sustainable at 1 day? What sorts of activities can volunteers do that is helpful and not hurtful in the long run?

We’d love your thoughts on this!

Faceless NGOs and Voluntourism

Sarah Van Auken who runs the Volunteer Global blog recently wrote a post called ‘Faceless NGOs’ and it struck on something I’ve believed for a long time. On most voluntourism operator sites the projects/NGOs are talked about but never named and their stories are never fully told. What has this community accomplished as a result of volunteers, what do they have to say, is there a picture of them, what are their development goals?

I understand that there is a hesitance to give NGO names as travelers could go direct, but why not tell their story more on your site? It’s one of the main things travelers ask for when comparing trips.

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“Something I’ve noticed while researching international volunteer opportunities is the surprising number of groups who give little to no information about their in-country partners.

I see all too often something like, “Our group works with an organization/NGO in your host community to acheive our common goal of sustainable development/education/child care/etc.” With NO mention of who that NGO or small group is, whether they have a site you can visit, whether it’s run by locals, or what.

My first reaction when coming across groups like these has been to remove them from my website. I see this more often with larger placement groups that serve as a sort of travel agent, rather than volunteer organization. It’s easy to weed these ones out…but I’m concerned that even the small groups who work in one or two communities still have a hard time listing who they work with.

At the very least, could they at least say the name of the NGO? I can see the concern here, as the umbrella groups have a business to run…however, I feel it’s insulting to the NGO to be completely faceless on its “partner” organization’s website, handbook, etc.”

Int’l Volunteer Service – A Smart Way to Build Bridges

The Brookings Institution has released a new policy brief written by three long-standing BBC leaders and champions of international service: David Caprara, Kevin Quigley and Lex Rieffel. It is entitled “International Volunteer Service: A Smart Way to Build Bridges” and is a great paper that discusses different models of multilateral international service.

You can download the full paper here

Voluntourism – Right or Wrong?

Interesting press release from Planeterra – what do you think of their best practices??

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Voluntourism – it’s been a hot item in articles, tweets and blogs lately. We define it as travel experiences that provide the opportunity to contribute to local community projects and development initiatives with some time off to visit the highlights of that particular destination or country.

This kind of travel creates opportunities for greater interaction with local communities, so it’s essential that we consider the impacts these trips can have to ensure there are benefits for local people and their environments.

Our friends in the media need to be as concerned as we are because the health and welfare of communities and cultures can be at risk when purposes and good intentions go awry.

Planeterra Foundation, (http://www.planeterra.org/) the global non-profit dedicated to sustainable community development through travel, challenges you to look closely at the following questions and insofar as possible, share our concerns – which we are sure you will be yours as well – with your audiences.

• When is my need to “do good” potentially a selfish act on my part?
• Am I helping or hindering by taking time and resources away from the community and project managers just so I have a “feel good” project to work on?
• Are valuable time, effort and resources being wasted and misappropriated just to prepare for and accommodate a voluntourist?
• Can I really make a contribution in a lasting, significant way in the short time I’m there?
• What is the optimum duration for a meaningful voluntourism stay?
• Is the project just a “front” for fundraising or attempt to generate exposure, creating contrived situations for my benefit and not really the benefit of the community?

Here’s how we at Planeterra think the growing voluntourism industry needs to address these concerns:

• Programs must be set up to engage the voluntourist in task-specific scenarios so people can see the tangible results of their contributions.
• Voluntourism programs are ideally no shorter than five days and optimally 14 days.
• It’s vital to have a designated tour leader or guide who helps facilitate the volunteer experience so that project staff aren’t taken away from running their regular programs.
• Designated projects are ongoing and sustainable; they are not simply there just to ‘entertain’ travelers. This being said, many of the activities would be taking place without travelers present, but it is because of the voluntourists that these tasks are able to be completed.
• It’s important for voluntourists to have realistic expectations; while they won’t change the world by volunteering for a few days, they will open themselves up to learn more about a local community that can be shared with others when returning home.
• There’s an overall need in the voluntourism travel sector to shift the focus toward sustainability. This enables projects to be taken over eventually by a community, thus minimizing dependence on outside help.
• Everyone needs to recognize that the end game is total community control and quite possibly the disappearance and solution of issues and conditions that brought the original need for the project – and voluntourists — in the first place.

Here at Planeterra, where there is a need, we recognize it, and we act quickly to meet it. Whatever the voluntour project Planeterra has the insight, agility and technical and financial wherewithal to successfully see it through. Our goal is to empower local people and communities to strengthen their well being while promoting long-term, environmentally responsible growth.

Please call or email if you would like more thinking along these lines.

Richard G. Edwards

Director, Planeterra Foundation

Email: richard@planeterra.org

www.planeterra.org

Voluntourism Code of Good Practice

I found this on the website of Voluntours, a voluntourism company out of South Africa – what do you think of their code? Anything to add? Anything to take away?

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Volunteering as a global travel practice is big business. Unfortunately growth markets are susceptible to unethical practices and we should endeavour to operate our programmes within guidelines that are recognised, respected and adhered to.

More and more organisations in South Africa are now offering volunteer packages to their clients. However, it is important that volunteer programmes are well thought out and impact positively on economic, social and environmental issues in the community.

Most importantly if you are going to offer volunteer travel it should be done in a transparent and responsible manner that recognises the needs of both the community and the volunteer. Responsible operators should guard against exploiting the communities they serve and set realistic goals and expectations for volunteers they place.

Responsible volunteering should be about creating a better place for people to live in and a better place to visit.

As a responsible volunteer operator we pledge our commitment to uphold a minimum Code of Good Practice, which includes but is not limited to:

1. Having a long-term relationship and agreement in writing with the host community.
2. Programme outputs must be determined by and with the community, for example, via a needs analysis, collective consultative meeting.
3. Having a shared vision with the community/project on the role played by volunteers.
4. Volunteers must not be taking the place of local employees.
5. Where overseas placement organisations are used to source volunteers, these organisations should be charging fair prices in a transparent way.
6. Volunteers must be screened for personal references and criminal records.
7. Volunteers’ skills/interests/hobbies must be matched to the programme needs.
8. The community or programme must have final right of acceptance or rejection of applicants. Automatic acceptance should not be the norm.
9. Volunteers must be provided with a written Task Description outlining project duration, resources, supervision, reporting structures and final objectives/ measurable outcomes.
10. Volunteers must transfer skills to the community.
11. Volunteers must be orientated effectively prior to arrival and on the programme.
12. Volunteers must be self-funding so as not to burden the host community.
13. Volunteer programmes must be financially transparent by giving volunteers access to information on the breakdown of their fee and what amounts go into the community.
14. Volunteers must be effectively managed on the ground (assistance, guidance, supervision) by programme co-ordinators, so as to ensure community and volunteer gets value from placement.
15. Volunteers must abide by a written code of conduct.
16. Volunteer programmes must carry volunteer specific insurances (legal compliance).
17. Volunteer programmes must carry PDP permits and relevant insurances when charging volunteers for transfers/transportation.
18. Volunteering management companies/ agencies must adhere to basic legal requirements of their specific sector of the industry and laws of South Africa.
19. Volunteer project must have a Responsible Tourism Strategy that addresses economic, social and environmental policy.
20. Volunteer programmes must have a structure/system for monitoring feedback and de-briefings with the volunteer.
21. Volunteers should be advised what form of post volunteering support the programme can offer with regards to continued communications, fundraising, awareness issues.
22. Volunteer programmes must have a reporting process back to the sending organisation, where applicable.
23. Volunteer programmes must have a reporting process back to the community that allows for community participation.

For further information and discussions regarding the Code of Good Practice for Responsible Volunteering in South Africa, please feel free to contact: info@voluntours.co.za

Lessons Learned: ‘Competitors’ Should be Partners

A great blog post by Daniela Papi - PEPY Executive Director

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Lessons Learned: ‘Competitors’ Should be Partners

Those of you who have traveled with us in the past might know that for many years we have complained about the failure of libraries in rural Cambodian schools. “There are no librarians. Any training given has to do with maintaining books, not literacy education. Teachers never enter the libraries. Kids can’t read and no one is teaching them. Libraries are locked so that no one steals any books.” These are all complaints we have issued and heard echoed throughout rural Cambodia. So we complained and stamped our feet and vowed to make our library in Chanleas Dai different, but what good does that do for all of the rest of the libraries in Cambodia?

About a year ago I was reading a book called “Forces for Good.” Have you read it? If you are working in development, looking to donate funds responsibly, or are interested in effective ways to effect change, read up. In the book it talks about how “great” NGOs work on the ground and they also work in advocacy for the issues they are working to change. Another common thread among the most successful NGOs was that they often partnered with their “competitors” or sometimes even their “enemies”.

“Competitors?”, you ask? “Isn’t that a funny word to use in the NGO sector? Shouldn’t you all be working together to make this world a better place?” You would think…..

but unfortunately “competition” and “proprietary information” and other barriers to successful information sharing are common terms even in development. One of our heroes who was trying to break that down and bring light to these issues was Mickey Sampson who we have featured in a previous post and we have learned from him that, only once we all work together can we reach our common goals.

So, one year ago, we decided to try to change things on a broader scale. We learned a lesson: that complaining isn’t going to change things, but partnering and working through problems with long term goals in mind, rather than quick fixes, might. We approached Room to Read, an organization with over a million dollar per year budget in Cambodia alone, and said “Let’s do this better.” And they agreed. Their new Cambodian Country Director at the time had also gone out to do surveys of libraries in Cambodia and came to the same conclusions as us: libraries sit locked or unused, the training that does happen usually gets to the principal of the school who attends the training simply for the high per-diem he receives and does not pass on the information, and teachers never enter the libraries.  Together we decided that we would work to find a way to do this better.

Our first step was to create a concept paper around “Classroom Libraries” with the idea of bringing the books into the classroom. At PEPY, our belief is that the key to change in libraries is bringing training to the teachers, not just to the librarian. If the TEACHERS know about the books and have ideas for how those books could be used in the classroom, then perhaps the library will get more use and will actually serve as a tool to further education as it can be integrated into their classes. A side product is that the teachers will be better trained for all of their classes and, with many teachers listing training as a top need after increased pay, we know there is a demand for this.  In Cambodia, we are working with a generation of teachers who never had books in THEIR classrooms, so there is little understanding as to how to use books as learning tools.

With the support or Room to Read and additional outside funding from PEPY supporters such as the Hunter Advisors, we are installing classroom libraries in 10 schools in Siem Reap this month. We designed the classroom library unit to include shelving where students have access to books targeted at their grade level as well as levels below and above in order to challenge all students. These books should be available to students between classes and any time they are in the classroom without their teacher. The bottom portion of the shelf has a locked storage area which holds 20 copies each of a variety of titles chosen for each grade level. These books will all come with two lesson plan ideas per book and detailed instructions for the teacher as to how to integrate the lesson into their classroom. The PEPY team has reached out to educators all over Siem Reap to help create these lesson plans and ideas with the goal of creating templates which could be repeated with any number of books as the teacher gets used to the system.

The training, as I said, is what we believe will be the key to the success of this program. This is still the area we are working on and hope to complete the initial training phase for all schools by the third week of May. The final week of May we will have a training with the head of Room to Read’s programs throughout Asia to discuss this concept and the methods we have used to structure this program. Our hope is that, if this model proves successful, it will be copied in areas across Cambodia and adapted to fit the needs of neighboring countries as well.

By getting the books into the classrooms and bringing much needed training to teachers who self-describe themselves as ill-prepared to teach reading, we will make a dent in what should be our real metrics of success: increasing literacy rates not number of libraries.