Voluntourism: A Summary And Analysis

She paints readers the vivid picture of children sleeping in piles like dogs on dirt floors, mothers who brewed alcohol to make money feeding their children the mash from which it is made to dull the pain of starvation, and crowds of people who haven’t eaten for days fighting like savages to access a pot of beans. She admits that many times she felt overwhelmed at the work there is to do. This portion of the book reminded me of my mission trip to Guatemala during my freshman year of college. On the day our group went to the local street market, I had dozens of villagers following me around the market, begging me to buy their product. I ended up using all of my money that day because I had such a hard time saying “no” to these people. I remembering collapsing on my bed that afternoon, mentally exhausted and heartbroken because I could not do more for the villagers who really needed the money to feed their families. Connecting this memory with Katie’s experience brings me the understanding that in the social work field, as well throughout life in general, we cannot reach every person who needs our help, no matter how hard we try. What we can control is the love we show the people we interact with and the action we put into making a

When one volunteers, it is not for their personal gain, yet rather for the benefit of others. The volunteering opportunity would enable one to make a direct connection with others. Thus, the volunteers get

It combines the travelling with learning opportunities to explore social and cultural issues by volunteering

Although trips to third world countries are expensive, money for the plane ticket and other expenses are not the only factors that are affecting others in a positive way. The human interaction and personal level of care for those in need is a powerful manner to care and enhance the prosperity of others. People all over the world could use help from others, not just materialistically or economically. Human welfare should not just be measured by the materials they have or how much money they have.

To combine volunteers and paid staff for service in social care and public services is common in recent years. Though the volunteering is a conception of the idea of goodness, how to organize volunteers to a universal system, till faced with many practical difficulties for non-profit organizations and governments (Brudney, 1993, 2000; Cunninghan and James, 2011). To look forward community-based volunteers’ organizations and even become social care providers, especial focus on elderly service is a hard task.

Throughout my life, I have been drawn to activities which reflect my concern for the human soul. I am genuinely committed to helping others, especially those who resembles me and come from similar backgrounds such as mine. More specifically, I am most interested those communities that are socially and economic disproportionally placed. It was when I peered into the eyes of those famines deprived individuals, my mission became clear; I knew I must intervene in some way and somehow.

One of my team’s primary activities was running health campaigns in isolated rural villages that were a few hours drive up the mountains from Huancayo, the city where we stayed. As one of the few Spanish-speaking members of our group, I was responsible for taking medical histories from the attendees. Quickly what I thought would be a simple process of filling out forms became the most impactful part of my trip. I learned about peoples’ lives and how their health care system helped them and how it failed them. I saw how programs that look promising on paper could create new problems of their own. Like SERUM, which requires Peruvian medical students to spend a year working in rural clinics, which has lead to an increase in young doctors in isolated villages who are often not in the clinic when they should be and who don’t care about the patients they are

A non-profit world of volunteerism and martyrs is how my introduction to taking care of community began. Working in soup kitchens, food banks, and clothing banks showed me the needs that my community had, however, it limited my perspective on what could be done about it. There was a sense that in order to meet the needs of the community, citizens needed to give until they had nothing left to give.

Recently, I attended a seminar at the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to discuss the Sustainable Development Goals designed by the United Nations to limit poverty and inequality. The panel included representatives from various organizations who dedicated their careers to promoting global welfare, developing vaccinations and providing health services for people whom they may never meet personally. These professionals and activists experienced levels of discomfort and self-sacrifice much greater than my own, dedicating their livelihoods to provide basic human rights and resources for the underprivileged.

The notion of volunteering refers to offering one’s services of their own free will for the benefit of the community by an individual or group without expecting anything in return(Wu). Furthermore, organizations such as the ASPCA (American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals) and the Bakersfield Homeless Shelter could always use the extra support, whether it be by manual labor or even donations. Lending aid to society helps build character, benefits those in need and allows a deeper understanding of responsibility to the

Volunteerism plays a critical role in addressing community, national, and global issues. Volunteerism not only enables the smooth functioning of many organizations, it also contributes to the maintenance of social cohesion. Individuals give their time and services willingly without expecting any compensation or benefits. Over the past few years, volunteerism in the U.S. has declined from an estimated 50% of U.S. adults collectively logging volunteer hours equivalent to five million fulltime jobs to a recent low of only 25% of Americans engaged in volunteer work according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2014. The workforce behind many nonprofit organizations is the blood, sweat, and tears of a sizeable volunteer base. For example, the

Through selfless acts of many individuals, volunteering is what has made many heavily populated, first world countries

“Actively deciding to give to causes that move you deeply is far more fulfilling than the monetary gratification derived from signing a check and mailing it to a nonprofit about which you know little more than what’s on the brochure they sent you”. (Arrillaga-Andreessen) Today, millions of nonprofit organizations advocate for human rights, education reforms, healthcare reforms and countless cases free of cost. The Human Rights Watch and Medecins Sans Frontieres (Doctors Without Borders) are two non-profit organizations that focus on aiding individuals in need of assistance; however, they carry the process out differently in terms of their history, the services they

Voluntourism is when you're traveling and also volunteering at least developed countries such as Africa, and etc. Voluntourism is a good way to get hands on experiences and learn what you are interesting to it. voluntourism is a people-to-people experience, in which both the helper and the helped become acquainted with one another. Volunteers take their experiences home with them, and the majority of host organisations/projects confirm that volunteers tend to stay in touch when they finish the placement and return home, even actively fundraising on their behalf. However, unskilled workers just graduate from high school are in the operation room. Without any post-secondary education and training the voluntourism are considers as doctors because

Although volunteers for Medecins Sans Frontiers are commonly stationed in various countries with a dire healthcare worker shortage, regions with refugee camps and internally displaced persons are also a focus for this organization. Refugees and internally displaced persons often come from war torn regions and live in close confines with poor sanitation and limited resources. These living situations become a breeding ground for diseases and other health issues like malnutrition, yet the individuals lack access to any sort of healthcare. The organization also responds quickly when regions suddenly experience an increased need for healthcare, for example in times of an epidemic or a natural disaster. Medecins Sans Frontiers’ involvement across its varying regions and their attempt to address a broad spectrum of healthcare truly show how altruistic the organization is to individuals regardless of race, gender, or religion.