Vacationers can help make the world a better place by volunteering for humanitarian, scientific and environmental projects worldwide.
Many people are forgoing luxurious vacations in favor of volunteering their skills to international non-profit organizations. On June 7, 2007 Authur Frommer, travel authority and founder of the Frommer's Travel Guide Series, wrote on his blog "For reasons hard to explain, but easy to speculate about, the volunteer vacation is currently surging, and people are flocking to places where they can work at a socially beneficial cause..."
Who Takes Volunteer Vacations?
According to the Travel Industry of America, approximately 55 million Americans have already taken a volunteer vacation, and nearly twice that many intend to do so in the future. Volunteer travel used to be the territory of the college student, but today volunteers range from children to retirees. Global Volunteers, who have been in the business of organizing volunteer vacations since the early '80s, state on their website that many families have opted for volunteer experiences, making children under the age of twenty the fastest growing group of international volunteers.
What Do Volunteers Do?
Volunteers are needed for hundreds of humanitarian, environmental and scientific jobs. Some typical assignments are:
- Assisting in scientific fieldwork such as bird counts, turtle tagging or population studies.
- Helping to construct or repair homes, trails, roads, wells, or schools,
- Assisting in the care of displaced, impoverished, or other "high needs" children
- Teaching English to adults or children
- Assisting with medical care
- Assisting in disaster relief efforts
Where Are Most Volunteer Opportunities Located?
There are organizations working in nearly every country in the world. From regional projects just a few miles from home, to far-flung projects thousands of miles away, there is an undertaking to suit every pocketbook and interest.
What Does a Volunteer Vacation Cost?
Costs vary depending on several factors including the location and accommodations, which may range from a basic tent or a bed in a private home, to dorm or hotel-like facilities. Some experiences cost as little as a few hundred dollars, while others are in excess of $5,000.
Most non-profit organizations' fees include local transportation, room and board, as well as a donation to the organization. In addition to the fees charged by the organization, volunteers are usually responsible for travel expenses from their hometown to a rendezvous point in the country where they will be working.
Why Do Organizations Charge People Who Volunteer?
The logistics of providing transportation, food, safe drinking water, safe and secure shelter, and training for volunteers, is a costly proposition. The more remote the location, generally, the higher the fees. These fees help make the volunteer program self-sustaining. Fortunately, most of the expenses related to a volunteer vacation are tax deductible.
What Is the Time Commitment?
Most organizations try to accommodate a range of time commitments. Possible volunteer opportunities range from a period of one week to several months. Some organizations offer small stipends to volunteers who commit to longer stints, usually three months or more.
Getting Started
Whether volunteering as an individual or a family, planning is essential for a satisfying experience. Potential volunteers should consider the type of work they would like to do, where they would like to go, their approximate budget, and the length of time available for volunteering, then research organizations to find one that matches their interests and needs.
Idealist.com is a good place to begin. They maintain a data base of 50,000 non-profit organizations worldwide who seek volunteers. The database can be sorted by country, type of project, and keywords.
Volunteers who've written about their experiences on blogs and web sites often say they feel they gained more from their volunteer experience than they gave. Many write that stereotypes were dispelled, and that they forged lifelong friendships across cultures and language barriers. Many also say that they returned home with a satisfying sense of accomplishment and a renewed understanding of what really matters in life.
