Voluntourism Analysis

Analysis of a Current Debate Voluntourism
The debate title says “Can ‘Voluntourism’ make a difference?” In Western countries like The United States, voluntourism is common practice regardless of age, experience and education level. Some students and tour seekers go to developing countries as a voluntourist during their vacation time. This way of providing help raises an argument between individuals of different views on volunteerism. In the mind of some people, voluntourism is an egoist action that hunts for poor people to get satisfaction. In fact, inviting unmatured young people to do voluntourism could not be as fruitful as needed and the shortage of time does not make a root change in help-seekers’ life as others argued. Besides, the eagerness

It is clear from the debate that traveling overseas as a volunteer became an issue for some people who believed volunteers have hidden agenda of satisfying self than satisfying the targeted community. Rafia Zakaria, a columnist for Dawn, a Pakistan English-language newspaper, interpreted voluntourism as a hidden agenda of voluntourist that disrespects dignity of the poor saying, “The problem with voluntourism is that it treats receiving communities as passive objects of the visiting Westerner’s quest for saviordom.” Comparing the outcomes of voluntourism to the the shelter she worked for, Zakaria presented how efficient her organization was unlike today’s voluntourism and she argued the tourist shouldn’t make a plan to see the poor as “poverty is not a spectacle.” On the other hand, there is a situation where volunteers are forced to walk long distances on foot through deserts and jungles to get the work done. Chris Johnson, director of communications for the Fuller Center for Housing in Americus, explained what has been accomplished thus far listing tangible results of voluntourism. Johnson relied on his long-term leadership experience in volunteering to support his argument and addressed voluntourism changes life through painful voluntourist work. There are no doubt volunteers earn mental satisfaction as they save someone’s life and what is more meaningful for Johnson is that the concrete and sustainable outcomes of