Voluntourism “Voluntourism”, as it is popularly called, is a booming activity in which thousands of well-off citizens tour impoverished nations, giving “aid” in the form of volunteer labor and employment. But voluntourism is little more than a thinly-veiled industry for the ingratiation of western, first-world citizens in the pursuit of warm, altruistic, yet undeserved feelings. The work of voluntourists is superficially beneficial; the work of the volunteers does more harm than good for impoverished communities. For voluntourism to be rendered useful, it must be changed as to be unrecognizable to its modern form. Almost all forms of voluntourism are rendered either detrimental or ineffective to the people they claim to help, as its inefficiency, …show more content…
Solving systemic problems with groups of ignorant volunteers is incapable of any change; in some cases like writer Pippa Biddle’s, the volunteers are left to be filled with a false feeling of charity after having their shoddy work undone by local workers (Biddle). Even the emotional connections that are touted so highly by proponents of voluntourism are often detrimental. Developmental psychologist Linda Richter warns that children cared for by voluntourists often have “disturbed attachments” with the aforementioned voluntourists, due to the changing volunteer staff and fleeting nature of the relationships (Richter). For any tangible, long-term benefits to be had, organizations must shift their focus towards practical solutions based in the communities themselves—a radical shift for many of the essentially for-profit groups. While voluntourism may be a beneficial force in acquiring funds and attention, it is now time to adopt a more sophisticated, grassroots approach—an approach that is almost alien to the majority of voluntourist organizations …show more content…
The voluntourism industry relies on the impoverishment of communities for profit. First-world citizens inadvertently damage the dignity and integrity of poor people by using their aid as a source for feel-good feelings and gratitude for their lives back home. As Dawn columnist Rafia Zakaria aptly described, the memories, photographs, and small projects of the volunteers are taken as “evidence of their new nobility.” (Zakaria). This philosophy is damaging in the long-run, as it does not acknowledge the dignity of poor communities and it is disrespectful to nations that must acquire aid; ultimately, it hinders the ability of struggling communities and countries to help themselves.The plight of human beings is oftentimes exploited for resume-building and personal satisfaction in the process of voluntourism. While voluntourists may come with good intentions, it must be understood that their “help” is ultimately detrimental to the communities in the future. First-world citizens must play only a small, supplementary part in the rebuilding of impoverished nations; luckily, this realization is slowly coming to light, as it did to Pippa Biddle, who now participates in a volunteer organization sustained by local members themselves (Biddle). Sending in droves of useless volunteers is not benign, and it may even create a dependency on foreign aid and lack of employment for locals. Other