Voluntourism
Avoiding the Trap
On their journeys to the Global South, tourists from Europe and North America risk to unknowingly reinforce stereotypes about other countries. Videos, pictures and hashtags on social media catalyze the spreading of outdated, neo-colonal clichés. This can be avoided.
Voluntourism — "all Inclusive" social commitment?
Helping with an aid project or teaching English - many people want to do good on holiday. More and more providers are discovering the lucrative business of travel and "helping". But often these short-term, commercial offers do more harm than good.
From Volunteering to Voluntourism
Spending some time abroad and experiencing how people live in a different country is an impressive and very enriching experience. After all, travelling contributes to one’s education – and how much more so does a trip that offers insights behind the tourism scenes and makes authentic experiences possible. Commercial tour operators are also increasingly discovering the now lucrative business field travel and “help”. Development-related learning through intensive preparation and follow-up, effective child protection and cooperation at eye-level with local organisations are important criteria for effective and responsible volunteering. But as our research shows, these are far from standard in the sector.
Good Intentions Don't Always Help
Short-term volunteering or voluntourism is a growing and profitable segment of the tourism industry. But time and again, under the disguise of supposed "help", children get exploited for sexual purposes. Some cases have been reported in the media, many more have been recorded by the police …
WTM Panel on Human Rights Due Diligence
Human rights related challenges were on the agenda of this year’s World Travel Market (WTM) in London. As Rebekka Macht reports, a panel discussion focused on the need for businesses to integrate human rights concerns in their day to day operations and to cooperate with each other. On …
Volunteer Tourism: An In-depth Analysis of the Potential German Volunteer Tourist
In a continuously growing and diverse industry such as tourism, it is essential for tour operators and tourism organizations to enter new markets, and attract new customers in order to stay competitive. Volunteer tourism is a growing niche market, which more and more commercial tourism …
New Criteria for Voluntourism Projects in Southern Africa
While voluntourism has been gaining popularity, it has also come under increasing criticism. Fair Trade in Tourism has revised the criteria for tourism businesses with volunteer products, particularly those involving vulnerable people and wildlife interaction. As Manuel Bollmann reports …
Stolen Dignity: Childhood Experiences in an Orphanage
It is estimated that 30 to 45 percent of the 2.4 million orphans and vulnerable children in Kenya live in children’s homes or orphanages. Most of these institutions are supported by foreigners, many of them well intentioned. However, supporting institutions disrupts the family and …
New publication concerning Voluntourism
From Volunteering to Voluntourism - Challenges for the Responsible Development of a Growing Travel Trend. DIN A4, 24 pages. Voluntourismus- this means short-term volunteering with high adventure and experiential content - has become increasingly important in the past years in Germany. Many …
Defending Development Priorities: Towards Ethical Voluntourism in South Africa
Volunteer tourism is a rapidly growing sector of the tourism industry. Over the last 20 years, we have seen the merging of volunteer travel, which has often been facilitated by NGOs, and the commercial tourism industry, with the view that the two are mutually beneficial. While this has …
