Find out as much as you can but be prepared for all your learning and assumptions to be
challenged once you are there. Recognise that you are not single-handedly going to change
the world in one trip and that what you expect to do may not be what you actually do once
you get there. Don’t expect lots of feedback on how you are doing or what impact you’re
having but recognise that just by being there and sharing you are helping the people to
understand one another better. Accept that you will feel that you probably got more from
the experience than the people you went to work with did.
As mentioned before, nine times out of 10, the reason why an international volunteer
placement goes wrong is because the expectations of a volunteer do not match the real-
ity of the placement. This doesn’t mean there’s anything wrong with the placement, or
anything wrong with the volunteer. However, it might mean that the volunteer and the
placement were ill-matched and that the volunteer was ill-advised and/or inadequately
prepared. This is why it is so important to make sure that you volunteer with a reputable
organisation that knows both you and their partner programmes well.
In addition, it is one of the reasons why patience, flexibility and adaptability are all key
skills to have as an international volunteer. If your volunteer programme is significantly
different to the one you signed up for, you will definitely need all three to see if you can
still make things work for both you and your host organisation.
However, if you have given your situation time and you genuinely can’t make the place-
ment work, you do have a few options. If you have volunteered with a sending agency in
your home country, you need to talk to their in-country representatives. Assuming there
is no improvement, you will then need to contact the organisation itself in writing. If you
asked for a job description prior to departure (see p26) you will be in a better position to
point out the mismatch between the volunteer programme you were sold and the one you
ended up with. You will then need to decide whether to go home early. This is not a deci-
sion to be taken lightly.
However, if coming home is your choice, any reputable volunteering organisation should
discuss with you either a refund or free placement on another volunteer programme in
the future. If this does not happen, you might like to forward your complaint to one of
the professional or self-regulatory bodies that the organisation is part of. In the UK, for
instance, this might be The Year Out Group (%+44 (0)1380-816696; [email protected]; www
.yearoutgroup.org; Queensfield, 28 Kings Rd, Easterton, Wiltshire SN10 4PX). While Volunteering Australia
(%+61 3 9820 4100; http://www.volunteeringaustralia.org)) and Volunteering New Zealand (%+64 4
3843636; http://www.volunteeringnz.org.nz)) are peak bodies concerned mostly with national volunteer-
ing, they might be able to offer advice. There’s no all-encompassing volunteer organisation
association in the US, but the International Volunteer Programs Association (%+1 201
221 4105; http://www.volunteerinternational.org)) does count several dozen major organisations as mem-
bers and might be able to offer advice on how to deal with uncooperative operators.
Useful Websites
~ CIA World Factbook (www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook) Find out everything you ever
wanted to know about the country you’re volunteering in.
~ Climate Care (www.jpmorganclimatecare.com) Offset the CO emissions of flying to and from
your volunteer placement by funding sustainable energy and reforestation projects.
~ Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (Australia) (www.smartraveller.gov.au) Travel
advisories for Australians listed by destination, travel bulletins, information on getting
help overseas plus the low-down on visas and passports. The site also offers general
travel and travel health tips. Register for email notification about changes to the safety
status in the country you’re volunteering in.
~ eBay (www.ebay.com) For the UK replace ‘.com’ with ‘.co.uk’ and for Australia add ‘.au’.
Wherever you live, you could raise money to participate in your volunteer programme
by becoming a seller.
~ Embassy World (www.embassyworld.com) There’s a lot more to this site than just the
location of embassies around the world.
~ Kasbah.com (www.kasbah.com) Flight bookings, car rentals, and thousands of local travel
guides.
~ Lonely Planet’s Thorn Tree (http://thorntree.lonelyplanet.com) Join one of the largest online
travel communities and hear first-hand what you can expect in the country you’re
volunteering in.
~ Lonely Planet’s WorldGuide (www.lonelyplanet.com/destinations) This site has information
on nearly every country in the world.
~ Malaria Foundation International (www.malaria.org) Keep up-to-date with the latest
news and views on this potentially fatal disease.
~ New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade – Manatū Aorere (www.safetravel
.govt.nz) Log on for travel advice and New Zealand passport and visa requirements.
Travellers from the ‘Land of the Long White Cloud’ can register so the Ministry can
contact them in an emergency.
~ Global Electric & Phone Directory (http://kropla.com) Everything you wanted to know
about keeping in touch while you’re away.
~ Timeanddate.com (www.timeanddate.com) Offers a world clock and also the times of
sunrise and sunset, international country codes and city coordinates.
~ Tourism Offices Worldwide Directory (www.towd.com) This is pretty self explanatory.
~ The Travel Doctor (www.tmvc.com.au) Health reports, email notification service of health
issues and details of clinic locations across Australia and seven locations in New
Zealand.
~ xe.com (www.xe.com/ucc) Monitor the rate of exchange in the country you’re volunteering
in with this universal currency converter.
~ Universal packing list (http://upl.codeq.info) Check your packing list against this one.
~ World information (www.worldinformation.com) Read up on business, economic and
political information on every country in the world.03: The Practicalities:Useful Websites