Tips for an effective volunteer trip

Kristina Roe is guest blogging here on behalf of responsibletravel.com. After my largely uninformed posts about volunteer travel I reached out to responsibletravel.com to see if they could offer some advise on having an impact with a volunteer trip. Here’s the result. – Weldon

There are more and more organisations that are beginning to offer volunteering trips and for this reason, we at www.responsibletravel.com feel it’s more important than ever that people take the time to research the different options, choose a trip that best suits their needs / ages / skills sets and take steps to ensure that the company they are traveling with, offers ‘responsible’ volunteering options. We believe that all volunteer projects should be based on a real local need and work in partnership with local people. We always encourage travellers to ask plenty of questions of companies before making any decisions. Here’s our ten-point checklist of questions to ask companies that they are speaking with:

1. Is the project based on a real local need? If so, what?
2. Was the project suggested by local people rather than invented by a marketing department?
3. Is the project run jointly with local people? (this transfers skills and ensures longevity)
4. Can you see an independent report on the benefits (both short-term and long-term) of the project to local people/environment?
5. Can you speak to a previous volunteer?
6. What pre-trip briefing and training is needed or available?
7. Can you see their policy for responsible tourism?
8. Do they offset the Co2 from the flights of all personnel?
9. Is there transparent information around cost and where the money goes?
10. Does the organization take steps to match your skills to the needs of the project?

For more check out these two articles: Change your life and take a career break and A taste of volunteering

- Kristina Roe