As you may know, I’ve had significant experience as an international volunteer. In some situations my presence was helpful to those with whom I worked. For example, the preschool I helped start in 2002 – 2004 in a rural town in the Dominican Republic has grown significantly over the years and, most importantly, is run entirely by Dominicans.
In other situations, my presence wasn’t as helpful. I remember volunteering in a favela in Rio de Janeiro in 2001, trying to learn Excel . . . in Portuguese. It was a painful experience for both me and the nonprofit. In fact, I probably learned more on the weekly bus rides to the nonprofit than the staff learned from me in all of the time I spent there.
Still, international volunteering can be a valuable experience, and it has grown in popularity over the years.
My latest Nonprofit Quarterly newswire offers food for thought to potential volunteers as they begin their journey.
Jennifer A. Jones 