In a blog post that recently went viral, writer Pippa Biddle argues that international service trips carried out by young participants are detrimental to the host communities. Biddle said that these service trips were inadequate because youth volunteers usually lack the professional skills needed to devise concrete, long-term solutions to the problems their host countries face. While Biddle passionately articulates her argument, she fails to recognize the importance of having young people volunteer.
The number of Americans going abroad for a short-term volunteer service has been steadily increasing. Research from Washington University in St. Louis’ Brown School of Social Work indicates that over 1 million Americans volunteered internationally in 2008. This figure is indicative of young Americans’ desire to be engaged with the global community. Rather than fostering a dialogue that demoralizes young people, a narrative encouraging concern for international issues should be adopted Therefore, efforts should be directed toward increasing the number of American volunteers, not discouraging those with altruistic intentions.
Programs with ill-prepared participants can indeed waste money and capital that could have been donated to well-established international aid organizations, which would use these resources more efficiently compared to organizations that work with unskilled youth volunteers. However, the effect of international volunteering cannot be solely measured by the material value of volunteers’ contributions to host communities. The value of service trips is found in the personal growth that participants experience during the trip, as well as the mutually beneficial interactions between volunteers and their host communities.
A survey conducted by the Brown School proves this point. More than 95 percent of the interviewees said that international volunteering increased their appreciation of other cultures, challenged their previous beliefs and exposed them to new ideas and ways of seeing the world. During this process, young volunteers empathize with their hosts’ grief and joy, and leave a small part of themselves when they leave the site. Youth volunteers grow personally, and they also become more committed to civic engagement and community activism upon return.
International volunteering is not just about solving crises. It also focuses on nurturing the global commitments within the young minds of our generation and sharing resources with others, as well as catalyzing change at home and abroad in the face of social injustice. With adequate planning and training, it is possible to achieve all these goals on a service trip. In fact, many existing programs, including NYU Alternative Breaks, focus on achieving personal growth through service. Despite Biddle’s caveat, young individuals should not be discouraged from participating in such life-changing experiences.
A version of this article appeared in the Wednesday, March 5 print edition. Kenny Kyunghoon Lee is a contributing writer. Email him at [email protected].
