in East Timor, says: “I do think there are advantages to volunteering later in life, in the experience we bring, in the ability to pick our- selves up and start again and in the perceived wisdom that comes with age.” Living in a vil- lage where she has to wade through a river to get to the main road earns her respect from local people. Her sacrifices pay off as she builds relationships with her neighbours. “Inspiration comes from little things,” she says. “Like the local cool-dude youth calling out, ‘Good night, Mrs Fi, watch the road,’ as he sits on the bridge trying to look intimidating.” Meanwhile VSO, though not specifically religious, offers longer-term placements for professionals. Anglicans Terry and Sue Ward, worshippers at Portsmouth Cathedral, have spent time with VSO in Gambia, Mongolia, Uganda and Pakistan – where they experi- enced the devastating 2005 earthquake – since he retired from a career in teaching. “We’re not missionaries, but my wife and
I were able to bring back to our church a better understanding of our Muslim brothers and sisters,” he says. “Seeing mindless violence and people dying on the streets certainly tests one’s faith but I am convinced we are blessed by God with the ability to do something about all this. It makes prayer more meaningful and gives one a gratitude for the wonders of the earth we see around us.” Volunteering opportunities sit on a spec- trum between those that require professional qualifications and emphasise the needs of the host community, and those that offer a taste of life in another culture with the aim of edu- cating the volunteers themselves. Charities generally offer one to two days’ training to help participants adjust to another culture. The Transform programme run by the evan- gelical charity Tearfund, for example, offers people with limited time the chance to immerse themselves in another world for a fortnight to four months, often completing a renovation project as part of their stay. David Bloomfield, 58, says of his two-week trip to rural Zambia, where a Tearfund partner organisation was improving locals’ access to safe water: “I enjoyed the opportunity to do for a few days what they do: taste the dust and smoke, bathe in the stream, eat the local food, chase goats from the living area and sit
for this place I would be locked up, no question.” Being a part of this as a volunteer, getting
involved in support work and research as well as helping out in the kitchen, has given me an enormous amount of joy. I have come to see more clearly that, had I been born somewhere else, or had different parents, or even just made different decisions, then it might well be me sleeping on the streets, fearing for my life, losing hope. This is the approach taken by the staff at the drop-in centre who offer those using the centre a helping hand up rather than talking down to them and patronising them. I found a similar approach at my second
placement, at the Cheetham Hill and Crumpsall Welcome Centre in north Manchester, which provides people who are new to the area with (Continued on page 14.)
around the open fire in the darkness of the evening. I saw the impact of love shown by other Christians and how clean water can change everything.” Transform has proved increasingly popular with the over-fifties: when Tearfund’s sup- porter magazine ran a story about two women who painted a community centre in an Indian slum to celebrate their sixtieth birthdays, applications to the programme from this age group soared. But the demand for authentic encounters with poverty overseas has turned “voluntourism” into a profitable market, and there has been a backlash against expensive projects that promise feel-good experiences but deliver little of value to the local commu- nity. How can applicants be sure which programmes will benefit local people? Dr Kate Simpson, who completed a PhD from Newcastle University on the issues involved in volunteering overseas and has produced an ethical volunteering guide and a website,
www.ethicalvolunteering.org, says: “If you want to travel with a good, ethical organisation, the most important thing is the quality of the relationship between the sending organisation and the host organisation. Look for one with a respectful, not patronising, attitude to their developing world partners.” James Trewby, a development officer at Bova, who has written a master’s dissertation on volunteering, is also concerned to find ways to ensure that the opportunities provided
by cheaper airfares and longer retirements don’t create a culture of “new colonialism”. “There’s a danger in thinking that Western volunteers can save the world,” says Trewby. “One way to avoid exploitation is to enhance the long-term ‘payback’ from volunteers to the developing world – for example, through campaigning or raising awareness back home. The best scenario is when everyone benefits.” It seems that overseas volunteers of any age benefit from their experience, often in ways they could not have predicted, and return changed to their everyday lives. Naturally, the experience of work in another culture triggers reflection on life and values at home. Eileen Thomas reflects on her time in Kenya: “The spirit, courage and capacity for joy which I have seen shine through the direst circum- stances tells me that something has been lost to us in the acquisition of ‘more than we need’. I wonder if it can be regained.” Meanwhile Fi Oakes explains: “The impact of this work on my outlook on life has been enormous. I realise how little I actually need to be happy.”
■Catherine Prescott is a freelance writer specialising in development issues. Useful websites:
www.alvp.org.uk www.boscovolunteeraction.co.uk www.jesuitmissions.org.uk www.progressio.org.uk/jobs www.tearfund.org/transform
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