Condé Nast Traveler: Globe Aware in Ghana

Chicago Healthcare Software Salesman and Globe Aware Volunteer Vacationer Named Chief of Ghana Village

Special ceremony held to make Peter Sheehan a chief of Mafi-Wudukpo, a rural community located within the North Tongu District of the Volta region of Ghana.

Peter, and his wife Colleen Sheehan, 29, a senior associate producer at Oprah Winfrey Show, were in Ghana with Globe Aware (www.globeaware.org) on a one-week volunteer vacation, July 3-9, 2010. Colleen taught in the village while Peter helped construct sanitation facilities, including digging trenches, laying conduits, drainage, and mixing concrete.

If you would like more information about taking a volunteer vacation to Costa Rica, Romania, Peru, China, India, or you are interested in voluntourism in another country or on another continent, please visit Globe Aware's Destinations Gallery for program and trip descriptions, dates and Minimum Contribution Fees.

Globe Aware Volunteer Vacations in the Spotlight

Globe Aware continues to reach out to parties, partners and individuals interested in travel that makes a difference. Kimberly Haley-Coleman, Executive Director, Globe Aware was recently featured in a profile series at WorldNomads.com, a popular web-resource with a focus on keeping travelers traveling safely:

1. Who are you? Brief description of trips you offer

Globe Aware is a nonprofit that organizes one week volunteer programs in communities all around the world. Our focus is to promote cultural awareness and sustainability. For us, the concept of sustainability is to help others stand on their own two feet; to teach skills rather than reliance. For example, we build schools in Ghana, homes in Vietnam, assemble wheelchairs for landmine victims in Cambodia. All of our volunteer programs are designed to be safe, culturally interesting, genuinely beneficial to a needy community, and involve significant interaction with the host community. Globe Aware is not a foundation that focuses on giving out charity, but rather an organization which focuses on creating self reliance.

2. How do you define Responsible Travel?

Responsible travel, for us, means ensuring that volunteers are engaged in empowering the host communities and ensuring they are involved in project implementation so that they know how to do them. It also means letting the local community identify where they think they need help and what kind of solution they want. While Globe Aware's direct, financial assistance benefits the community economically, it is the the actual involvement and collaboration between the volunteers and the community that is of the greatest mutual benefit. Responsible travel also means respecting the culture and heritage of the community in which you are traveling. A volunteer's goal should not be to change the host community, but rather to work side by side on projects the community finds meaningful.

3. What does your company do to make sure it travels responsibly?

We promote responsible travel by ensuring that the communities in which we work are the ones choosing which projects and initiatives our volunteer work on. We do have set requirements for potential projects - that they be safe, culturally interesting, and genuinely beneficial, but beyond that we let the host communities, the experts on their own culture and needs, tell us how we can help them. Additionally, Globe Aware offsets its carbon emissions with Carbonfund.org, the country's leading carbon offset organization. Our carbon footprint is estimated at less than 70 tons annually, and we have chosen to support carbon-reducing projects in renewable energy to offset the CO2 that is produced in running our offices worldwide, from powering our offices to the transportation used to get to and from our work sites. This commitment places Globe Aware as an environmental leader in the volunteer abroad community and demonstrates proactive steps being taken in the fight against global climate change.

4. Tell us about a successful initiative. And an unsuccessful one - what did you learn?

A few of our most recent successful initiatives have been the construction of school buildings in rural Ghana. These children in this community did not have good access to education because of lack of facilities. These school buildings have changed that and now these kids are poised to pursue an education and work skills and break free from the cycle of poverty. Less successful has been promoting projects in communities that are more than 6 hours from the airport of entry. Our primary volunteers tend to be working professionals and they normally only have about a week to take off to participate in a program. Our experience has been that project sites that are too far from the airport of entry tend to be harder to promote to short term volunteers, even if it is a really great project in a needy community.

5. What’s some advice you can offer to travelers wanting to travel responsibly?

Travelers wanting to travel responsibly should learn about the culture of the community they are going to visit before they set off for the airport. When contemplating bringing additional donations, think about just bringing some extra funds with you and buying supplies at a local shop. This helps the community in a number of ways - they get needed supplies and local businesses are generating revenue. Another thing to consider is watching your waste. Use a refillable water bottle and the like. Trash has to go somewhere and in developing communities there is a lack of sanitation services to responsibly remove waste. Outside of volunteering, travelers should opt to stay at locally run hotels and eat at locally owned restaurants. By helping locally owned businesses you are directly supporting the community and not large international conglomerates that overrun popular tourist destinations. In essence, put your bucks where they count. However, avoid handing out direct monetary donations. You don't want to create dependency or reliance on handouts.

If you would like more information about taking a volunteer vacation to Costa Rica, Romania, Peru, China, India, or you are interested in voluntourism in another country or on another continent, please visit Globe Aware's Destinations Gallery for program and trip descriptions, dates and Minimum Contribution Fees.

Globe Aware in WSJ: Voluntour at Home and Abroad

• Source: Wall Street Journal

There is an Interesting article in the June 27, 2010 edition of the Wall Street Journal that examines the motivating factors that lead people to sign up for volunteer vacations at home and abroad. Reporter Shelly Banjo speaks with volunteer vacationers and organizations that provide voluntourism opportunities and advises new and inexperienced travellers to carefully research destinations and work opportunities before signing up.

Globe Aware's one-week volunteer vacations are spotlighted in the article, described as "Short-term volunteer programs to promote cultural awareness and sustainability." The author describes the work undertaken by Globe Aware volunteers as "building schools in the Andes, participating in irrigation projects in South East Asia, repairing trails and roads in Costa Rica, with trip donation costs starting at $1,090, excluding airfare. For more information of Globe Aware volunteer vacation destinations click here. To register for a program, click here.

Help Wanted: 'Voluntour' at Home and Abroad

By SHELLY BANJO

When Shannon Mancuso decided to take a trip to Peru this past spring, she wanted to find a way to immerse herself in the country's culture while tapping into her skills as a social worker.

Two years out of graduate school and living in New York, Ms. Mancuso was short on time and money so she chose to go on a trip that could combine volunteerism and travel in the same week. "You get the best of both worlds," she says.

Known as "voluntourism" or service travel, a growing number of people are combining volunteering with a vacation. Organizations that run these trips report an uptick in the number of new volunteers and inquiries, particularly after a round of natural disasters and global events that have inspired travelers to want to help out during their vacations.

With hundreds of programs to choose from, it's crucial for travelers to do their homework before they take off, says Genevieve Brown, executive director of the International Volunteer Programs Association, an association of nongovernmental organizations involved in international volunteer work and internship exchanges.

Where to Go

First, decide what kind of trip you would like to go on: How long do you want to be away? Is there a particular country or cause you would like to pursue? Do you speak a language or possess certain skills that you would like to tap into?

Immediately after large disaster situations, such as the recent earthquakes in Haiti and Chile and the Gulf of Mexico oil spill, organizations typically look for people with first-responder training or volunteer management experience.

"Volunteers have to be realistic," says Erin Barnhart, director of volunteerism initiatives at volunteer website Idealist.org. "You may be well-meaning but without the training or experience you may actually become a hindrance."

The current crisis hotspots, the Gulf Coast states, have one message for inexperienced volunteers: Be patient. They have set up websites where volunteers can register, receive updates and wait until their help is needed.

"We're frustrated that we can't put more volunteers to work immediately, but the reality is it's a slow, evolving process," says Janet Pace, executive director of the Louisiana Serve Commission, which is coordinating volunteer efforts in that state. "We will need you soon."

BP, the British oil giant largely responsible for the spill, is paying many out-of-work fishermen and shrimpers to help with cleanup operations, leaving little work for volunteers in the actual cleanup efforts.

Meanwhile, a coalition of conservation groups including the Nature Conservancy and the National Audubon Society has been tapped to handle oiled wildlife and bird rescue.

"We made a decision not to let volunteers handle oil at this point," Ms. Pace says.

However, she says a growing number of volunteers will be needed to help with human services and relief efforts. Emergency distribution centers have been set up where volunteers can help distribute food and supplies, provide crisis counseling and case-management services.

Realistic expectations also come into play when choosing the right program.

"Volunteers who parachute into a country and build a school may leave feeling good about themselves but unless local people are involved in determining what volunteers do, that school might never be used because there's no capacity to, say, hire teachers," Ms. Barnhart says.

Known as drive-by volunteerism, volunteers who don't work with local organizations may replace actual paid work that can be done in a community and create a dependency on foreign volunteers, she says.

Paying for It

While it sounds counterintuitive to pay to volunteer, most trips require volunteers to pay a fee for participating. Organizations use these funds to cover their year-round coordinating and operational costs -- including lodging, predeparture training for participants and other resources needed for overseas projects such as building houses or planting trees. Often, these fees include airport pickup, side trips, translators and emergency assistance.
"Still, volunteers shouldn't pay more than $1,000 to $2,000 for programs under two weeks, not including airfare," Ms. Brown says. "And be sure to find out what that money is going toward."

For trips that last more than a month, volunteers could pay more than $5,000, she says.

Before choosing a program, call the organization and ask about lodging, meals, preliminary training and if the organization has staff on the ground to assist volunteers. Ask about what local partners volunteers work with and for a sample itinerary of what kind of work volunteers are likely to do while on the trip.

A number of organizations offer matching scholarships or grants. The Volunteers for Prosperity Service Incentive Program, part of the Office of Volunteers for Prosperity at the U.S. Agency for International Development, provides grants of $500 to $1,000 to U.S. partner organizations for skilled Americans who want to volunteer abroad.

Plan for the Worst

It's important to find out if program fees cover the cost of travel insurance. Most U.S.-based insurance plans don't cover health problems, car accidents and catastrophic events in other countries.

Since many places where people volunteer are in rural areas without adequate medical care, consider purchasing additional insurance, Ms. Barnhart says.

Also, find out who you can contact in case of a natural disaster, political disruption, personal health problems or other emergencies.
 

If you would like more information about taking a volunteer vacation to Costa Rica, Romania, Peru, China, India, or you are interested in voluntourism in another country or on another continent, please visit Globe Aware's Destinations Gallery for program and trip descriptions, dates and Minimum Contribution Fees.

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Globe Aware on CNN: Finding volunteer trips that actually help

• Source: CNN

CNN reporter Marnie Hunter features Globe Aware in a June 2010 feature on volunteer vacations and the importance of having a professional, long-term facilitator working as a liaison to ensure projects are high quality, well organized and designed to meet the needs of the communities they are built for. The reporter notes that, “a hastily built structure may not benefit the community it's designed to help,” and that, “a traveler's biggest contribution may be through cross-cultural exchange.” Both valid points, Globe Aware employs people within the destination communities and on the ground to ensure volunteer vacationers mesh with the local communities and all parties benefit from each individual trip and project.

Finding volunteer trips that actually help

By Marnie Hunter, CNN

(CNN) -- The idea of volunteering away from home seems like a win-win to many travelers: a way to experience and help another community at the same time. But without a solid, well-designed program and reasonable expectations, volunteer travel can do more harm than good.

Showing up in parts unknown, hoping to make a big difference in a small amount of time, is likely to leave travelers and hosts disappointed.

"You're not going to change the world in a week or two. You're not going to eradicate poverty in a village. You're not going to teach a kid how to read," said Doug Cutchins, a former Peace Corps volunteer and co-author of "Volunteer Vacations: Short-term Adventures That Will Benefit You and Others."

The key to having a positive impact in a short amount of time is realizing that your efforts are part of a process, Cutchins said. Results are subtle and come about slowly through a long line of volunteers.

"Development is a tricky process, and as Americans we are very, very product-oriented," he said.

He's concerned with what he calls "development by monument," where volunteers want a completed building or another physical representation of their volunteer efforts to answer the inevitable "what did you accomplish?" question from friends and family at home.

"That's one of the first questions you're going to get asked, and it's hard sometimes for people to say, 'well, I was kind of part of a process, and we engaged in cultural exchange.' But that's really the very best way to do it," Cutchins said.
Daniela Papi agrees. She is one of the founders of PEPY, a non-governmental organization dedicated to educational development in rural Cambodia. PEPY Tours hosts learning trips that help fund the group's projects.

The organization has gone from referring to those trips as "voluntourism" to calling them "edu-tourism" or "educational adventures."

"The number one thing that's going to happen is that you are going to have a new perspective on your country, on your life, on your choices and how they affect the world, on what it means to live in whatever country that is," Papi said.

The 10 days or so spent traveling and learning would ideally inform participants' choices and outlook at home, where they will have the largest impact, Papi said.

Teaching English and construction projects are the most common types of voluntourism projects Papi sees in her region. Travelers involved in a construction voluntourism project should ask the operator and organizations involved about the plans for the structure when the volunteers go home, she cautions. Who is going to take care of it, who will work in it, how will they be trained, and who will fund the training?

A poorly constructed school without trained teachers isn't likely to have the benefits volunteers envision. And in the case of teaching English, who will teach the children when there are no volunteers, and what effect does a revolving-door model of teaching have on kids?

Successful projects start with the needs of the community, voluntourism organizers say.

"We don't go in and say, 'this is what your problem is, and this is how we're going to fix it,' " said Catherine McMillan, a spokeswoman for Globe Aware, a nonprofit that develops short-term volunteer programs.

Members of the community should be involved in identifying and addressing areas where partner organizations can help.

The organization you're working with should have a strong and ongoing relationship with the community, local non-governmental organizations and project leaders on the ground.

"It's a complicated kind of tourism, because you don't want to send folks and do something and then not have, not measure the consequences of that action in the long term," said Erica Harms, director of the Tourism Sustainability Council, an initiative involving the United Nations and travel partners.

Travelers should ask about the program's history and its involvement with NGOs or other organizations. Find out where the funding is coming from and where it is being allocated. Ask about how the project is supported over time and how the community was involved in its development, Harms said.

And keep in mind that organizing volunteers to help support these efforts is not free. There are costs associated with housing and feeding volunteers, with transporting them locally, with training them and establishing a system of working that allows visitors to contribute for a short period.

Cutchins says reputable organizations will be up-front about costs, what is included and where your money will be spent.

Globe Aware's McMillan recommends looking up nonprofits on Guidestar.org, which compiles tax forms from nonprofits, to see how operators are spending. It's also a good idea to contact past volunteers or people who are familiar with the organization's work on site.

Travelers should be realistic about what would make for a positive experience and select opportunities that fit their skills and interests.

"I think there are very few people who would make really bad volunteers. ... It's really about matching the right person with the right opportunity," Cutchins said.

If you would like more information about taking a volunteer vacation to Costa Rica, Romania, Peru, China, India, or you are interested in voluntourism in another country or on another continent, please visit Globe Aware's Destinations Gallery for program and trip descriptions, dates and Minimum Contribution Fees.