Volunteer Tourism:Everything You Need to Know 志愿者旅游那些事兒

徐倩瑤 賀鶯

Volunteer tourism1 encourages people to travel with a cause. This cause can be an act of social responsibility. It includes analyzing your skills， energy and time to work for any specific environmental or human issues. Helping the poverty-attacked people， nature， animal conservation etc all come in the purview2 of volunteer tourism. There are many types of volunteer tourism for one to pursue.

Exploring volunteer tourism destinations is a new way of travelling which refreshes us while we serve a cause too.

There are different types of volunteer tourism and it can be categorised as follows：

Animal conservation has increasingly become an important practice due to the negative effects of human activities on nature and wildlife. Volunteering with animals is an amazing travel ex-perience while also helping local animals and wildlife in need. Planned by animal lovers and nature conservationists， the act of responsibility behind taking up volunteer tourism is centred on educating people about the endangered animals and protects mother earth from depletion.

Nature Conservation： It is not restrained to fauna and flora conservation but it also encourages social， socio-economic， and ethical issues. Volunteering in biodiversity and other natural resource management programs is very popular amongst the youth living in the hills.

Waste Minimalism is a practice which intends to reduce the amount of waste produced. Generally， people who volunteer for this cause focus on 3Rs3 and educate people to Recycle， Reuse and Reduce. While you travel， you can lead an example by using reusable containers， eco-friendly toiletries， utilizing public transports etc.

Volunteer tourism can be subdivided into more types：

Philanthropy： Promoting the welfare of the people by dispensing funds for humanitarian purposes. It is a selfless notion which is characterized by helping others without wanting any returns.

Service Learning： Studying and analyzing community needs and helping them accordingly. It is an educational approach towards community services.

Community Service： Meeting with the needs of the public in person. This includes providing food and shelter for the homeless and homebound people4. Collecting information about the needs of the public for their interest and welfare. Promoting students for their education or employment， bringing out the talents in them on an appreciable level for global development.

Volunteer tourism is not a synonym to charity but it focuses on eliminating the suffering behind the cause which leads to social and environmental problems.

True service begins as a way of life. There is so much deprivation all around， to do a bit for the society individually and collectively would bring a whole lot of change to those lives which are deprived of basic needs.

If you are planning to volunteer abroad， then there is no shortage of voluntourism destinations which provide an opportunity for the dedicated and enthusiast people willing to work for others’ welfare. Different countries specialize in various volunteer projects. Perhaps if you have certain skills or willingness then that naturally attracts you to a particular location. People and countries have encouraged volunteer tourism since the beginning as this is all about travelling for the people， by the people and towards the betterment of the people.

Volunteer tourism is definitely beneficial for people in two ways：

1. It satisfies the wanderer inside you who looks forward to exploring various destinations.

2. It also serves the society and takes it towards its growth.

Negative impacts of volunteer tourism：

Choosing volunteer tourism or travelling to a volunteer tourism destination can be the toughest challenge faced by a novice or interns in the industry. You should be really careful before taking up any such trip for a cause and ask yourself the following questions.

Do you have sufficient training？ Travelling without proper training can put your life at risk， hence go for sensitive and planned Volunteer Tourism.

Are you aware of the facts regarding the destination？ One should be prepared with geographical info， the challenges which can be posed and the solutions to travel before undertaking a particular journey. Failing this can turn the travel for a cause trip to one where you travel for loss.

The bottom line5 is， volunteer tourism is still unexplored， hence do it with a passion but do apply your brains. Plan your next trip as a volunteer tourist and feel the bliss and harmony which you get by serving people in need on time.

志愿者旅游鼓勵(lì)人們來一場(chǎng)有理想的旅行。理想就是承擔(dān)某種社會(huì)使命。這要求分析自身的技能、精力和時(shí)間，以便服務(wù)于某些具體的環(huán)境或人類問題。幫助貧困人口、保護(hù)自然、保護(hù)動(dòng)物等都屬于志愿者旅游的使命范疇。志愿者旅游有多種類型可供選擇。

志愿者旅游是一種新型旅游方式，可以一邊愉悅身心，一邊投身理想。

志愿者旅游有不同的類型，可分為以下幾類：

動(dòng)物保護(hù)：由于人類活動(dòng)對(duì)大自然和野生動(dòng)物造成負(fù)面影響，動(dòng)物保護(hù)日益成為一項(xiàng)重要活動(dòng)。做志愿服務(wù)時(shí)和動(dòng)物們?cè)谝黄鹗且环N奇妙的旅游體驗(yàn)，同時(shí)又能對(duì)當(dāng)?shù)匦枰戎募茵B(yǎng)和野生動(dòng)物施以援手。在動(dòng)物愛好者和自然保護(hù)主義人士的策劃下，此類志愿者之旅背后的使命是教育人們保護(hù)瀕危動(dòng)物，保護(hù)地球母親的資源不被耗盡。

自然保護(hù)：該類活動(dòng)不限于動(dòng)植物保護(hù)，同時(shí)還致力于社會(huì)、社會(huì)經(jīng)濟(jì)及倫理問題。生物多樣性保護(hù)等自然資源管理方面的志愿項(xiàng)目在山區(qū)青年中很受歡迎。

廢物最少化：該類活動(dòng)旨在減少廢物的產(chǎn)生量。專注此類目標(biāo)的志愿者一般聚焦3R，教育人們“可循環(huán)”“再利用”“減量化”。在旅行過程中，可通過使用非一次性容器、環(huán)保洗漱用品，以及乘坐公共交通工具等行為來以身作則。

志愿者旅游可細(xì)分出更多類型：

慈善活動(dòng)：為人道主義援助提供資金以增進(jìn)人類福祉。這是一種無私的理念，特點(diǎn)是幫助他人不計(jì)回報(bào)。

服務(wù)型學(xué)習(xí)：分析、研究社區(qū)需求并提供相應(yīng)的幫助。這是一種面向社區(qū)服務(wù)的教育手段。

社區(qū)服務(wù)：親自參與來滿足公眾需求，包括為無家可歸者及居家無法外出者提供食物和住所;收集有關(guān)公眾利益和福 祉的需求信息;促進(jìn)學(xué)生接受教育或就業(yè)，顯著激發(fā)其才能，促進(jìn)全球發(fā)展。

志愿者旅游不是慈善的代名詞，但致力于消滅困苦，以解決社會(huì)和環(huán)境問題。

真正的志愿服務(wù)是一種生活方式。貧困匱乏的現(xiàn)象隨處可見，作為個(gè)體或集體為社會(huì)略盡綿薄之力，可以給那些基本需求無法得到滿足的人帶來巨大改變。

如果打算去國外做志愿者，不乏可供選擇的旅行目的地，足以給具有奉獻(xiàn)精神的熱心人士提供機(jī)會(huì)，為謀求他人福祉而工作。不同國家專注的志愿項(xiàng)目不盡相同。如果具備某些特殊技能或意愿，就會(huì)自然而然地被某個(gè)地方所吸引。人們和各國政府從一開始就鼓勵(lì)志愿者旅游項(xiàng)目，因?yàn)檫@是一場(chǎng)利他的旅行，始于個(gè)人，以謀求眾人福祉為目標(biāo)。

志愿者旅游在兩個(gè)方面絕對(duì)于人有益：

1. 可以滿足內(nèi)心深處行走四方的愿望。

2. 可以同時(shí)服務(wù)社會(huì)，促進(jìn)社會(huì)發(fā)展。

志愿者旅游的負(fù)面影響：

對(duì)于該領(lǐng)域的新手和實(shí)習(xí)生而言，選擇參加志愿者之旅或旅行至志愿服務(wù)目的地，可能是一項(xiàng)最為嚴(yán)峻的挑戰(zhàn)。開啟任何志愿之旅都應(yīng)慎之又慎，首先要回答以下問題：

是否接受過充分的培訓(xùn)？沒有接受恰當(dāng)?shù)挠?xùn)練就去旅行，可能會(huì)招致生命危險(xiǎn)。要選擇反應(yīng)及時(shí)、規(guī)劃嚴(yán)密的志愿者旅游項(xiàng)目。

是否了解目的地情況？在開啟某場(chǎng)旅行前，應(yīng)了解地理信息，預(yù)估旅行中可能面對(duì)的挑戰(zhàn)，制訂好解決方案。做不到這點(diǎn)，理想之旅可能演變成為損失之旅。

總而言之，志愿者旅游仍是一個(gè)未經(jīng)充分探索的領(lǐng)域，因此，要胸懷熱情，更要開動(dòng)大腦。下一次旅行嘗試志愿者旅游吧，感受為有困難的人及時(shí)提供幫助所帶來的幸福與和諧。

（譯者單位：寧波大學(xué)）

Quotes About Volunteerism

“The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others.”? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? —Gandhi

“Volunteerism is the voice of the people put into action.? These actions shape and mold the present into a future of which we can all be proud.”? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?—Helen Dyer

“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful， committed citizens can change the world; indeed， it’s the only thing that ever has.”

—Margaret Mead

“We make a living by what we get. We make a life by what we give.”

—Winston Churchill

“Too often we underestimate the power of a touch， a smile， a kind word， a listening ear， an honest compliment， or the smallest act of caring， all of which have the potential to turn a life around.”

—Leo Buscaglia