Uh Oh, Volunteers

 

 

 

A colleague recently asked me about the best way to ‘use’ volunteers. Uh oh, I thought, this is always tricky, but here’s what I said.

 

I know two volunteers who came here without researching Vietnam or the nonprofit they signed up with, despite having a clear job description and a collaboratively-designed project prior to their arrival. Less than 24 hours in-country the couple decided the project didn’t suit their ‘personality’. They expressed repeated concerns about ‘not eating spicy food’ and arranging living quarters out of their hotel immediately so they could have a kitchen because they had to have ‘toast in the morning’.

 

Wow, if you can’t let go of your toast then this country’s gonna really rock your world.

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Volunteers and receiving organizations need to carefully vet one another. It really is OK to say ‘Thanks, but no thanks’ in the pre-arrival stages and save those inevitable tears later on.

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Did the volunteer check in with any former volunteers to find out about the host and their programming? Did they dig deep in their research and study? Does the host organization have a decent in-country orientation? Would you apply for an internship at an engineering firm without at least searching a few websites and understanding basic mathematics? Probably not.

 

So why do others assume that because they’re from a ‘developed’ nation that means they’re an ‘expert’ in a ‘poor country’? One of my favourites is the retiree who has 'always wanted' to work for a 'charity' after 30 years in HR or investment finance or car sales, so naturally there's a good fit, right? No need for planning and project deliverables, I'm a natural at this 'cause everyone knows nonprofits are easier to run!  

 

And yup, yup I'm going to take up mechanical engineering when I retire.

 

So, first up in your pre-trip departure planning: learn the meaning of neocolonialism.

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If you want to volunteer and you think you’re ready, keep this handy checklist in mind. Are you flexible? You’re overseas (for many, likely for the first time) and uh, things are different than home. Several years ago I knew some three-month interns leaving their hotel placement after just three days here in Ho Chi Minh City because they could not 'handle the traffic’.

 

If your big project falls apart due to innumerable reasons (and they do) are you OK with trying something else? This leads to are you a team player? (No, really.) The nonprofit may need you to jump in with ‘small’ tasks that aren’t part of any agreed project, but are vital to the day-to-day running of typically resource-strapped charities.

 

Next, keep your ‘moral indignation’ to yourself. Yes, we’ve got poverty and malnutrition and street children here, but I’m more interested in your professional skill-set contribution to the task at hand. Can you demonstrate real-world knowledge transfer? Do you take time for daily reflexivity?

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And what about the receiving organizations? I’ve said before that nonprofits regularly mess up with volunteers, but letting folks in the door for some free labour just because they 'love' the food, local culture or weather is not good enough. Have you shared your vision, mission and values and expect people to adhere to them? Do you care if volunteers even understand this?

 

Do you let an international volunteer sit for weeks on end twiddling her thumbs waiting for official permission to go to your rural project sites? Perhaps the host nonprofit should have given this some thought prior to the volunteer’s arrival because this isn’t new news; it’s Vietnamese law. Did you ask for a project your organization can actually support (and needs) or are you just going to ‘figure it out’ when the volunteer turns up?

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Way back when I started out as a volunteer and you can too. And funny, it pretty much will have nothing to do with breakfast.

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Photo: Flashfranky / pixabay.com

 

This article originally appeared in Word Vietnam magazine and has been adapted.

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