volunteer tourism

Volunteer tourism is something that when it is properly executed, can be very helpful to the communities in the third world countries that are struggling.  I think that this is something that we should feel a moral responsibility to do, but we need to do it with the full intention of helping others, not to make ourselves feel better.  Some people can empathize so greatly with people in third world countries that need help.  I think that the hardest part about volunteer tourism being effective is whether or not we volunteer our time AND our knowledge.  We cannot just go and set up the community so that while we are there and helping them they benefit, we need to set it up so that they can sustain the lifestyle when we leave.  We need to give them the knowledge to succeed.  Many times volunteers go into this for the wrong reasons, but when they do go into volunteer tourism with the intentions of truly helping out a community that is struggling, the possibilities are endless.  I think that we need to focus more programs on sharing knowledge and teaching them skills in addition to the projects for buildings and schools.  Although volunteer tourism can increase the divide between the rich and the poor, I think that the more help and knowledge we give them now, the better off the future will be for them and hopefully they will be able to thrive and live great lives.  Overall, I think that more research needs to be done in which programs are the most effective for the locals and what they need the most from the volunteers.