I think you are spot on. There is definitely a role for an organization(s) to connect travelers with NGOs. In most destinations—and particularly in developing countries where many local citizen sector organizations are doing great things to support their communities—there are dozens of initiatives that could be brought into the sphere of tourism. Many, however, challenge the idea of traditional tourism products, e.g., children’s orphanages or hospitals, a local solar energy project, or restoration of a cultural asset.
Recent work by the IFC and WHL in the Mekong region, along with groups like the Hotel de la Paix and Earthwalkers, to introduce non-traditional tourism experiences as a way to extend the benefits of tourism have met with excellent results. Travelers experience a sense of awe and admiration for the work being done. The projects themselves are rewarded by the awareness generated about their work, as well as by revenues from sales of their goods and services, or from donations and offers of volunteer assistance.
The trick is in building the win-win interface for both travelers and the NGOs concerned. One example of what you talk of is www.stayanotherday.org. I will speak with some of the groups we have been working with in this area and get some entries up in this competition.
Kind Regards............ Len Cordiner (whl.travel)
I think this is future of travel... people are more and more drawn to wanting to get deeper into the heart of a country and this is good way to do it. You might start by looking at Idealist.org and doing a search on the GAP year which already has a lot of projects that take "paying volunteers"....
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Elizabeth Eames Roebling
Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic
Thanks for all the great ideas here. I will look into idealist.org.
What I really would like, though, is for some smart person to adopt this idea and make it happen. I truly think a website like this would improve the quality of travel and cultural exchange for so many people.
Dinda
My proposal ("Act abroad as you would like travellers do in your country!") needs an sponsour to the web site. You propose a website connecting local NGOs and travellers... It´s perfect!! We should work together.
Now we need the volunteers to validate local NGOs, when they are doing what they love - travelling!!! Also we need airlines and hotels to motivate the volunteers to participate on ...
So, I invite anyone to read my proposal, make comments there and help to improve my idea!!
I like the idea. As someone who has spent a lot of time doing Internet research for travel and international non-profits, I know that there is loads of information in countless places. Having a website that marries all the best sites into in conjunction with other project mentioned would be great. Something that would maybe save on research time would be to start with www.devdir.org. This non-profit has already done the work to get the vast majority of the international development organizations/non-profits around the world into web accessible directories. It would take time, though, to sort through the organizations that take short term volunteers, travelers, etc. --Jen
Comments
Hi Dorinda,
I think you are spot on. There is definitely a role for an organization(s) to connect travelers with NGOs. In most destinations—and particularly in developing countries where many local citizen sector organizations are doing great things to support their communities—there are dozens of initiatives that could be brought into the sphere of tourism. Many, however, challenge the idea of traditional tourism products, e.g., children’s orphanages or hospitals, a local solar energy project, or restoration of a cultural asset.
Recent work by the IFC and WHL in the Mekong region, along with groups like the Hotel de la Paix and Earthwalkers, to introduce non-traditional tourism experiences as a way to extend the benefits of tourism have met with excellent results. Travelers experience a sense of awe and admiration for the work being done. The projects themselves are rewarded by the awareness generated about their work, as well as by revenues from sales of their goods and services, or from donations and offers of volunteer assistance.
The trick is in building the win-win interface for both travelers and the NGOs concerned. One example of what you talk of is www.stayanotherday.org. I will speak with some of the groups we have been working with in this area and get some entries up in this competition.
Kind Regards............ Len Cordiner (whl.travel)
I think this is future of travel... people are more and more drawn to wanting to get deeper into the heart of a country and this is good way to do it. You might start by looking at Idealist.org and doing a search on the GAP year which already has a lot of projects that take "paying volunteers"....
----------
Elizabeth Eames Roebling
Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic
Thanks for all the great ideas here. I will look into idealist.org.
What I really would like, though, is for some smart person to adopt this idea and make it happen. I truly think a website like this would improve the quality of travel and cultural exchange for so many people.
Dinda
My proposal ("Act abroad as you would like travellers do in your country!") needs an sponsour to the web site. You propose a website connecting local NGOs and travellers... It´s perfect!! We should work together.
Now we need the volunteers to validate local NGOs, when they are doing what they love - travelling!!! Also we need airlines and hotels to motivate the volunteers to participate on ...
So, I invite anyone to read my proposal, make comments there and help to improve my idea!!
Don´t forget to rate my proposal!!!
I like the idea. As someone who has spent a lot of time doing Internet research for travel and international non-profits, I know that there is loads of information in countless places. Having a website that marries all the best sites into in conjunction with other project mentioned would be great. Something that would maybe save on research time would be to start with www.devdir.org. This non-profit has already done the work to get the vast majority of the international development organizations/non-profits around the world into web accessible directories. It would take time, though, to sort through the organizations that take short term volunteers, travelers, etc. --Jen
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