The Impact of Volunteer Tourism on Host Communities - Essay Example

Analyse and Evaluate the Impact of Volunteer Tourism on Host Communities Table of Contents Table of Contents 2 Introduction 3 Thesis ment 3 Outline 3 Analysis and Evaluation of Volunteer Tourism Impacts on Host Communities 4 Positive Impacts on Host Communities 4 Negative Impacts on Host Communities 5 Conclusion 7 References 8 Introduction Volunteer tourism has been widely recognised as a very prospective sector of tourism that provides benefits to both host communities and tourists. It is generally considered as an alternative form of tourism, which, according to some volunteers, comes under the subdivisions of ecotourism (Guttentag, 2009, p. 540). To be precise volunteer tourism implies to those tourists who, for some causes, volunteer in a systematic manner in spending their leisure of holidays with a motive to contribute with a helping hand in reducing the poverty level within the community (Callanan & Thomas, n.d., p. 198). It would be worth mentioning that volunteer tourism has turned out to be a “mass niche” market, which has been aided by the aspects of increased volunteer projects, promotion regarding destinations variety, target markets variations, tour operatives and privatised agencies along with increased competition in this sector (Guttentag, 2009, p. 540). Thesis Statement Emphasising the impacts caused by volunteer tourism trends on host communities, this thesis will aim at obtaining an unbiased view on the positive and negative influences caused by such initiatives in the contemporary scenario. Correspondingly, a generalised view will be considered when evaluating the impacts observed as caused by volunteer tourism on its host communities. Outline The essay is structured into three sections that include introduction in which volunteer tourism has been briefly described. The second section evaluates the impacts i.e. positive or negative of volunteer tourism on host communities and the last section that is conclusion helps in providing an understanding on whether volunteer tourism has negatively or positively impacted the host communities. Analysis and Evaluation of Volunteer Tourism Impacts on Host Communities One of the major and mostly debated positive impacts caused by volunteer tourism in their host communities is its uncourageous attitude towards welfare activities in poor communities, which not only helped enriching their resource flow but also widen their scope to adapt globalising attitudes in an attempt to promote advances within. Volunteer tourism has provided a major contribution in undertaking welfare activities for poverty communities around the world and helping them to gain equality in the society (Raymond & Hall, 2008, p. 532). Apparently, few key positive impacts of volunteer tourism in the host communities are identifiable include achievements gained by the volunteers in the process of volunteering in poor communities that can be actually obtained through bringing development in these communities. Moreover, huge revenue is generated for these host communities during volunteer tourism that would actually foster in developing poor people (Raymond & Hall, 2008, p. 532). Positive Impacts on Host Communities In addition, conservation of environment is also promoted through volunteer tourism that helps in creating a good environment in these communities (Raymond & Hall, 2008). It is also believed that volunteers personally develop themselves while undertaking these programmes as a huge extent of commitment is required to get properly involved in these communities. Moreover, intercultural experiences among the volunteers and hosts results in an exceptional understanding of the global culture within the host country and further enrich its knowledge pool and global relations (Raymond & Hall, 2008, p. 532). In addition, host communities also learn the foreign cultures and the people in these communities bring in a series of positive changes in their attitudes and perceptions. Volunteer tourism is considered as a development strategy that results in sustainable development of natural resources along with fostering the quality of people in host communities through tourism activities. This particular aspect provides an understanding that there has been a positive impact in host communities through volunteer tourism (Raymond & Hall, 2008, p. 532). As mentioned in Strasdas & Zeppenfeld (2008), the Brazilian community was observed to become gradually open to host global cultures with the benefits of volunteer tourism along with understand the commercial value of such networking, which further steered rapid growth in the tourism sector of the country. This factor provides evidence that volunteer tourism was positively affecting the region, as there was a change in the perceptions of people in these communities, which also promoted technology, social and industrial developments in the sector (Dredge, 2010, p. 5). Negative Impacts on Host Communities However, there are certain negative effects too, identified to be levied on host communities, arising due to volunteer tourism, which has not been given much importance (Callanan & Thomas, n.d., p. 198). These negative effects include continuous negligence towards the local people desires principally owing to the absence of adequate involvement within the local people in undertaking welfare activities. Moreover, progress of the work done i.e. benefiting the host communities has been getting delayed along with an unsatisfactory level of the work completed in relation to community development (Callanan & Thomas, n.d., p.198). The work done has been unsatisfactory as the volunteers lack the competency level required to carry out the work (Callanan & Thomas, n.d., p.198). Additionally, it was observed that volunteer tourism and the volunteers involved are mainly undertaking tourism activities to fulfil their self-interest instead of fulfilling the needs of host communities (Wearing, 2001,p. 53). Subsequently, chain of problems become apparent when more consideration is given to the tourists’ desires and not much of importance is given to the desires of the host communities (Vrasti, 2012, p. 126). As the volunteer tourism sector has had a commercial growth there might be a possibility that host communities desires and their beneficence would remain neglected to a certain extent (Vrasti, 2012, p. 126). It has been claimed that volunteer tourism and its market share has increased its concerns towards obtaining more profit instead of fulfilling the needs and desires of the host communities, thus indicating the negatives associated with volunteer tourism (McBride & Daftary, 2005, p. 15). Thus, it can be asserted that volunteer tourism has been more inclined towards increasing the profit margin and not much of importance is given to the requirements of individuals in host communities implying its negative impacts in promoting exploitation of resources within the host communities (McBride & Daftary, 2005, p. 15). The concept of volunteer tourism primitively aims to accomplish the motive to provide vocational and financial aids to the host communities, but in reality, volunteer tourism has not been able to provide these benefits to host communities (McBride & Daftary, 2005, p. 15). According to Chen & Chen (2011), when volunteers display their life style and wealth in a poor community, there might be a possibility that economic differences would be expanded rather than omitted amid volunteers and the community residents. This in turn would result into jealousy among the younger members of the host community and the gap between the communities and volunteers will be widened (Chen & Chen, 2011, p. 435). This evidence apparently portrays that volunteer tourism programmes have been undertaken in lesser privileged locations. The key issue faced by volunteer tourism participants in the current phenomenon is the practice of responsibility among volunteers. It has been revealed in this regard that responsibility must be initiated within these volunteers to ensure that volunteer tourism activities serve its actual purpose (Caldieron, 2013, p. 7). As apparent in the current day context, volunteer tourism is getting commercialised due to which, greater focus is delivered to tourism and volunteering instead of low income host communities (Caldieron, 201, p. 7). The organisations, undertaking volunteer tourism, require to be properly engaged and involve in order determining whether these host communities are getting benefitted from the programmes offered. For example, when volunteer tourism was undertaken in Rio De Janiero, Brazil, critics argued there was both the kind of effects being apparently observed in the community (Caldieron, 2013, p. 7). Conversely, negative impacts were also observed in terms that the volunteers could not express themselves because of language barrier due to which, they could not effectively interact with the people of these communities (Strasdas & Zeppenfeld, 2008, p. 91). While volunteer tourism is undertaken in host communities the foreign tourist can negatively influence the communities as they might portray their lifestyle and wealth due to which the people in poor communities might get frustrated and finally perceive that the tourism program instead of benefitting them creates a gap between the tourist and people in these communities. Thus, it can be ascertained that responsibilities to be shared by volunteers is a major issue due to which volunteer tourism has negatively impacted the host communities. Conclusion In the present day context, volunteer tourism provides benefits to both tourists and host communities. Volunteer tourism applies to visitors who volunteer alleviate the poverty level of people in host communities. Volunteer tourism is also regarded as the best way to provide welfare aid to people belonging from the poverty group and enable them to gain freedom and equality. However, there are some negative and positive effects of volunteer tourism also. Negative effects of volunteer tourism involve in terms of the individual interests of volunteers participating in this kind of a tourism trend often unethically motivated towards exploiting the resources available in under-developed of backward host communities. It is considered that volunteer tourism is required to provide vocational and financial supports to the host communities, mostly involving developing or under-developed regions around the world, wherein the evidences show that volunteer tourism was able to meet its actual purpose only to an insignificant level. Conclusively, it can be claimed that the trend of volunteer tourism raises significant risks for its host communities. This kind of participation is also subjected to the proficiency of the industry regulators to control the activities of the volunteers. Subsequently, as volunteer tourism has become commercialised it would be worth mentioning that development of host communities might be neglected at a larger scale, increasing threats to the communities in terms of commercial exploitation for unethical profit-seeking. Moreover, it could be revealed that volunteer tourism in some situations might create a gap among the tourist and people in host communities due to the difference in wealth and lifestyle. Therefore, this program must be undertaken in such a way wherein the tourist must ensure that the gap within them does not get widened. Thus, it can be ascertained that volunteer tourism has more of a negative impacts as compared to positive impacts on host communities, which should be discouraged in the absence of strict and all-inclusive regulatory formations. References Caldieron, J. M., 2013. Safety Perception and Tourism Potential in the Informal Neighborhood of “La Perla”, San Juan, Puerto Rico. International Journal of Safety and Security in Tourism. Issue 4, pp. 1-23 Callanan, M. & Thomas, S., No Date. Deconstructing Volunteer Activities within a Dynamic Environment. Volunteer Tourism, pp. 182-200. Chen, L. & Chen, J. S., 2011. The Motivations and Expectations of International Volunteer Tourists: A Case Study of ‘‘Chinese Village Traditions’’. Tourism Management, Vol. 32, pp. 435-442. Dredge, D., 2010. Monitoring and Evaluating Volunteer Tourism: A Review and Analytical Framework. Journal of Sustainable Tourism, pp. 1-26. Guttentag, D. A., 2009. The Possible Negative Impacts of Volunteer Tourism. International Journal of Tourism Research, No. 11, pp. 537-551. McBride, A. M. & Daftary, D., 2005. International Service: History and Forms, Pitfalls and Potential. CSD Working Paper, pp. 1-22. Raymond, E. M. & Hall, C. M., 2008. The Development of Cross-Cultural (Mis)Understanding Through Volunteer Tourism. Journal of Sustainable Tourism, Vol. 16, No. 5, pp. 530-541. Strasdas, W. & Zeppenfeld, R., 2008. Tourism in Developing Countries. University of Applied Sciences Eberswalde (Germany), pp. 5-259. Sin, H. L., 2011. Who Are We Responsible To? Locals’ Tales of Volunteer Tourism. Geoforum, Vol. 41, pp. 983-992. Vrasti, W., 2012. Volunteer Tourism in the Global South: Giving Back in Neoliberal Times. Routledge. Wearing, S., 2001. Volunteer Tourism: Experiences that Make a Difference. CABI Publishing Series. Read More