For those who want a holiday to be more than just lying on the beach, Voluntourism offers an alternative - a chance to get up close and personal with village communities. MONIQUE TOUBIA introduces one such initiative near Chiang Mai, Thailand

Written by Monique Toubia on 16 Feb 2009 with 0 comments. Be the first!

Voluntourism - A more rewarding travel experience?

There are many ways to see the world. You can get off the plane, be escorted directly to an all-inclusive resort and hand held by a tour guide the entire way. At the other extreme, you can take a rickety local bus with a live chicken kept in a black plastic bag under your seat, only to then hop off the bus into a crowd of touts that prey on tourists in some town that has turned backpacker haven overnight. The options beyond and in between those are endless.

My travel has largely involved the later, although when family came to visit where I live and work in Thailand recently, I was able to experience a type of tourism that is entirely new to me. Since my 10-year-old brother was in tow and there was the constant threat of rain, given the monsoon season, we chose to go to the island of Phuket as there were still a large variety of family activities to enjoy.

What I saw there was mass tourism at its finest. I went to a show that was largely an unorthodox meeting between Thai and Las Vegas culture and rode on huge ships full of people who couldn't swim. When the ship or boat arrived to amazingly beautiful places known mostly for being featured in movies, we were three out of hundreds crowding the tiny shores. Trash littered the water and tour leaders gave us stickers so as not to lose us in the lunch areas where hundreds of tour groups gathered at the same time for massive feeds on formerly remote islands. The whole experience left me, and others, with a bad taste in my mouth - and not just from the overly-salty fried rice!

What is voluntourism?

Given similar trends in many popular tourist destinations throughout the world, the search for unique and interesting travel is increasing rapidly. Many travellers now add the understanding of cultures or environment or both to their list of destination goals. Some even want to go a step further by contributing their time and specific skills to advance philanthropic projects through volunteering. Needless to say, the tourist industry has responded.

Just as there are many ways to travel, there are also endless volunteer opportunities and constructive endeavors on which to focus. Voluntourism has emerged in the past few years as a way an individual, family or group can combine their travel and other excursions with volunteering. The concept has come under attack by some who wonder if this approach to travel is actually a beneficial contribution to the host communities or ecosystems. However, according to Susan J. Ellis, the president of a firm specializing in voluntourism; "When it's well organized and thoughtfully planned, the traveller can indeed use vacation time to great advantage, helping the host country and gaining many personal benefits." She continually stresses the importance of well-organized and thoughtfully planned projects as key to achieving voluntourism goals.

As a well-worn traveller, I too have engaged in volunteering abroad as an avenue into local communities and unique ecosystems or to add to my professional experiences. It should come as no surprise that I eventually ended up managing an initiative called Voluntourists Without Borders (VWB) that hosts voluntourists in Chiang Mai province, Northern Thailand. I am finally the one managing other volunteer's experiences and interestingly enough, working for a private sector company rather than a non governmental organization as I have solely done in the past.

Voluntourists Without Borders (VWB)

VWB is the non-profit arm of Track of the Tiger T.R.D. (Tourism Resources Development) Co., Ltd. which has entered into a 10-year development contract with the villagers of Ban Mae Lai, Chiang Mai, Thailand under which it is leading the way in the creation of a stunning nature trails network of world class standard within the community forest managed by the villagers.

Under this Private Sector and Community-based partnership/agreement, Track of the Tiger also contributes to the educational development of the village's school-aged children, such that they will be competent to operate and further develop the attraction on behalf of the village community in the future.

During the 10-year development phase, Track of the Tiger T.R.D. bases ecotourism, outdoor education, corporate team building and adventure racing programmes from Pang Soong Lodge, Outdoor Education & Research Centre (PSL), 50 kilometres from Chiang Mai city. 1,000 meters above sea level, PSL is surrounded by a moist deciduous and evergreen forest and is ideally situated as an access point to all six of the community owned trails. Under the agreement, visitors using the nature trails contribute by paying 'trail fees' to a community fund that currently supports village ceremonies, school and hospital transport.

According to research conducted in the region, the forest is unique, as it has been well maintained through a series of complex community developed rules. At the moment, the remaining cha miang (fermented chewing tea) farmers cultivate their plants in conjunction with this forest, however it is dying tradition and many are migrating elsewhere to find work and to provide their children with easily accessible education. It is hoped that by sharing their forest with local, national and international visitors they will generate a new source of sustainable income that provides them and their next generations with the opportunity to remain in the area.

VWB sources development funding for the project, and provides a channel through which paying volunteers play a 'hands on role' in its physical development. This includes the creation of the trails, the collation of detailed trail guide materials, and the development of a low impact agro-forestry projects alongside the trails. All activities are aimed at providing an alternative source of income to the community, as well as English language, environmental studies and basic tourism industry skills education to the children from the surrounding area. Importantly, this is achieved via a true partnership with the community where the roles and responsibilities are understood by all stakeholders involved.

Conclusion

So is it working? Many people, including my volunteers, ask me this. As with all things - it takes time and only that will tell. What I know for sure is that the concept was a long time coming by Track of the Tiger's innovative and experienced founder, Shane K. Beary. He is not one to waste time on projects that are not beneficial to all involved and has certainly put significant effort into establishing this unique partnership with the community.

Our volunteers come from all over the world and have a wide variety of skills sets that they apply to ongoing projects. Some are artists, others are teachers/camp councilors, a few are even engineers and the list goes on. Each person contributes in some way that is directly useful to my overall task of advancing the program goals to provide an alternative source of sustainable income for all participants. Their interaction with the Ban Huay Kaew community is a unique experience and beneficial to all. I know for a fact that the current community members involved in this project love hosting visitors, getting to know them and learning English or other languages. The kids cheer loudly when the teacher introduces the volunteer's presence and some of them never stop smiling throughout the entire lesson. These kinds of interactions are simply not possible in the mass tourism market and not easily accessible if you plan to just take a bus to a random village to interact with locals. Developing such relationships takes effort, which VWB has done so that voluntourists can contribute to the ongoing project in diverse styles, while also benefiting in their own personal way.

There are many activities a tourist visiting Thailand can engage in. They can lie on the beach, snorkel, dive, ride elephants, shop, watch cultural shows or Thai boxing and many other activities that can essentially be done in countries with similar environments. Honestly, I noticed little difference between tourist activities offered when travelling throughout the country.

Volunteering as a part of one's vacation is a way to 'step out of the box' in order to see a side of the host country that is not advertised on the window of a typical travel agent office, while also contributing to worthwhile endeavors that help build sustainable livelihoods. In sum, participating in such activities has the potential to become a far more rewarding experience for all involved.

• Ellis, Susan, J. "Voluntourism - Pros, Cons, and Possibilities". Energize, Inc. February 2007.http://www.energizeinc.com/hot/2007/07feb.html