to refuse to sponsor this young person

[EmmaGrundyForPM]

An acquaintance has sent out a mass message asking people she knows to sponsor her son to do a 10k run in the New Year.
Son is 17, Y13, and next summer is going to Uganda to build a playground in a primary school. He's raising funding for this with a target of £2500.

AIBU to think that, if the tables were turned, we wouldn't accept this? If I was told that a group of young people, with no experience, were coming to install playground equipment in my child's primary school, I would be outraged. As would other parents. And yet children in less wealthy countries are expected to be grateful for inexperienced people pitching up at their school.

When DS was in 6th form, there was an "opportunity" to go to Malawi for two weeks and volunteer in a school. I told DS I wouldn't support this, and he didn't go.

Why do schools and colleges run these trips, supposedly to "help" less fortunate children, when in fact it tends to be middle class children who go, because it looks good on their CV.

AIBU?

Very interesting and informative thread, thank you for starting it op, and for the useful info and experience posted by pps.

It reminds me of a trip I did over twenty years ago, to Easter Island. It was through an eco/scientific organisation rather than claiming to be in the development sphere, but a lot of what has been written on here rings true.

I didn’t seek sponsorship, I saved up my own money for several years in order to go. It cost thousands (in addition to flights); the idea being that punters were funding scientific research and in return got to ‘help out’ with fieldwork.

My project was archaeological. Whilst no expert, I was already fairly knowledgeable and experienced in the field. It was obvious right from the start that the fieldwork was nonsense. Volunteers were not taught even the basics - I ended up teaching the others how to dig because the leader just wasn’t bothered how the work was carried out.

I spent the fortnight becoming more and more disillusioned. The ‘academic’ in charge gave very hazy answers to any questions about the work, and what it would contribute, and how he would use the data (which was flawed by the incompetent way it was gathered). It was all a load of flannel.

Basically, he had pocketed the money and was just finding ways to occupy the volunteers for a fortnight. It wasn’t contributing to any actual science. It was funding a living for him, but that was about it.

On my return I wrote a lengthy letter to the organisation, outlining my concerns. They responded, claiming to take my allegations seriously and saying that they would investigate.

I heard nothing more. The project continued to run. I kept my eye out for any papers or reports appearing as a result of the studies, but the academic in charge published nothing. Yet that organisation continued to take volunteers’ money to fund him - probably because Easter Island was a real draw.

That experience made me quite cynical. On the plus side, I’m still friends with some of the other volunteers I met there, from three different continents. But I would think twice before giving money to any such organisation again.

My children went with Camps International. I don't know if they are one of the dodgy ones referred to above. My children had to earn or save half from Birthday and Christmas presents and we paid the other half. We didn't expect anyone else to fund or sponsor their month long trip abroad. Not privately educated - scummy comprehensive! Just ignore the message.

They're a for profit holiday firm. Like all the others, you can see what they will be putting first based on their business model and it won't be the locals. Their account are on companies House and you can see the gross profit they make. Its big business.

Part of the business model is to present themselves as charities (not explicitly, so they can't be pulled up for lying, but subtly by implication) so people don't realise that they are actually paying a profit making holiday tour firm.

Which is why I probably wouldn’t do it again. It was, however, hugely beneficial for my daughter. She came back with enormous confidence that she had been lacking before.

Agreed. And a large portion of the funds raised are paying for the young people’s flights and accommodation.

I had never heard of such programs but surely they would be building it under supervision of someone qualified? On the other hand, it would make sense to just allow locals to build it and just supply materials and wages? I was educated in a convent school and we were forever raising money for facilities such as wells, never occurred me they could send pupils to do it 😅

As many have said, it can be a great experience for the privileged young person. At the expense of those in the communities they visit.

As has been said multiple times in this thread, the voluntourists generally do benefit hugely. The companies make sure of that to keep the clients and therefore cash flowing.

The problem is that the benefits they receive are at significant cost to the locals. These programmes damage the local economy, replace paid labouring jobs with volunteers and (in the case of orphanage visits) cause massive emotional damage to the children who are regularly love bombed by visitors who then vanish.

All the people who say ‘my child benefited’ are treating the (usually non-white) locals as less important than the (usually white) visitors. It seems to be the only sort of colonialism which is still socially acceptable and it’s just wrong.

And as I said, I probably wouldn’t do it again. I don’t consider my children especially privileged- washing up, waitressing etc for 3 years to pay for it was hard work for them.

And I probably wouldn’t do it again. It was over 10 years ago and you live and learn

That’s the other thing - the teenagers who go on these trips are also scammed. They worked for years to add money to a commercial company’s bottom line because they thought they were helping. In reality, they almost definitely significantly harmed the people they thought they were helping.

If you read the thread...

Reputable development agencies will aim to build wells/playgrounds/whatever in a way that is sustainable - it will create long-term opportunities for local people.

For example, the well site will be chosen in consultation with the community, as the spatial politics and community ownership is crucial. Wherever it is placed, some people will have easier access than others, and in a water-poor area access to water is a valuable resource that can cause significant conflict in the community. How do you get to a community decision? Do you prioritise the least powerful voices (in which case you may ignore the needs to those who need it most), or the accepted community leaders (in which case you entrench existing power structures) - what if the accepted community leaders are men, and the people collecting/transporting the water are women?

Plus, of course, there are technical aspects of where to site a well, and any irrigation schemes.

It will provide scarce employment opportunities (unskilled labour as necessary, probably train some local people to do basic maintenance regularly, and some people regionally to provide more skilled repairs/maintenance). This also adds to community ownership, which makes it more likely that it will be maintained. But who gets the work (see previous paragraph re: the existing power structures vs the most disadvantaged)?

It will consider which materials are most appropriate, sustainable and available for on-going maintenance.

etc etc

If done well (pun intended 😁) it can be a huge benefit. If not, it becomes unusable within a short period of time, or even worse, the community rifts and conflicts make the situation worse.

They may not be 'privileged' by UK standards, but how about compared to the teenagers in the community they visited? Are any of those teenagers in a position to do the same after 3 years of washing up and waitressing?

sorry, 'prioritise the most powerful'

And we live and learn. I can’t keep apologising for decisions I made over 10 years ago

I’ve heard that these kind of things get pulled down ready for the next lot of students to build it again. Totally to look good on CVs NOT to help the local community.

Why do schools keep supporting/organising these trips?

There's so much negative information out there about them now, why is no one on the school staff or governing bodies asking organisers to think again? What's the benefit for the school?

Agreed. While I knew about the iffy orphanage tourism and was suspect of the 'teenagers teaching sewing to Ugandan women for period products', I had no idea how prevalent other types of voluntourism were. I didn't know about the tearing down of shoddily built structures only to have them rebuilt again by another batch of young idealists. I have teen DDs so I feel much more confident now on how to steer them away from unethical adventures.

Another eye-opening example. Thank you so much for sharing. It's really a shame how these grifts continue.

These companies often come and give presentations in schools, don't they? I guess it's advertising.... maybe they pay the school for it?

Well actually...

We were told to break up and move a load of hardcore from one part of the building site to another. Other than us there was just one supervisor. We had no manual handling training as far as I can recall. One boy who actually had a fit due to dehydration as he had a bad stomach for a few days. It didn't feel particularly useful or safe.

Every other week at my Cornish Community Camp will be for those interested in environmental science.
DH will run a seminar on our family recycling and the volunteers will get the humbling experience of lugging it to the nearest big road for the lorry to collect on Wednesday. Those wishing to see the sunrise will never be the same after hearing joyous sound of three natives singing in broad Cornish 'if you wanna be me lover'
Volunteers will also take part in important fieldwork out in the garden conducting a census of the rats that have arrived with next doors chickens.

It was suggested up thread we get your students teaching but even as a school governor I am not allowed to disrupt the kids education with my privileged middle class musings. Must be a safeguarding thing or just respect for how difficult most jobs are without training.

You are not being unreasonable. Why not just give the people in Uganda all the money raised? "Doing something nice" doesn't cut it, there are competent builders and workers in Uganda who can do all of this. Really sick of this middle-class posturing using developing world people as props for their "charity". Most of these schemes put very little into the communities they claim to be helping.

@BlondiePigtails. my dc also attended the local comprehensive, so I know that these trips are promoted in state schools as well as in private ones (although our local comp is in a very MC area, and its the MC kids who tend to go on these trips).

I refused to let DS go to Malawi because I could not see what benefit there was to the community in Malawi from having 12 6th formers turn up to do "activities" and felt the whole thing smacked of colonialism.