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UnXpected
David Clemmons, Publisher/Editor of The VolunTourist, responds to some of your questions and emails. (Additional questions and responses are posted on the VolunTourism.org Blog)
Volume 5, Issue 1 Reader Comments & Other Mail
Dear Sir/Madam,
I am intereseted in setting up a small operation, possibly as a
nonprofit, to offer vounteer placements in India in Nepal to a wide
network of people I have access to. I have had a brief look at your
website and beleive I have the ingredients of a successful, small
scale operation. However, I'm wondernig about set up requirements,
insurance and other technicalities.
I am Australian and am married to a US citizen, so I guess we have the
option of registering the organisation in either of these countries.
However, I'm not sure of what authority I need to register with and
how to arrange for insurance, nor what level of insurance is generally
required, to begin offering placements to people.
Can you give me an indication of where to begin with my search for
this information? I am setting up a website, I have the placements
available in various organisations (animal welfare centres, orphanages
etc), and am ready to bring people to India and Nepal. Just not sure
how to make it official and legitimate. If you can give any advice it
would be greatly appreciated.
Rohan Smith
Dear Rohan,
Thank you for taking the time to send along your email. This sounds like an exciting venture you have lined up for yourself.
My first suggestion would be to reach out to other entities in the VolunTourism Community. You may discover through this process that the necessity of establishing your own operation can be approached from a collaborative or cooperative model. In fact, you may find that establishing your own entity is not even necessary, as a similar approach may already be in the marketplace and eager for partnership.
Should you decide, after some due diligence, to establish your own initiative, then I would suggest determining where you anticipate the majority of your audience will come from. Evoking a level of trust for all stakeholders - community residents, your voluntourists, your vendors & suppliers, etc - - is the most important element in the creation of a voluntourism operation. You may decide that one way of doing this is to set up your operations in both countries - Australia and the U.S. - with two aspects to your website. You could offer a flag for each country that individuals could click on, particularly if you start by registering the operation in only one country.
These are some initial thoughts, and I am sure you have thought of many others. Keep us posted on your progress. You may also find the new website that we have recently launched as a good place for sharing ideas and questions with others - TheVolunTourist.org BETA. The site is set up for those folks who feel a stronger commitment to VolunTourism and wish to interact with a community of like-minded individuals (as "stewards" of VolunTourism).
Here's wishing you much success in your effort!
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Hi!
I’d like to know if you send volunteers to construct houses in flooded areas? I’ve been renting a 2.5x1.5 square meters room space for quite a long time now and I’m looking forward to live in a bigger place with my family. They live with my uncle for the meantime. I’m separated from them because of my job. The rent is getting higher every year and my salary can’t cope with the expenses. If you can help us with the design and the construction, we will appreciate it very much. Make our house as your model house. It is ok if you can only construct the walls, roof and toilet only so that we can already live there. The partitions and finishing will come later. The estimated cost is only US$5,000 or less if labor is free. Me and my brother will help in the construction and we’ll leave to you the financial aspect of the construction.
My lot was filled with water lately because of flashflood and I’m afraid it will happen again. The houses near my lot were partially damaged because of the water that had entered their houses which was up to 2-3 feet high. My lot is only 72 square meters.
Jess
Dear Jess,
This is the first request of this type that I have received. Certainly folks were involved in home construction after the Southeast Asian Tsunami and the Hurricanes in the U.S., but whether such work is done regularly by a specific entity, I am not sure.
A good place to start could be Relief Web. This is a comprehensive web site that covers humanitarian issues and natural disasters around the world. If you are in an area that has been impacted by a natural disaster, some of the organizations listed on this site could potentially provide assistance to you.
Perhaps you could submit a request to them, and they may be able to connect you with the resources neccesary to assit you in your quest to construct your home.
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Hello David,
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| Copyright © Mary Lynn Perry, All Rights Reserved |
While vacationing in Maui, Hawaii, I had the wonderful opportunity to meet with Wendy Stebbins, Volunteer Center Coordinator, Maui County Volunteer Center, and discuss her great programs. After meeting she suggested some opportunities to volunteer in Maui while we were visiting. The Community Pride program at Kanaha Beach Park in Kahului, Maui, was offering a community work day the following day. We decided to join in the efforts to clean up the beach and park.
Over the years, while it has been a world class kite surfing and wind surfing beach the park itself had become a campground for the homeless and was the scene of many activities which dissuaded the general population from using the beach. A citizen group was formed with the goal of adopting the park and beach and re-claiming it for the citizens. That effort is spearheaded today by Val Magee, Project Coordinator for Community Pride at Kanaha Beach Park. Her volunteers have removed invasive plant species, cleared marine debris and planted native species. The park today is a great place for water sports and just enjoying the beautiful surroundings. My partner, Bill, and I got involved in planting native trees in the park. We were given the task of planting Naio trees also known as bastard sandlewood. We had a fun morning and learned a lot about the park, it's history and about native Hawaiian species. It was great to enjoy the beach and also do good while on vacation.
If you are visiting Maui and you'd like to help with the beach clean-ups, contact:
Val Magee at volunteerkanaha@gmail.com
Or for more options in Maui County, which includes 3 islands, contact Wendy Stebbins at: Wendy.Stebbins@co.maui.hi.us or visit the Maui County Volunteer Center's web site: www.mauicounty.gov/volunteercenter.
Mary Lynn
Dear Mary Lynn,
Thank you for sharing your experience with us. It is great to hear that the Volunteer Coordinator for the City of Sacramento, California, can lend a hand when she visits another destination. You may have raised the bar for a host of volunteer coordinators and volunteer managers out there. And it looks like you had a few fellow voluntourists join you as well. Outstanding!
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