Following VSO’s claims, we contacted Tom Griffiths, founder of GapYear.com, to get his reaction. His answers were so good that we’ve run them in full – read them and make your own mind up.
Do you think that VSO’s concerns about a number of gap providers being spurious is founded?Yes and no.
“Yes” - it is a sad admission to see that they have found case studies where a few volunteers have found themselves in poor projects overseas. Having more volunteers than orphans in an orphanage and hearing that one organisation has resold a project time and again where the same section of coral reef is surveyed by volunteers is inexcusable. The industry has had a wake-up call and standards are being addressed.
“No” – having said the above, it is important to set the record straight. This type of complaint is very rare. I’ve been doing this for 10 years now and hear very few complaints like this, so can vouch for the quality of the operators. The vast majority are in it for the right reasons, which is to make a difference to the world and the lives of young people. If volunteers ask the right questions beforehand and speak to those who have been then they shouldn’t be caught out. I would take a dim view of any organisation that wouldn’t let you speak to someone who has done it before you.
Do you have any criteria that different gap schemes have to meet before they are featured on gapyear.com, or are you concerned that some less than worthwhile schemes have made their way onto your site?
We’ve always self-regulated. If we wouldn’t let a member of our own family go with an organisation then they don’t go on. There are currently 3 organisations that we have banned internally. I’m going to pick up on your word ‘worthwhile’, as this is the word everyone is using right now. This is less about being ‘worthwhile’ as this is down to personal opinion. Some may think it’s worthwhile whilst others don’t. Our concerns rest with the safety of volunteers overseas. If you’re running around a jungle with a machete or chainsaw; in a rainforest miles away from the nearest hospital and at risk from snake bites, getting lost, septic wounds; using boats that might flip on a coral reef; or climbing high scaffolding best described as ‘a couple of twigs and some twine’ then there are risks involved. We need to know that those who have a duty of care to you know what they are doing (especially in an emergency) and can look after you properly.
If people are concerned about an organisation, what can they do to check their validity and also report any concerns that they may have about them?
Ask questions. Simple as that. You wouldn’t spend £2,000 on a car without taking it for a test drive, tooting the horn etc., so don’t do the same here. We have a list of questions on gapyear.com you can use such as ‘Where does the money go?’, ‘Why am I needed out there?’, ‘Where am I staying, with whom and why?’, ‘Give me an idea of a typical week’. This should all be on their website. Don’t be fooled into thinking that charitable organisations are good and commercial companies are bad. Some commercial companies give far more charitable donations to the projects than some of the charities.
Last year VSO claimed that gappers were becoming the new colonialists – do you think that this is so? If so, what can be done to counter this?
It was a tasty little media hook used to promote their own gap year placements. The media loved it, so hopefully pay rises for the VSO press team! It’s rubbish. Less than 6% who take a gap year actually volunteer, so the numbers are tiny and insignificant in the whole scheme of things. Also, over 80% of those who take gap years are from the state sector, so the stories about our rich kids taking gaps and ruining the third world at mummy and daddy’s expense is also complete tosh. All I would say is that potential volunteers should choose the right projects. There are thousands of them out there, so don’t be lazy. Find the one that suits you and you’ll have an amazing experience that you’ll talk about for the rest of your life that benefits not only you but also others.
In what way can badly planned voluntourism have a negative impact upon a community?
If volunteers take more than they give or find themselves in a situation where the obvious question hanging in the air which everyone is thinking but no one is saying is: ‘Why the bl**dy hell am I here?’ it will never be seen by any party involved as a good thing.
The flipside of course is that if you manage to teach a child to pronounce English words properly, they may get a job in an international hotel and fund their family out of poverty. Build a homeless family a shelter, bring clean water to a village or simply be the only person who has time to cuddle a child desperate for love or attention who has become an orphan through the AIDS epidemic. No negatives there, only positives. “One person can’t change the world, but you can change the world for one person”. This is what it’s really all about. Ignore what people are trying to tell you to sell papers. The media recently has tucked into volunteering in a horrific way that I honestly find revolting. It’s all about how volunteers take.
This is simply not the case. Over the past 10 years we estimate that gap year volunteers have given over £10million pounds of their hard earned cash directly into projects overseas. That’s amazing. So next time you see them in a bath of beans or cat food (yup, check out Tori sitting in a bath of Whiskers finest on gapyear.com – she raised over £1,200 in one hour!), on sponsored walks or cycles desperately trying to raise cash to fund a trip that will make a difference, throw them a quid and encourage them on. And then think about doing the same. You won’t regret it.
This article was a response to this one.
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