Book Description

'Practicing Sustainable International Volunteer Tourism' provides a uniquely holistic “how to guide” for the practice of sustainable international volunteer tourism which incorporates contextual as well as practical advice for primary stakeholders including communities, practitioners, governments and volunteer tourists. The first full length guide that highlights the interconnected relationship among and between key stakeholders, Practicing Sustainable International Volunteer Tourism integrates theoretical insights with application. As the international volunteer tourism sector continues to grow, it has become an increasingly complex marketplace which has materialized into a diversity of expectations, motivations and experiences. While sometimes convergent, opportunities for divergence among key stakeholders can also become core challenges in creating an ethical as well as sustainable sector. This timely guide was written with the shared belief that for international volunteer tourism to be appropriately practiced, each individual stakeholder needs to understand their co-stakeholders’ interests and the corollary nuances of their participation. As such. this book is divided by stakeholder group and includes sections for each on “how to practice sustainable international volunteer tourism”, ethical and moral issues, choosing your project, a case study, do’s and don’ts and additional resources. International volunteer tourism is now includes commercial operators, international as well as domestic NGOs, government agencies and local communities around the world. Additionally, while the market has traditionally been dominated by international volunteer tourists from the Global North to the Global South, today Global South-to Global South volunteers further diversify international volunteer tourism mobilities. These diverse stakeholders have developed an array of services and programs designed to serve the needs of host communities as well as the international volunteer tourists. As a result of the numerous critiques against the international volunteer tourism industry, various organizations have developed guidelines. Yet, these guidelines lack a comprehensive perspective that addresses the multiple key stakeholder interests as well as challenges. In this book, the authors: * Highlight the critical need for key stakeholder groups to understand the complex interests at stake in order to create a more mutually beneficial and ethical international volunteer tourism sector; * Challenge traditional assumptions of the benefits of volunteer tourism, and suggests how best practice can truly enable positive contributions to local communities economically, politically, socially and environmentally; * Advocate international volunteer tourism practices that link with national and international governmental organizations that are better prepared to affect policy changes in order really have positive effects. This book is a must-have reading for all those studying and working in the tourism industry as well as not for profits, commercial operators, International and National NGOs, government agencies, communities and international volunteer tourists themselves.