Making a Difference

Hero, adventurer and advocate volunteers: A visual analysis of volunteer tourists’ identities on Instagram

“…On these premises, people began living by the dogma "you are what you consume," hence the name of this movement, "life politics." 12 The local performance of voluntourist associations and their agents depends on their definition of development, and whether they adopt an ecocentric or anthropocentric ethical perspective. An ecocentric view re-centers the mission and volunteers' participation around the rehabilitation of human-nature synergism, focusing on preserving and guarding the cultural and environmental evolution of the local ecosystem and its communities.…”

“…Therefore, ecocentric voluntourism embraces a localized action approach, boosting local employment and local organizations. 13 Conversely, an anthropocentric view puts human-human interaction first, where fostering developmental progress means acting at the level of sociocultural value codes. Anthropocentrism upholds the ideological tenets behind colonial missions and is currently feeding a new form of practical neo-colonialism, surviving into the uninformed and inadequate conduct of volunteers lacking appropriate knowledge, competences, critical sense or cultural sensitivity.…”

“…14 This validates the idea that any Westerner could be of help solely for their coming from the West, hence effortlessly prescribing development in its "modern" significance. 15 Nevertheless, if the political finds expression through the personal, the reverse also becomes true: the personal becomes politicized, inviting youth to perform their identity through resume-building experiences. 16 Neoliberalism strips voluntourism of its political impact and reorients its value in terms of self-development: the volunteer action becomes "a projection of the search for self into politics," 17 repurposed for self-development and entertainment, granting volunteers "structural advantage" over their peers.…”

“…15 Nevertheless, if the political finds expression through the personal, the reverse also becomes true: the personal becomes politicized, inviting youth to perform their identity through resume-building experiences. 16 Neoliberalism strips voluntourism of its political impact and reorients its value in terms of self-development: the volunteer action becomes "a projection of the search for self into politics," 17 repurposed for self-development and entertainment, granting volunteers "structural advantage" over their peers. Such economic layer dismisses the dimension of historical and material inequalities and participants are only able to see the local culture from a fetishizing eye, 18 and only able to understand volunteer programs as a product of "experience capitalism" intended to build up their prospective employability.…”

“…The adventurer experience is based on a journey of self-discovery that redirects the gaze to an ongoing experimentation of the volunteers' personal identity. 87 Learning on the ground to integrate professional shortcomings and enhance prospective career suitability constitutes an integral part of the experience. However, as previously mentioned, this practice has been criticized because loose requirements allow highly inadequate people to participate in projects that would demand a specific set of qualities to actually be effective.…”