A Powerful Experience
The term “voluntourism” is being thrown around more and more in today’s world. It basically refers to a type of travel where individuals combine tourism with volunteer work, often for a charitable cause. Although this sounds like the best of two worlds, voluntourism comes with many fatal flaws, not addressing grassroot causes, feeding into the “white savior complex”, and overall not invoking sustainable social change.
In school, students engage in service learning. However, this approach, similar to voluntourism, is flawed. It encourages sympathy and, in some cases, pity, as students do not fully understand the system of inequality that their “service” is aimed at tackling. In a TEDx Oxbridge speech by Daniela Papi, she mentioned that in the world of service today, we need less sympathy and more empathy, rethinking service learning, and instead learning service.
This spoke levels to me as just recently I had embarked on an eye-opening service trip, both hopeful and upsetting, to the Philippines with the International Care Ministry, a non-profit focused in the Central and Southern regions of the country. The reason that I did not say I completed the trip was because I don’t see an individual trip as completed, from everything that I learnt, both on this trip and through my own learning elsewhere, change is not short-term, problems are complex, and therefore, trips cannot be individual, but consistent and sustainable.
When I arrived in Cebu, I could already see inequalities, which is a large theme of this whole trip and my own realization. I could see through the streets, telephone poles, and buildings the inequality between this country and where I currently live in Singapore. Fast forward to the following morning, where we drove from the bustling city center, through to a rural area with thinner roads and shorter buildings, then finally into a forest of squatted land, our first community visit of the trip. ICM aims to reach the ultra-poor communities, those living in ultra-poverty, usually on squatted land, with no true ownership or control over where they live. Walking through this community for the first time, although the scenes were the same as pictures or documentaries I had seen in class, experiencing this in real time gave a whole new feel. Rather than watching in an air-conditioned room, I was greeted with the flies, the smell, everything. Yet I immediately felt a sense of community, one where every family was interconnected. Through interviews I had with mothers, such as Mai Lou, who told us about their mindset of living to the next day, helping us understand mindsets that are different from mine. When asking them about their children’s futures, they just shook their heads, not knowing. It was eye-opening to me to see a whole different way of life, a whole different trajectory of life outcomes. However, although my peers may feel sympathy or pity, these people found happiness. They mentioned that through the challenges, the family always brought happiness.
Happiness is another important thing, I got the chance to make a difference, even though it was very small, for a family, building a toilet in their yard area. It was something that I will remember forever, helping other human lives and providing just a little more convenience. I was allowed to write something on the toilet wall, and I chose to write a Chinese proverb, “天天开心,” meaning “happy everday”. I was actually quite proud of this message as it truly resonated with me in that moment, because despite the mud, sweat, and rain everybody had to go through to build these toilets, smiles surrounded us, and it made me realize, happiness really can make any situation just a little bit better.
Another aspect of this trip that really impacted me was the little children, no matter the communities we visited, the children displayed such joyful innocence, being extremely welcoming and friendly to me, some pushing me by the butt telling me to go faster, others trying to grab a hold of my hand. These small actions really touched my heart, made me feel welcomed, and again, showed happiness even in difficult situations.
However, another instance with a child, actually one of my age, brought a different feeling. This was definitely one of the more destitute communities, with families and communities living in a landfill. We observed a lesson being given out by an ICM teacher for the little kids of the communities, reading bible stories and practicing phonics. However, during that time, I noticed a girl who looked my age holding a child. At first, I thought it was her sibling, but later found out it was her son. I knew about teenage pregnancies, heard all about them, but this was real. Seeing her and the other kids playing with the baby, I couldn’t help but smile, a sad smile. I could tell that she was committed, but I also knew that she was fully aware of the situation she was in. Of course, at first I felt pity, but more so felt the need to show her kindness. I felt that through our mutual smiles, we connected, understanding the truth and acceptance of this situation. I truly hope for the best. For all these families, I walked about from the landfill community, thinking for the first time on this trip that this was unfair. That, on a basic human level, it just wasn’t fair; no one should live like this. I could tell these families didn’t have the same hope that the others had, that there was always a pang of sadness in their eyes, their smiles, their voices. I really hope that the children keep hope, that ICM can continue supporting them, and that I can do anything I can to help, not because of the “white savior complex”, but because of the notion that we are all just humans, it is merely an act of giving to people, just like me. This is also why I felt, as someone from privilege, I couldn’t just pursue a career where the rich get richer, but instead help bring people up, little by little.
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By now, I would like to talk about the work that ICM did, and the work that I helped with as well. One thing that I felt set ICM above other organizations was, as mentioned earlier, they don’t engage in “voluntourism” nor short-term actions. From the trip and my research, I saw firsthand their “Transform” program, a 15-week program unique to ICM to teach individuals from these ultra-poor communities health and livelihood lessons. From setting up businesses and savings groups, to teaching them essential skills both in business and making products, to teaching them the importance of ensuring a sanitary and clean environment. ICM ensures follow-ups, connections, and long-term partnerships with these communities, and through some of my community visits, I saw the results. Real sustainable change, institutionalized businesses in these communities, and a new level of financial stability. It truly brought me hope that change could be made, especially with this mindset.
Additionally, I even got a chance to teach a part of the Transform program, teaching the importance of pre and postnatal care for women. It brought me a sense of fulfillment, not because “I taught” but because “I hope”. I hope that even in the slightest way, it could change these people’s lives, protecting themselves and their children. ICM also partners with local pastors, who teach essential values lessons, and this was the first time that I could also see the power of religion. The connection that all people in the community shared, bonded by religion and values. The pastor spoke about sustainable change, and I really hope that what he said could be brought to fruition, planting the seed for real change.
Going back to the TEDx Talk given by Daniela Papi, there is a Cambodian saying wherein it states, if you plant papayas, you won’t get mangoes. Too often do volunteers get disappointed when they see their short-term actions result in short-lived impacts rather than full change. Instead, like ICM, the right seeds have to be planted, with the right mindset and correct tools. I hope to continue working with ICM to make sustainable change, no matter how small, and to start growing mangoes.
This is one of the blogs I feel obsessed about writing, I couldn’t stop, cause the feelings are so powerful.
