Volunteering Abroad in the South Pacific and Beyond: Receiving More Than You Give

By Pamela Houston As a Peace Corps Volunteer, Pamela Houston helped a disability organization in Kiribati develop and achieve their goals. In her article, she sets forth some considerations for others interested in volunteering their time abroad.

Guests filled the thatched roof open-air maneaba to celebrate the second annual National Disability Awareness Feast. I sat cross-legged on the ground with my companions and budding activists from Te Toa Matoa, the Kiribati Association of Youth and Adults with Disabilities.

Kiribati tradition dictates that events such as this must include plenty of traditional dance, lots of intensive, heartfelt singing, long flowing speeches presented by hosts and guests alike and, of course, the feast. Carefully woven pandanus leaf mats laid out in a long line on the ground made a table for fried ocean and lagoon fish, huge pots brimming over with rice, fried and boiled breadfruit and corned beef scooped right from the can. Young girls and old women mingled among the guests dispensing scalding hot, sugary tea from industrial sized teakettles.

"Access means something different to each person with a disability. Enlist volunteer organization staff in your home country and abroad to learn about barriers and disability-related resources in the destination country. Find out about the different tasks involved in the volunteer project. What do the activities of daily life entail (hauling water, walking long distances, sitting for hours on end)?"

Te Toa Matoa elected me to deliver a rousing speech encouraging people with disabilities, government, business and church leaders to work together to ensure full inclusion of people with disabilities in Kiribati society. That I did without much trepidation. My friends had also patiently taught me a sitting mwaie (dance) for this occasion. Leading up to the event, I had been worried about performing this dance, worried about being a spectacle with my white skin and awkward movements. I have cerebral palsy, and on top of that, I come from a family with no sense of rhythm. And I was supposed to dance in front of a crowd of people for whom dance is as integral to their lives as is the air they breathe? Kiribati people are born with the mwaie in their blood – it is ancestral, it is magic.

Kiribati people with disabilities of all kinds have customarily been excluded from traditional dance. There is a strong sense of embarrassment and shame for anyone who veers from the exact way a dance is to be performed. How could someone who has cerebral palsy, or who is blind, deaf or an amputee possibly dance? This gathering was as important for us as for the guests because we, a group of people with many different disabilities, intended to dance, speak our hearts and minds and show that we belonged to the community.

The moment had arrived. Tarewita and Tetei, two bold young women who happened to be amputees, began the back and forth call to introduce my dance. I took a deep breath and positioned my arms. Te Toa Matoa launched into the strong and joyful song I had practiced for weeks. Their voices encircled me, the magic of the mwaie overtook me and I danced.

The Volunteer Role

In my official role as a Peace Corps Volunteer with Te Toa Matoa, I assisted this fledgling organization to define their goals and develop strategies to accomplish them. In many ways, I succeeded in my role. Te Toa Matoa made tremendous strides during the two years I worked with them. They created a monthly radio program about disability issues; undertook training in community theater and then created their own plays, performing them all over the main island of Tarawa and on some of the outer islands; and began lobbying Parliament for funds and support to build and operate a center for people with disabilities. I have heard recently that the group continues to thrive and that they are about to become a member of Disabled People’s International, an accomplishment that attests to the level of vision, organization and effectiveness that they have achieved.

"In my official role as a Peace Corps Volunteer with Te Toa Matoa [in Kiribati], I assisted this fledgling organization to define their goals and develop strategies to accomplish them."

In my unofficial role as a woman with a disability from another land, I lived a different view of disability. I don’t see my disability as something that should hinder my going to school, being a contributing member of my family and community, working and traveling. I assume that I have a right to lead a full life and to pursue my dreams. I assume this to be true for or anyone else with a disability as well. What my Kiribati friends with disabilities taught me as they lived their view of disability is that in clinging to my American view of individualism and independence, I was missing out on a different level of connection and interdependence. I came to understand that they had to find their own way for people with disabilities to participate fully within their own cultural context of community and tradition. My appropriate role was to offer my experience and help facilitate this process…and to learn.

Why Volunteer? Motives and Opportunities

What motivates people to volunteer abroad? Usually the primary motivation is the desire to do something meaningful, to make a positive difference in some small corner of the world. It is very common to hear volunteers, after they’ve returned from their service, declare that they gained so much more from the experience than they gave. Here are some examples of what that can mean:

Living in another country and taking part in day-to-day activities and traditions provides a deeper experience of another culture.
There is great value in studying and using another language to the best of your ability. Language provides rich clues about individuals, their worldview and the cultural context in which they live. Using another language can open and nurture parts of yourself that were unknown to you before.
Volunteering overseas can teach you to let go of your perceptions about what other people need, about what they should do. You learn to support people as they develop their own ideas, discover and recognize their own resources and resourcefulness.
International volunteers gain unique skills and experiences that can open doors to employment in international and domestic fields.

International volunteer opportunities come in all shapes and sizes and occur in virtually every country on the planet. As you begin exploring possibilities, it is important to know yourself and consider the kind of overseas volunteer experience you want to have. Here is a sampling of the array of choices available. To begin exploring specific programs, see the list of volunteer programs and resources at the end of this article.

Do you want to go on a program for a couple of weeks, a few months or even as long as two or three years?
Are you interested in being part of a team project or would you rather work individually with community counterparts?
What skills do you want to contribute? Some volunteer jobs can be very physical such as trail or building construction or an archeological dig. Others require skills such as teaching, community organizing or small business development.
What kind of structure and amount of direction or freedom do you want on the project? Some organizations provide volunteers with clear tasks to accomplish; others provide a general framework and leave it up to the volunteer to determine the specifics.
Are you interested in being in a bustling urban area, a rural village or even in a wilderness area?
Are you looking for a program through which you can use your foreign language skills or do you want one where you can speak your native language?
How much money can you fundraise or afford? Some organizations charge a program fee and airfare while a few others cover airfare and necessary living expenses.

Disability Questions

Anyone preparing to leave home for an international volunteer experience will have all kinds of questions: What about money? What is the food like? Will I make friends? How will I learn the language? And how will I find my way around a strange place? Individuals with disabilities may have additional concerns such as:

“If I feel overwhelmed with anxiety, will I be able to find a counselor or other person I feel safe talking with?
“How will a completely different diet and schedule affect my diabetes?”
“How will I use public transportation in my wheelchair?”
“How will I learn my way around a village with only a dirt road and crisscrossing foot paths running through it?”

Access means something different to each person with a disability. Enlist volunteer organization staff in your home country and abroad to learn about barriers and disability-related resources in the destination country. Find out about the different tasks involved in the volunteer project. What do the activities of daily life entail (hauling water, walking long distances, sitting for hours on end)? Dream up some creative adaptations. Learn from disability organizations in the host country about local resources for your particular needs – whether that be refrigeration for medications, bicycle repair shops for wheelchair repair, or counselors. Get in touch with the National Clearinghouse on Disability and Exchange (NCDE) (see sidebar) for contacts and suggestions. Consider your strategies for managing disability concerns, and then make your own choices about a program’s suitability for you.

The Impact of Volunteering

My fellow Peace Corps Volunteers and I would gather together two or three times a year for inservices and to talk about our projects. Some volunteers would talk about all the things they were doing and the marvelous changes they were seeing on their islands. Others would bemoan that it didn’t seem that anything they did mattered. These discussions were mired in complicated needs, feelings and the pressures of their personal, cultural and organizational expectations. The fact is, some international volunteers will see results from their work, others won’t. Remember that much change is unseen, immeasurable and not quite quantifiable. Just as a tree’s roots – the part of itself that provides longevity, stability and sustenance – are largely invisible, so might be the impact of our presence and work as volunteers in another country.

I completed my Peace Corps service just over two years ago. I am still sorting through the experience, discovering why I did it, how it changed me and what I learned. I must say that I had a tough time in Kiribati. There were times that I was so unhappy I wanted to quit. Yet, the people of those faraway islands have forever touched me. I am finally becoming comfortable with how complicated cross-cultural experience is – that it isn’t just about warm fuzzy feelings. Aggravation and frustration, give and take, bewilderment and enlightenment are all part of living and serving in another culture. Serving and living in a community elsewhere in the world provides ample opportunity to see yourself and your own culture in a new light. Wrestling with what you find brings growth and maturity.

To explore potential volunteer programs, individuals may be interested in NCDE’s online searchable database (link below). Over 100 exchange organizations that offer education, homestay, internship, language study, research, short-term work, teaching and volunteer programs to over 70 countries are listed.

NCDE also has an online database of over 300 disability organizations worldwide that can be searched by country, region and disability type. Disability organizations abroad may be able to assist with accommodation arrangements; provide referral to local disability-related resources; locate personal assistants, sign interpreters and guides; and advise program volunteers on accessibility in the host country. In addition, NCDE has a network of over 100 people with all types of disabilities who have been on international exchange programs abroad and are willing to talk with others who are considering going abroad.

If you are ready to live in another country, to give support and share your skills, ready to open yourself to new experiences and different ways of seeing the world – if you are ready to dance, contact NCDE. NCDE can provide you with the information and tools to set your journey in motion.