top of page
Search

Sustainability, travel, and international volunteering

  • Apr 1
  • 4 min read

There’s no escaping that international travel can result in increased carbon emissions. However, when done responsibly, we can use the positive impacts and inherently low-carbon nature of volunteering to reduce and somewhat offset our emissions. In this article, we’ll explore how and why international volunteering can provide a lower-carbon alternative to typical tourism and what you need to keep in mind when deciding where to go and what to do.


Volunteering Vs. Tourism / “Voluntourism”


While both traditional forms of tourism and international volunteering allow you to see more of the world, they differ in a few key ways that have very different impacts on the climate and local environment. International volunteering, when done in an ethical and considered way, results in a purpose-driven approach to travel. Justifying or offsetting emissions, either practically or to ourselves morally, isn’t simple, but by ensuring our travel has a positive, lasting impact on the world (and us), we can help balance the equation.


Compared to typical tourism, volunteers tend to stay longer and engage with local communities on a deeper level. Most of the emissions created by international travel are a result of flying. So, as well as allowing us to better serve the local community, longer placements, especially when long-haul flights are involved, help spread the carbon footprint of the trip and can improve the impact:emissions ratio.


By contributing to local development, conservation, and education, volunteers also shift the focus of their travel from consumption to contribution. By integrating with community life, rather than engaging in typical tourism activities, volunteers reduce both their emissions and the negative outcomes associated with high-impact tourist activities.

A group of volunteers gathered around a wooden stand at an eco festival.
Volunteers at an eco festival in France.

Ethical volunteer programmes support the local economy by involving local people and businesses, for example, using locally sourced seasonal ingredients for meals and locally owned accommodation. Communities are often best placed to look after their local environment and habitats, so by keeping things local, our impact as travellers is significantly reduced.


The key to minimising your impact is choosing to volunteer with the right organisation and project. Make sure any project you choose works with the local community, not just in them. Many commercial voluntourism providers create projects from a volunteer-centric perspective without a lot of community involvement, which prioritise profit over impact.


Concordia is a UK-registered charity, and our volunteering programmes run at a loss. We only work with other charities and NGOs that are part of either the European Alliance of Voluntary Service Organisations or the Coordinating Committee for International Voluntary Service. There are strict rules for membership to these organisations; joining is a multi-year process, and each partner must maintain those strict standards every year. This means all our projects are created by a collaboration between local community organisations and one of our overseas partners, not by a foreign business. The aims and impact of the project are set first and take priority. Of course, the comfort and enjoyment of volunteers is important too, but meaningful work, cultural exchange, and non-formal learning come before photo ops and saviourism.



Making international travel more sustainable


When choosing when and how to travel, here’s how to minimise your emissions:

  • ·Choose lower-carbon travel when possible: Most of Concordia’s projects are in Europe, right on our doorstep, so it’s possible to avoid flying and get the bus, train, and/or ferry instead. The compact nature of Europe also means it’s easier to combine multiple projects, or travel in the area before/after your project. Combining multiple trips into one dramatically cuts emissions.

  • Stay longer and travel slower: If you can take time to stay longer and settle in. You’ll learn more about the culture, rhythm of the community, and perhaps pick up a few words of the local language. The longer your stay, the more your emissions are spread out, plus, longer-term volunteers pick up skills and experience that significantly increase their contribution to the project.

  • Support the local economy and avoid high-impact exploitative tourism: Avoid projects and activities that harm wildlife, promote unsustainable resource use, or exploit the local culture/community. Projects should be locally organised, and activities, especially involving children or animals, should be led by trained experts.

  • Embrace low-impact living: Most of our projects focus on low-impact living by living simply, preparing high-quality locally sourced meals as a group, and choosing leisure activities that avoid mass tourism.


    A group of volunteers building a domed wooden structure in the woods.
    Volunteers building a low-carbon village in Germany

Conclusion


There’s no avoiding the emissions that result from international travel, but by making considered, intentional choices, we can travel as sustainably as possible, while still seeing the world and engaging in meaningful cultural exchange. If you’re going to create these emissions, make sure you use the experience as a force for good. By supporting local community initiatives, cultural exchange and non-formal learning, we can make sure our travel is so much more than just a holiday.


Sustainable recommendations:


Here are our favourite suitability-themed projects for you to take a look at. You can get to them all by train, bus and/or ferry from the UK relatively easily:


Explore all of our projects to find your next sustainable adventure. Get in touch if you need a hand making your choice.

 
 
bottom of page