Aukland lawyer Hannah Reid describes voluntourism as a ‘colonial mentality’ reports Brittany Keogh at stuff.
“Reid’s concerns about New Zealand school groups volunteering overseas are in the same vein as critics’: it relies on a lack of qualified locals, and instead of teaching a man to fish – so to speak – the volunteer industry is built on communities not being self-reliant.
She says schools should ask two questions: “could the students do this in New Zealand, and would the students do this in New Zealand?”
If the answer to both those questions is no, why would going overseas make it suddenly ethical?”