We founded Volunteer Planet in 2004 with the notion that volunteer work can be productive and rewarding while still being fun, exotic, and stimulating. By combining elements of a volunteer project with a travel holiday, we believe you can more fully experience a destination and the culture of its people. But it's not about slaving away in the morning and sightseeing in the afternoon or a making hasty feel-good contribution so you can move on to the fun stuff. Rather, imagine working shoulder to shoulder with locals and experiencing their way of life from their perspective. This is the level at which true cultural exchange occurs.
This cultural exchange is the foundation for the overall mission of our organization - cultural preservation. As the world continues to shrink, we risk losing the unique identities of individual cultures. By actively working to preserve cultural differences, we raise awareness of and learn to appreciate the diversity of global cultures while fostering the responsible and sensitive exchange of ideas and resources. This may be as simple as trading recipes and legends of your homeland with Karen villagers in the rainforests of Thailand or a long term undertaking such restoring an ancient shrine with Nepalese monks in the remote reaches of the Himalayas.
Our vision of a successful volunteer holiday is when both the volunteer and hosts benefit from the project. This mutually beneficial exchange serves two purposes: The actual project gets done with the help of the volunteers and the guidance of the hosts - whether it is native species protection, archiving traditional music and dance, or refurbishing a historical landmark. And perhaps more importantly, it brings people of different backgrounds, societies, and ideologies together.
