Travel is not a neutral activity. As humans move about the globe, our presence in any place has impact. If we want to consider ourselves conscious/responsible/ethical (not tourists but) travelers then good intentions are not enough. Our individual impact is what matters. If you are not aware or concerned with your individual impact then you are traveling recklessly.
What we do at Actuality Abroad hinges on the existence of changemakers.
Changemakers are individuals or organizations who develop innovative and sustainable solutions to chronic social or environmental problems found in their communities. Some changemakers shift the course of human development, earning them international recognition and a permanent place in our histories. Yet, much more often, changemakers are known only in their own communities.
It’s hard to get away from always being busy. We each have responsibilities to attend to, things we want to accomplish, content we hope to consume, dreams we wish realized and a never ending list of practical tasks to get done. We get so used to feeling overwhelmed, the habit becomes hard to break. Many of us travel to escape our every day, but end up carrying the same frantic energy along with us.
Why do some of us seek out voluntourism in the first place? What drives us to ‘travel to help.’ Which needs of our own are we trying to meet, that perhaps we can find a better strategy for?
We are travelers who have found ourselves at a crossroads. For us, traveling is not about seeing the sights, but connecting with the people that live differently than we do. We understand the power of educational travel experiences and how it can (but does not always) uniquely supercharge a person’s personal growth. We have come to realize that much of the travel industry, of which we are a part, continues to contribute to systems of oppression that exist around the world. Education abroad should be the arena from which we can combat racism, colonialism and white supremacy. Instead, it often […]