This 28-minute documentary film, by filmmaker Chloe Sanguinetti, explores the phenomenon of “voluntourism,” a recent trend in which people, typically young people from Western countries, travel to countries in the Global South to volunteer. The film features interviews with volunteers and local organizations and reveals the dark side of voluntourism - describing how untrained and unskilled volunteers may be serving their own interests rather than those of the communities they’re serving and can often do more harm than good in communities around the world. “Without any skills, and over short periods of time, how much do you help?” asks the film.
The film highlights the negative impact voluntourism may have on children, explaining how volunteers are often invited to work with children without undergoing any kind of background check, putting the children at risk. The film also discusses the volunteer tourism industry, noting that one popular volunteer agency made $3 million in a year. “It seems selling poverty, and exploiting the good intentions of volunteers, is a profitable business.” The film concludes with a message to potential volunteers to choose the “right ways to volunteer” and research carefully and think critically before engaging in these kind of programs. The film also suggests less “glamorous” ways to help for those who want to contribute, including volunteering on a regular basis at home, voting, lobbying, donating to NGOs, and signing petitions.