| Volunteering one’s time to improve developing communities overseas is by no means a new idea. But the domain of volunteer travel has changed immensely in the past 20 years. While past volunteers had little alternatives to the government-run Peace Corps, now there are literally hundreds of independent organizations to choose from.
Joseph Collins, Stefano De Zerega, and Zahara Heckscher, all founders of volunteer organizations, have experienced changes throughout the history of volunteer travel. Thus they have produced one of the most comprehensive books on the subject, How to Live Your Dream of Volunteering Overseas. The “how-to” aspect of the title is well conceived. The book offers sound advice on how to choose a volunteer organization, volunteer independently, finance your trip, be an effective volunteer, and stay involved after you return. A large part of the book is devoted to an extensive index of profiled organizations, arranged by region, length of volunteer experience, cost, types of work, and special interests. Six years of research and many more years of immersion travel are testament to the values of reciprocity and social sensitivity that are inherent in these authors/volunteers.
—Sian Wu
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