That’s a good argument I hadn’t considered, about how it opens the window for interest in EA. It would be interesting to know how many came to EA after volunteering abroad.
Also, as you said, many times the money spent on volunteering would have been spent on other leisure activities such as non-volunteering trips. Which means it usually can’t be net-negative in terms of the allocation of money; it can still be, however, in terms of the impact it has on the developing country.
Agreed that any program needs to be careful to not be net-negative for the developing country. That is an easier bar to clear than being an effective use of money based on direct benefits alone. There’s also the possibility that better programs could benefit the developing country by competing with, and partially displacing, voluntourism programs that are net-negative.
That’s a good argument I hadn’t considered, about how it opens the window for interest in EA. It would be interesting to know how many came to EA after volunteering abroad.
Also, as you said, many times the money spent on volunteering would have been spent on other leisure activities such as non-volunteering trips. Which means it usually can’t be net-negative in terms of the allocation of money; it can still be, however, in terms of the impact it has on the developing country.
Agreed that any program needs to be careful to not be net-negative for the developing country. That is an easier bar to clear than being an effective use of money based on direct benefits alone. There’s also the possibility that better programs could benefit the developing country by competing with, and partially displacing, voluntourism programs that are net-negative.