top of page

#philatelyforgood eye project:
isn't this voluntourism?

Between asking a few questions about it, and my personal experience and observation, I don't think MMI fits the negative ideas around voluntourism. Here are some of the main concerns I've come across, and how I think MMI compares:

  • Institutionalisation of children is exploitation
    This is not that kind of thing, MMI in no way takes any custody of children.  
     

  • You should pay local professionals
    MMI does. The times I previously participated, half the team were hired (paid) local professionals OR local professionals who were paid on previous projects and chose to return as volunteers. The funds to pay the local professionals comes from the volunteers' fundraising.
     

  • Bringing in foreign professionals devalues local professionals because it implies they're not good enough to do the job
    I know this sentiment exists, but where people think foreign doctors are better than locals, I think a team of foreigners and locals working side-by-side shows equality with and confidence in local professionals. The projects were planned together with other local health-related organizations and government public health department.  
     

  • Unqualified people should not be providing medical care
    Medical professionals must provide proof of their credentials. Non-medical volunteers (like me) do other kinds of non-medical support work.  
     

  • Getting supplies donated instead of buying them depresses the economy
    MMI both solicits donations of supplies and purchases them. The funds to buy supplies comes from volunteers' fundraising.

  • More of the donations are spent on volunteers than on charitable goals
    Accommodations and meals are reasonably modest. One hotel we stayed at, hot water was not guaranteed (although running water was).
     

  • These are not long-term solutions
    These projects do not tackle the issue of accessible public health care, but I also don't know if it's realistic for an NGO to transform public healthcare in another country that isn't already intent on that path. As a negative example, my provincial government is actively dismantling the public healthcare we already have by privatizing it. Where privatization is no longer profitable, care is just ending altogether 🤷🏻‍♀️. On the other hand, at the individual level, providing glasses and cataracts surgery are reasonably long-term solutions for nearsightedness and cataracts.
     

  • You're doing this for social media likes
    Well, yes? The point is to (try to) make a coordinated effort to promote the hobby. I started with MMI before I had social media, and I only started social media-ing to help promote philately. Even now my socials don't have my name or face. I'm asking people to tag—not follow—me, because I'm not looking for follows.
     

  • You're doing this for religous points
    If financially giving to an organization with a religious ethos violates your conscience, please don't feel compelled to do so.
    My Christian faith is inherent to my motivations, but the core teaching of small-o orthodox Christianity is that you don't have to earn "faith points" because Jesus already did it on our behalf and there isn't anything left for us to earn. We do good things (hopefully) because we want to. We do tell patients that we are a Christian organization and that we're holding the clinic because we want to put faith in action. No one is turned away for not being a Christian—we don't even ask what anyone does or doesn't believe.
     

  • You can just donate money and not go yourself
    That is valid, and a point I'm considering for the future. (On the other hand, I guess I could also make the argument that I may as well just go on vacation and not donate or volunteer at all either.) In this case, I already registered and I'm not planning to cancel now. I think more likely in the future I may participate less often and donate more, but probably not cut it out entirely.

So I hope this addresses the concerns you might have. I agree that there kinds of organizations and projects that probably do more harm than good, but I don't believe MMI tips the scale in that direction. If you have further questions or concerns, you can return to the main info page and contact me via the contact form.

  • MMI_Logo_Vertical_2col-01_edited
  • Instagram
  • mastodon_edited
  • Facebook
bottom of page