From december, 1st to december 7th of 2022, SCI Austria organized an erasmus+ training about colonialism and volunteerism in Innsbruck. Indeed, colonialism is still part of the world dynamics and geopolitics, affecting everything even in an individual and inconscious level. The training aimed to reflect on and to improve on the way organization send volunteers from the Global North to the Global South and how to deal better in our partnership between countries coming from both part.
Meet Isabel
Can you introduce yourself to us ?
My name is Isabel Garland, and I am currently working two jobs as a research assistant in an Irish university on projects concerning the human element of the energy transition, mostly on a European level, as well working as a policy consultant in EUChanger, a consultancy organization in Brussels that engages with the European Union to advocate for policies that serve the public good, specifically issues pertaining to the environment and human rights.
Why did you decide to take part of the training « The power behind good intentions » ?
I have a close relationship with VSI, the Irish branch of SCI (the organization who ran the training) and they asked me if I wanted to take part, and I said yes because the topic seemed original and intriguing- especially as I had already taken part in several volunteering projects, both in Europe and once in the so-called ‘global south’ (Malawi). The idea of spending a week in the mountains in Innsbruck to discuss racism and neo-colonialism in the context of global volunteering was very exciting to me, so I decided to go for it. We were all very lucky to have been given that opportunity!
What is your relation with SCI ?
I did a European Solidarity Corps (ESC) project last year (2021-2022), and the sending organisation in Ireland VSI, are the Irish branch of SCI. VSI are a very kind and supporting sending
organisation, and even after my volunteer projects we are still in contact, as they organize online workshops on different topics to try and keep volunteers active, even when they finish their projects abroad. So, in a sense, I am familiar with SCI because of VSI.
What were your previous experience and knowledge with colonialism and volunteering ?
Luckily, I already had the chance to reflect on colonialism and volunteering through different experiences in university on volunteering projects. In University, I studied ‘European Studies’, which covered learning about the continent’s languages, history and politics. In one of my favourite classes, we would read and discuss topics about the ‘dark side’ of European progress, and I remember having discussed ‘Eurocentrism’ (a world vision that sees Europe at the center of everything, and a complex of superiority regarding the European way of life) and the ‘othering’ of those who were not ethnically ‘European’. These readings and discussions in University thus provided me with a more critical lens on Europe’s prosperity, and the underlying colonial-racist realty that lies beneath it our so-called “success”.
When I was 17 (and still in secondary school) I also did a volunteering project in Malawi the charity called Habitat for Humanity, who go to countries in the “global south” to build houses for an impoverished village. This opportunity was advertised by my school, and many students wanted to go! In the end, they took 16 students per year, with some teachers. It was sold to us as a very exotic “life changing” and “impactful” experience, we really believed that going over there we were “making a big difference” and helping to fight poverty and that whole story. But in the end, we were just a bunch of naïve and badly prepared school kids going over with a lot of illusions. I don’t regret going, because in the end I think the experience did help to shape my world view and ended up showing me a very different reality to what we see in Europe, and I think that’s still valuable for anybody to witness. But whether we went about it in the most ethical, and prepared way is another question.
What new knowledge and experience did you gain in this training ?
This training helped me to confront a lot of my biases as a white privileged European. It’s so easy to forget that in Europe we are approaching international volunteering projects from a very privileged position. This training was very good at creating the space for critical self-reflection about ‘critical whiteness’ and how to deal with it using different methods, i.e. the RACE method and with a very well-crafted silent exhibition and tool-kit. We also discussed how we could use these tools to prepare volunteers before they go to the global south- and also debated whether it was even necessary from an environmental perspective to send volunteers on short-term trips to the global south in the first place.
They were using non formal education, which I already experienced several times. As a method I think it’s super beneficial and enjoyable, it makes learning a much more interactive, social process and I think it should be applied more in schools and other learning centres.
Did your view change on some specific topics ?
I learnt more about the unequal reality and different motives of a) volunteers from the “global north” going to the “global south” and b) those from the “global south” going to the “global north”. Those from the North, for example, think they are going for “interesting experience”, to help the “needy” and they are seen by others in a very positive light, whereas those from the South coming to the North are seen by northerners as coming in the hopes of being able to stay there permanently. One of the participants even told me that sending organisations in the global south often don’t trust volunteers who travel to the global North to volunteer to return back home. There is a very disbalanced reading grid and reality in function of where you are coming from.
What change do you think is important to make ?
More thorough preparation of volunteers when they go on projects, especially to the global south. First, allow only long-term projects if the distance is very far (for climate reasons) and also consider ways that the volunteer can help the global south without having to go there in the first place- such as through actions such as political protests, letters to officials about the country’s foreign/AID/Development policies, helping in shelters that receive refugees from the global south,
to name a few. A volunteering organisation could be a platform of engaging volunteers to be involved in these more local actions, which can often have a bigger impact that actually going to the global south.
In your opinion what is something that everyone should learn / reflect about on the topic of racism and colonialism ?
I would ask people to reflect on (and talk about) the subconscious biases they may have about race. Games such as the ‘Theatre of the Oppressed’ are useful because they put you in the position of people who are victims of racism. And for colonialism, a good place to start with is food: to think about the places where our food comes from and how this may have a colonial or neo-colonial story.
Meet Wided
Can you introduce yourself to us ?
My name is Wided Ghadhoun, I am a master student and active member in the Tunisian association AVEC (Association de Volontariat ,Echange culturel et Action des Jeunes).
Why did you decide to do the training « The power behind good intentions » ?
I have participated in the first trainings with SCI Austria and the topic as well as their own perspective of dealing with it has really encouraged me to take part again and again.
What is your experience with SCI ?
I took part in 4 seminars with SCI. The experience was so informative and fruitful and especially critically engaging. It is he kind of seminars that alters your perspective to a better and more peaceful vision of the world.
What were your previous experience and knowledge with colonialism and with volunteering ?
Coming from an ex-colonized country , for me colonialism and neocolonialism are everyday matters that we always try to cope with and avoid the harsh challenges caused by them. I have had several experiences with volunteering in the Global North and to be honest, not all organizations even think of this topic and bring it to the fore, so personally I didn’t have problems with individuals but rather with institutions in the global north starting from the visa struggle to the bureaucratic integration that always takes longer time just because we come from the global south and there are always suspicions concerning our purpose of staying there.
What new knowledge and experience did you gain in this training ?
The methods of examining this topic are really a discovery for me: Silent Exhibition, Theatre of the oppressed, Map Game are really interesting.
For me the non formal education that was used is a moderate, new, creative and motivating type of learning that avoids the boring and traditional methods of academic, formal learning which is essential nowadays in order to absorb this information in a different and more open setting.
What new knowledge and experience did you gain in this training ?
The methods of examining this topic are really a discovery for me: Silent Exhibition, Theatre of the oppressed, Map Game are really interesting.
For me the non formal education that was used is a moderate, new, creative and motivating type of learning that avoids the boring and traditional methods of academic, formal learning which is essential nowadays in order to absorb this information in a different and more open setting.
Did your view change on some specific topics ?
I think my view concerning this topic is getting wider and more mature. For me, it is no longer a simple concept , neocolonialism is deeper than just words and I am learning about it every single day.
What do you want to change after this training ?
I would like to reproduce workshops using the methods that we used in the training !
In your opinion what is something that everyone should learn / reflect about on the topic of racism and colonialism ?
In my opinion, we should look more critically concerning our daily behavior and criticize our own practices in order to be fully aware of the implications of these topics in our life
Meet Olga
Can you introduce yourself to us ?
I am Olga, I am a researcher in Padova, in Italy where I am also teaching. Nowadays, I am not an active member of any NGO.
Why did you decide to take part of this SCI training about colonialism and neocolonialism ?
I saw the offer, on Salto-youth and I already worked in the past with SCI. I found the subject very interesting to discuss, especially because the major part of seminars enables less exchanges between facilitators and participants since they are more academic. This non formal education type of training is opened to youth workers and non students which I think is really great. I never saw a training about volunteerism and colonialism in that way.
Before going to the seminar, what was your knowledge and experience about colonialism ?
Last year, within my university, I was involved in doing post-colonials lectures that were very enlightening. It gave the will to learn more about the subject because I realized that my knowledge
was very generic. When I worked for different NGOs no one discussed those problematics even when we organized projects in the “Global South ”. Today, I feel it would have been helpful and important to have prepared ourselves in that way.
What did you learn, what were the thematics that seemed the most interesting to you ?
I learned a lot about very specific examples of colonial history. It’s impossible to know about every aspect of it so concrete cases are very useful to understand it better. I really enjoyed the silent exhibition because it gave the opportunity for everyone to explore topics linked to colonialism they were more interested in or knew less about. The choice was quite broad. My thoughts grew as I was exchanging with other participants coming from (ex ?)colonized countries that are affected by racism. Hearing their point of view on how being a good ally was really helpful. Talking phases in general were very enriching.
What is changing for you after this training ?
It gives me the will to explore deeper this themes. Not only for me as a person but also for me as a university educator. Now, I am asking myself : How can I make a difference ? The practical aspects of the training were nice because even though reading and attending classes expand the knowledge, discussing practical actions and useful measures is more rare.
In your opinion, what is something everyone should know about racism and colonialism ?
For me, it’s important to realize that colonialism is not over and doesn’t belong to the past. It’s present in everyday life but we just don’t realize it.
Without directly going to the Global South sending volunteers, can organizations also encounter those kind of dynamics ?
Of course. First of all, when volunteers from the Global South go to the Global North, and this is very important to open exchanges. Then, there are also educational and human resources that organization produce to inform volunteers and staff members.Lastly, those types of mechanisms can be found when organizations are dealing with migrants coming from the Global South. It’s always tricky to distinguish between solidarity and white saviorism, so we should be careful before labeling and judging. The complexity of the world should never be forgotten.
