Should I Stay or Should I Go?: Recommendations for Short-Term Missions and Volunteering Abroad

Abstract

This paper will begin with an analysis of the case against short-term service trips abroad . . . Part 1 will break down the case against these trips by dividing it into four distinct claims: a) Short-term term service trips abroad do not benefit host communities; b) Short-term service trips abroad harm host communities; c) Short-term service trips abroad do not benefit volunteers; and d) Short term service trips abroad harm volunteers. Part 2 will look at evidence supporting the case for short-term missions abroad which suggests that a) Short-term service trips abroad benefit host communities, and that b) Short-term service trips abroad benefit volunteers. Part 3 will be short but will draw conclusions about short-term service abroad by analyzing the information from the first two sections. The final section of the paper, Part 4, will make recommendations for a person interested in taking a short-term service trip abroad, looking specifically at a) Trips designed not to harm host communities; b) Trips designed to benefit host communities; c) Trips designed not to harm volunteers; and d) Trips designed to benefit volunteers. This section will help potential volunteers identify what to look for when navigating trip options, hopefully providing them with the necessary information to select a trip that will be beneficial to both themselves and the people being served. [From Introduction]