The Art of Exchange: Implementing Cross-Cultural and Community-Based Arts Voluntourism Programs
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Date
2013-06
Authors
Agocs, Karen
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Abstract
This Master’s research project explored how international community-based artdevelopment
projects are implemented through volunteer tourism programs. It addresses
the impacts of volunteer-tourism on receiving communities, which are often negative
because the focus of the serving organization is ironically on the volunteer motive. On
the contrary, when service projects are focused on the receiving community, student
motivation and engagement is increased and they receive greater insights to carry home.
If service projects are designed to strive for reciprocity, greater benefits are reaped
for everybody. This study explored the core components of volunteer-tourism programs
to identify a model that will deliver positive outcomes and benefits that outweigh the
negatives to receiving communities. These core components include participant-selection
(including organizational staff and students, partnering NGO staff, and host-community
participants), partnerships with NGO’s, and project identification. This study also
examined the best practices that inform these core components, specifically focusing on
the policies and models applied. Overall this research examined the impacts of youth
engagement in community-based arts, and methods for achieving reciprocity among all
constituents. Youth engagement in community arts, application of policies and models,
and methods for achieving reciprocity ground the foundation of each core component in
this research.
Description
147 p. Examining committee chair: Dr. John Fenn
Keywords
Mutual, Arts development organization, Volunteer tourism/Voluntourism, Experiential education, Cross-cultural exchange, Receiving and host community, Community, Culture, Community-based arts, Community arts-development project, Development, Sanga