Volunteer with World Vets: International Aid for Animals

World Vets in Japan

Image source: Worldvets.org

No matter what you believe in—Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Republicanism, Scientology, or the Flying Spaghetti Monster—I’m willing to bet that you are probably in favor of animals. You may not support environmental policy. You may have stock in big oil companies. You may even think climate change is a figment of the public imagination. But when you see a puppy’s little face, a kitten’s curled up tail, a pony trotting along with a toddler on its back, you probably feel something good. There are few issues in our lives that are truly bipartisan. We seem to be able to create conflict out of even the most benign problems and yet, most of us can agree that animal cruelty is wrong. Most of us can get behind treating creatures when they’re sick or injured. I think animals really do have the power to bring people together.

The Ripple Effect: Shannon O’Donnell, Volunteer Superstar, Part Two

Shannon at the Great Wall of China

Image source: Shannon O'Donnell

Welcome back part two of our Ripple Effect interview with Shannon O’Donnell, a travel blogger, speaker, and author of The Volunteer Traveler’s Handbook. She regularly volunteers and in 2011 launched her passion project, a community sourced database of local, sustainable organizations all over the world. She is the founder of the website ALittleAdrift.com and tweets at @ShannonRTW.

The Ripple Effect: Shannon O’Donnell, Volunteer Superstar, Part One

Xela Guarderia

Image source: Shannon O'Donnell

Welcome back to our interview series, The Ripple Effect. The Ripple Effect explores the emotional impact of volunteer travel and its lasting effect on people’s lives. Today we’re speaking with Shannon O’Donnell, a travel blogger, speaker, and author of The Volunteer Traveler’s Handbook. She regularly volunteers and in 2011 launched her passion project, a community sourced database of local, sustainable organizations all over the world. She is the founder of the website ALittleAdrift.com and tweets at @ShannonRTW. Please check back later this week for part two of our interview with Shannon.

Save the Whales with Enkosini and the O.R.C.A. Whale and Dolphin Marine Conservation Project

A Line of Orcas

Image source: Marinebio.org

Zoologists call whales and dolphins “charismatic megafauna” and it’s easy to see why. People are fascinated with sea mammals. For thousands of years, they have been the subject of religious myth, worship, and reverence. Their size is certainly part of the fascination. The blue whale is the largest animal on planet Earth. But they are also renowned for an intelligence that is rather unique in the animal kingdom. Whales, dolphins, and elephants are the only non-primate creatures that have this human-like wisdom. They have culture and tradition. They have complex social lives. And yet, for centuries humans have been killing these magnificent creatures. We have used their blubber for candles and their baleen for corsets. We have eaten their meat and gotten rich off of their destruction. Today, we are finally beginning to recognize the importance of these incredible creatures. As our oceans warm up and acidify, poachers still roam the waters, and policy ties the hands of conservationists, people are rallying around a single cause: saving the whales.

Projects for the Greater Good with Volunteers for Peace

Volunteer for Peace with Children in Congo

Image source: Flickr.com

In the midst of this volunteering explosion, cooperation is one of the most important things an organization must embrace. As we learned from the Industrial Revolution (and from every single step we’ve made away from direct subsistence) delegating and working together is the key to success for the largest numbers. As a global network is built, each new organization must become part of that network—building on to the best parts by seeking out the people who are doing the most good. Once a working infrastructure is built, there is no reason to start a new one, especially when the early stages of building can be so difficult and can burn up so many precious resources. Instead, new resources can best be utilized in tandem with pre-existing systems. To bring all of this out of the theoretical: a volunteer organization can do the most good by working with other high-quality established organizations overseas.