The ethical volunteering overseas

The ethical volunteering overseas
In recent years, concern has grown that some organisations are failing to meet the expectations of overseas volunteers and that volunteers themselves have not thought through what their placement will involve Volunteers frequently feel let down by the experiences that they have in their host environments,' says the charity Tourism Concern. 'Many of those who volunteer do not necessarily understand that they will be involved in development work or what the implications of that are for themselves and the host communities.'

So, before you sign a contract or hand over any money, spend time working out what you want from your overseas volunteering assignment and be realistic about how to achieve this. Questions to ask yourself For many people, volunteering overseas is a life-changing experience, but a successful placement can only come from matching what you want and can offer with what actually needs to be done. Ethical volunteering is about ensuring the contribution you make is meaningful to the host community and has a lasting, positive impact.

So. start by asking yourself the basics. Why do you want to volunteer overseas? What existing skills and experience do you have to offer already? Consider the practicalities - do you really want to spend months away from your family and friends? Are you prepared to spend time in a country which might not have the infrastructure and amenities you're used to? And are you able to cope with the cost? See our article on finding an opportunity overseas for more information. Once you have worked out what you have to offer, you are better placed to judge whether your contribution overseas will be meaningful and worthwhile. It's also worth asking yourself whether you have fully considered the options available closer to home. There are many ways to make a difference that don't first require a 12-hour flight and sometimes it can be better to volunteer at home and be a tourist overseas.
DAWN OF THE AGE OF THE ROBOT

The robots are coming. The second decade of the 21st century will see the rise of a mechanised army that will revolutionise private and public life just as radically as the internet and social media have shaken up the past 10 years. Or so says Marina Gorbis, futurologist and head of Californian thinktank The Institute for the Future. The IFTF is one of the world's most venerable thinktanks and has been plotting the course of the future C. is a v for corporate and government clients since it was spun off from the RAND Corporation in 1968. Gorbis says robots will increasingly dominate everything from the way we fight wars to our work lives and even how we organise our kitchens.

Robots are likely to prompt a political storm to equal the row over immigration as they increasingly replace workers, says Gorbis. But it's not all bad news. "When IBM's Deep Blue became the first computer to beat chess grand master Gary Kasparov people said that's it, computers are smarter than people," she says. "But it didn't mean that at all. It means they are processing things faster not that they are thinking better." Working together she believes robots and humans will be able to create a world of new possibilities impossible before our new industrial revolution.

Gorbis says the robots are already here. The US military is backing the development of a four legged mechanical pack-carrying robot, called the BigDogs. Guided by its own sensors BigDog can navigate treacherous terrain carrying 150kg on its back. In the air robot drones are stalking targets in Afghanistan, remote controlled helicopters are ferrying supplies

THE LISTENING GAME

After years of focusing on the bad-and there are still legitimate concerns, for instance, about the psychological effects of certain violent games-scientists are increasingly examining the potential benefits of video games. Their studies are revealing that a wide variety of games can boost mental function, improving everything from vision to memory.

Still unclear is whether these gains are long-lasting and can be applied to non-game tasks. But video games, it seems, might actually be good for the brain. The very structure of video games makes them ideal tools for brain training. 'Video games are hard,' said Eric Klopfer, the director of MIT'S Education Arcade, which studies and develops educational video games. 'People don't like to play easy games, and games have figured out a way to encourage players to persist at solving challenging problems.'

The games aren't just hard-they're adaptively hard. They tend to challenge people right at the edge of their abilities; as players get better and score more points, they move up to more demanding levels of play. This adaptive challenge is 'stunningly powerful' for learning, said John Gabrieli, a neuroscientist at MIT