Tell us about Cosmic Volunteers and how you came to launch this organization.
Cosmic Volunteers is a US-based, 501(c)(3) charity that sends 150+ participants abroad each year to 15 countries in Asia, Africa, and South America. We offer individual volunteer- and internship programs, as well as group trips led by myself. Our participants work at schools, hospitals, newspapers, orphanages, women's groups, AIDS clinics, and wildlife parks. Cosmic Volunteers receives all of its funding from volunteers’ program fees.
Timeline: In 2001, I established my volunteer-abroad business and called it “International Volunteers of Nepal” (IVON), with Nepal as the sole host country.
In 2002, I came up with the name “Cosmic Volunteers”. (I wanted to be bigger and better than all of the “Global...” volunteering companies). I also started expanding beyond Nepal, first with India then Ghana (2003).
From 2002-2005, I worked another corporate job in Philadelphia, as a software tester for an insurance company. This whole period, I spent nights and weekends (um, and some weekdays) running Cosmic Volunteers. I also used my 2-3 weeks of annual corporate vacation time to visit new host countries. I added 1-2 new host countries per year.
In 2006 (Aug), I left the corporate world and have been running Cosmic Volunteers full-time ever since.
As a founder of a large volunteer organization, what kind of challenges do you face on a day-to-day basis?
I'm actually a one-man company these days, so I am basically in charge of everything – marketing, accounting, customer service, web content, managing in-country volunteers etc. There is a lot of work involved, and I basically work 365 days a year (not complaining). I have participants living in-country year-round, so I need to be available 24 hours to them, their families back home, and my local coordinators. I do outsource things like tax returns and complex web programming. I work from home in the US, and I am fortunate enough to be able to take 2-3 extended trips per year to my host countries.
Describe your typical volunteer.
A typical volunteer is a female, age 16-20, from the US, Canada, Australia or UK, who wants to travel abroad to help others while learning about a new culture and see what's out there in the world.
That said, do I get a wide range of volunteers, such as the 60+ retired couple from the UK who just arrived in Peru for a 3-month stay; the 50+ gentleman from the States who just spent a week volunteering in Vietnam. I have a middle-aged American woman going to Kenya for 6 weeks in early 2012 order to “find more meaning in my life...”
What is one thing every volunteer should know before entering the field?
Have low expectations! If you go abroad expecting things to operate like back home, you are in for a rude awakening. Westernization is a real and growing phenomenon in emerging countries, in areas like entertainment, technology, and fashion. However don't expect to find western concepts like punctuality, orderly queue's, overt ambition, clean streets, helicopter parenting, open political talk, animal rights etc. You're not in Kansas anymore – so don't expect it.
What can volunteers do to continue helping communities abroad after they have returned home?
If you decide to fund-raise for an organization abroad or even start your own company, try to “learn before you serve”. Trying to help people 5,000 miles away (not just padding your resume, but truly making a difference in peoples' lives) is an extremely difficult proposition and needs your full attention. So don't make promises you can't keep.
Be curious and educate yourself on a variety of aspects of life, not just philanthropy or travel abroad. As you get older and wiser, you'll find that more things in the world are connected than not. Read (everything), attend local meetups, write regularly, stay in touch with fellow volunteers, watch TV (very selectively), listen more than talk, and most importantly – go outside and interact with other human beings, in-person.
What does the future hold for you?
I'll keep doing Cosmic Volunteers for sure. But I've started transitioning from a company that offers mostly individual programs with open start dates and dozens of programs, to more of a niche organization that offers mostly group trips – led by myself, with fixed dates, lectures, field trips and overall a more comprehensive experience abroad.
I've started writing a book about my experiences the last 10 years in the volunteer-abroad business. It's been fun so far, lots of memories. Hoping to have a draft done in early 2012.
I'm also training for my first marathon, and I'm finally getting around to becoming fluent in Spanish. And once I make some changes to my golf swing, I'm hoping to consistently shoot in the 80's!
Famous last words?
It's a big universe. Go see it!
