I have written several blogposts the last couple of weeks with the main subjects being white saviorism (voluntourism and white privilege) and education (digital divide and ICT’s in education). For the purpose of this blogpost I would like to elaborate on the individual blogposts that I have written and provide a deeper understanding of these matters. I would also like to discuss the experience of writing and maintaining a blog throughout these last few weeks.
Voluntourism in orphanages
My first blogpost was one of my favorites to write. I talked about voluntourism in orphanages and used the ‘love you give’ campaign as an example of how awareness is being spread to the greater public. Volunteering with children and more specifically in orphanages is a very precarious subject. Many children often have living parents and are placed into institutions mainly because an industry has been created which is fueled by tourists. Children are raised in institutions because their parents are too poor to take care of them, not because they are orphans (Mathews, 2019). The love you give campaign is representing the issue of voluntourism and white privilege. It shows that volunteers often do more harm than good. In the good problem podcast this issue is also discussed. In one of the episodes, Pippa Biddle talks about this type of volunteering as ‘doing good in a package’ (Mathews, 2020). This greatly describes how the current generation of young people wants things in life: easily accessible and without too much effort. Besides helping, the purpose of voluntourism is also to reduce guilt while travelling. We see that throughout time, doing good has become commodified. It is often not required to have any qualifications in order to volunteer. This only shows how white saviorism is still present and that these volunteers are ‘more celebrated than contributing’ (Mathews, 2020). Even though every person involved thought they were helping, in reality people were being harmed. Fortunately, people are increasingly becoming aware that more harm is being done than good when being a voluntourist.
Young volunteers often share their experiences on social media. In the case of orphanage tourism, we can image ourselves the stereotypical image of a white volunteer cuddling with a child. Schwarz and Richey (2019) studied the behavior of volunteers when posting on social media. They have noticed that ‘participants seemed to have a clear idea of what content would not be socially sanctioned by their personal network, notably, imagery which might cast them as the type of “naïve do-gooders” who are swept up in salvationists and paternalistic helping.’ (p. 1941). When being actively watched, volunteers are cautious with what they are posting. However, this cautiousness is two folded: on the one hand it shows that these participants engage with the politics of representation, on the other hand it also illustrates that they want to protect their own image (Schwarz & Richey, 2019). This indicates that there is an increasing awareness about what is wrong and right while participating in volunteering projects abroad – although the motivation often comes from protecting their own reputation and thus is not as altruistic as expected.
Stop filming us: Representation and the white gaze
Volunteering abroad and trying to do good in another country can also be seen as a form of white saviorism. I recently watched the documentary film ‘Stop filming us’ which tackles the issue of white saviorism and postcolonialism. A Dutch filmmaker follows three young Congolese artists and tries to make a dialogue between the Congolese reality and the Western perspective. He asks them the question: Can a westerner make an honest film about Congo? Did I do anything neo-colonial during my visit here? It is obvious that the filmmaker is not conscious about his own position and that he contributes to postcolonial thinking multiple times throughout the film. Although it is clear that he wants to learn, his unawareness plays him parts and makes him come over as naïve and indeed, a white savior. White saviorism is again depicted in the scene where Bernadette Vivuya looks for funding for her film and is advised to contact the ‘Centre Wallonie-Bruxelles’. It is obvious that the real Congolese perspective can never be shown, with money and influence coming from the former colony.
Throughout the documentary we are confronted with the negativity about Goma and how the region is being represented in western media. These images are intended to awaken emotion and trigger a certain response – such as giving donations – out of guilt. It is however, not only white people that have become indoctrinated by these stereotypical images. The locals often think likewise. In the documentary they refer to ‘colonized Africans’ or ‘with an NGO mentality’ (Postema, 2020). This is also confirmed by Ademolu and Warrington (2019), who mention ‘a direct reciprocity between how they view and comprehend their country of origin and its mediated representation by NGOs’ (p. 372). The problem thus lies deeper and comes forth out of years of colonization. Just changing the current imagery and representing Goma as a more positive place is not going to impact or change anything straight away. Both locals and westerners are indoctrinated. Throughout the film we see plenty of local initiatives and artists contributing to making a positive change in their country. This might be one step in the right direction. But is it enough to make a lasting change?
It is clear that recently certain practices are coming to light and give a more nuanced image of what the real impact of ‘trying to do good’ is. On the micro level, volunteers can educate themselves and attempt to volunteer more locally. They could also try to be conscious about their own behavior and privilege. On the macro level, we notice that NGOs still stick to traditional representations that display suffering. Obtaining change here seems more complicated, however, creating dialogue and engaging locals seems like a fair solution in creating a more positive and realistic image that steps away from post-colonial thinking. That is, if these locals are not indoctrinated themselves by postcolonial thoughts. This is why the presence of young people with a critical stance is important in order to make progress. In both case studies, local initiatives are being presented as a possible solution. Both cases also shine light on positive change, without the influx and presence of westerners and might therefore have more long-lasting social change.
Distance learning and the digital divide
Two of my blogposts discussed the shift to distance learning and the digital divide. The current pandemic has made many countries shift to distance learning. UNICEF (2020), estimates that 463 million students worldwide are currently not receiving education. In one blogpost I mentioned the multi-platform approach that Mexico is using, where they incorporate different media and try to include as many students as possible. This approach is based on the development project ‘telesecundaria’. Implemented in the 1960s, the project has proven to be successful previously by using television to educate children that otherwise would be left behind. Subsequently, the project has grown tremendously and is still being used nation-wide (McAnany, 2012). This project is using ICTs for development and has again proven to be a useful approach during the COVID-19 pandemic (Roberts, 2019). The project has demonstrated that education out of a traditional context can be effective and possibly offers a great alternative to traditional learning. Media do have a huge reach and impact and ‘offer an unprecedented opportunity to bring about positive social change’ (UNPD, p. 12). One of the mentioned case studies in the UNPD report shows the effective use of television in Brazil where they educate the population about the SDGs. By using an easily accessible medium such as television, many people that otherwise would be left out have been reached. The use of ICTs does however come with challenges and many are still trying to find the right way to make ICTs available and sustainable for all.
For a long time, a positive attitude towards the ICTs in the field of education was existing. Mobile phones and internet-connected devices were thought to bring vast development gains and to contribute to poverty reduction (Deichman & Mishra, 2019). More recently however, a nuanced image of ICTs is prevailing. Universal access for all might be more challenging than anticipated. It is even so that, ‘rather than being a great equalizer, digital technologies risk amplifying existing inequalities’ (Deichman & Mishra, 2019, p. 23). The current COVID-19 pandemic is greatly displaying these inequalities. The digital divide was already there, creating a gap within society and was based on socio-economic status. Yet, it has now further created a gap on the educational level as well. By just providing access or technology, students are not necessarily ought to perform better in school. I remember reading this research paper about an experiment where students in Peru received laptops at home. Results showed that there ‘were no impacts on academic achievement or cognitive skills’, meaning that it is not enough to randomly give children access to technology – in this case laptops – and expect them to benefit from it (Beuermann, et.al., 2015).
Besides connectivity, capability is also important and some sort of digital savviness is required in order to benefit greatly from technology. It is further necessary that ‘the private sector and civil society need to focus more on ICT4D than they do on D4ICT’ (Unwin, 2019, p. 44). The increasing digital divide now shows us that even more young people are falling behind and the gap is only becoming bigger. It is having an enormous impact on the inequalities of opportunities, with many students dropping out or missing the opportunity to continue their education (Paul Blake, 2020). The issue lies within the fact that ‘ICTs tend to be productivity biased, skill biased and voice biased. Those who are already successful, talented, or better connected tend to benefit the most’ (Deichmann & Mishra, 2019, pp. 22-23). People that are less connected on the other hand, might not be left out entirely – since they receive education through alternative media such as television or radio – they do however, not benefit equally and miss out on great opportunities that come with an enhanced capability and connectivity. The COVID-19 pandemic has further confirmed that connectivity is not the prime issue, since there are many alternatives in reaching those students on the margins. Rather than being focused on connectivity, we need to have attention for existing inequalities and how these are further increasing. By focusing on individual needs and going beyond connectivity, we could try to make ICTs have a longer lasting impact on some individuals lives and especially of those on the margins.
The blogging process
Blogging was something completely new to me. This blog exercise has been one of the most challenging assignments for me so far. Writing a blog is completely different from academic writing and the shift between the two I found rather difficult at first. Also, having a younger target audience I found it important to include audio and video in the blogposts to make it more accessible for them. Of course, this also means using different media, rather than academic texts and thus a different approach was used to implement this media into the blogposts. I have struggled with the technicalities of the blogging and have the feeling a lot of useful time was lost in this process of trying to fix errors and make the blog look better.
Personally, I feel like a traditional academic assignment and approach fits me better, however, I am glad a got the chance to learn about the blogging process (and its difficulties). I have appropriated new skills that I would have never chose to attain if it wasn’t for this assignment. The group part this time was also rather challenging, mainly because of the time difference and the lectures being scheduled in the morning. None of the group members could be present live. Also, since no one had experience with WordPress and we all had to start from zero, the blogging part was rather challenging at first. Despite this we have managed to deliver a blog with interesting blogposts and have dealt with most technical issues along the way. For me personally, I had a hard time managing work and studies, especially with schools closed and a toddler at home. A difficult combination, but not impossible to manage with some good planning.
For my series of blogposts, I have used different media. The use of podcasts was a well-thought out choice. When directed to a niche audience, podcasts work best and are an effective tool to communicate about development. They also offer the audience an immersive and intimate experience (Choppen, 2020). Besides podcasts, I have also used (short) documentaries and references to other blogs. Not only does this suit our target audience – young potential volunteers – but it also makes the content more available and accessible for many. I have managed to both include ICTs in the blogposts as well as to include ICTs in the content itself.
Conclusion
The two main topics I have previously discussed are what could be considered hot topics today. More than every people are questioning white saviorism, voluntourism and the digital divide with its long-term consequences. I hope that I have tackled some of the main issues that might be relevant for a young audience. By using different types of media, such as documentary film, short film, a social media campaign and podcast episodes, I have tried to make the content as inclusive and divers as possible, providing relevant and interesting content for anyone who wants to go abroad.
Literature
Ademolu, E. & Warrington, S. (2019). Who gets to talk about NGO images of global poverty? In: Photography and Culture, August.
BBC. (2020). In pictures: Mexico school classes resume on tv.https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-53917882
Blake, P. (11 May, 2020). COVID-19: More than a billion students aren’t in class – How do we educate during a pandemic? [Audio podcast] In: The World Bank Group: The Development podcast.
Beuermann, D., Cristia, J., Cueto, S., Malamud, O. & Cruz-Aguayo, Y. (2015). One laptop per child at home: Short-term impacts from a randomized experiment in Peru. In: American Economic Journal. Applied Economics. 7(2), pp. 53-80.
Choppen, C. (2020). Podcasts – where next? How INGOs can embrace the power of the podcast. London: International Broadcasting Trust.
Deichmann, U. & Mishra, D. (2019). Marginal benefits at the global margins: the unfilled potential of digital technologies. In: Graham, M. (ed.). Digital economies at global margins. Ottawa, ON/Boston, MA: IDRC/MIT Press.
Mathews, L. (2019). People, money and resources: the drivers of institutionalization. In: Joseph, M. C., Mathews, L., Van Doore, K. & Flanagan, K. (Eds.). Modern day slavery and orphanage tourism (pp. 45-62). Wallingford, Oxfordshire: CABI.
Mathews, L. (9 April, 2020). Little white girls and voluntourism. [Audio podcast] In: Mathews, L.: The good problem podcast.
McAnany, Emile G. (2012) Saving the World: A Brief History of Communication for Development and Social Change. Champaign, IL: University of Illinois Press.
Postema, J. (Producer). (2020). Stop filming us. [Motion picture]. The Netherlands: Doxy.
Roberts, T. 2019: Digital Development: what’s in a name? (Links to an external site.) Appropriating Technology, 9 August.
Schwarz, K. & Richey, L. (2019). Humanitarian humor, digilantism, and the dilemmas of representing volunteer tourism on social media. In: New media and society, 21:9, pp. 1928-1946.
UNICEF. (2020). COVID-19: Are children able to continue learning during school closures? A global analysis of the potential reach of remote learning policies using data from 100 countries. UNICEF: New York.
Unwin, T. (2019). Digital economies at a global margins: A warning from the dark side. In: Graham, M. (ed.). Digital economies at global margins. Ottawa, ON/Boston, MA: IDRC/MIT Press.