Kuala Lumpur, where we learned a few things the hard way
1) Just because an international volunteer opportunity is posted on a respected job board or website doesn’t mean it was vetted
I contacted Net Impact after we left our toxic volunteer situation in Malaysia to share our experience and suggest strongly that they didn’t permit future listings. They subsequently banned the organization but there was no way for Net Impact to know anything about the organization until a complaint was made.
2) Just because the founder looks good on paper and the organization has received prestigious-sounding awards doesn’t mean that they are good at what they do or that they even do what they say they do
As we quickly found out, a lack of grant oversight coupled with some companies more interested in good press for their CSR than in actual, documentable impact created a smoke screen behind which incompetency could fester.
3) Just because there were volunteers in the past doesn’t mean they had positive experiences
Get references! This was the biggest mistake we made. You should ALWAYS ALWAYS ALWAYS ask to contact the current volunteer, two previous volunteers, and any staff members you can get a hold of. We made up for lost time as soon as things started to feel fishy (which was almost immediately) and it took less than a minute of Internet research to get useful contact information. Had we spoken to the previous volunteer sooner, we would have saved ourselves some serious drama and headaches. And if the president/CEO/founder doesn’t want you to speak with anyone else, that’s a major red flag.
4) ALWAYS HAVE AN EXIT STRATEGY
If we’ve learned anything from America’s foreign affairs over the past ten years it’s that you always need an exit strategy. We had savings, I was still employed, and we knew that we would be just fine bumming around Southeast Asia for three months if things didn’t work out. As we got closer to our departure, we started to suspect that our host was not “crazy like a fox” but rather just “crazy” and we were already thinking through our options before we even landed. Whatever you do, don’t skimp on this step.
5) Don’t let yourself be isolated
We quickly met a number of fun, interesting, and helpful people after our arrival in Kuala Lumpur and their support was a real lifesaver. If you don’t know where to start socializing, don’t be shy about attending an expat event or two. Yes, it’s nice to meet and hang with locals but sometimes you just need the reassurance and comfort of your fellow countrymen and women. Plus, you’ll probably discover that the scene is quite small and that your new acquaintances will have some perspective on dealing with questionable local organizations.
6) Be prepared for haters
We felt that our experience was so egregious that we reached out to US-based organizations that have worked with this troubled local organization in the past. Our main concern was that future volunteers or fellows should not be subjected to the live/work situation we encountered, particularly if they have limited exit strategy options. While people were mostly appreciative of our feedback, one organization decided that the best way to handle our head’s up was to threaten me. Fortunately, the threat of “telling my employer” what I was doing – ratting out an unethical organization – wasn’t much of a threat as far as I was concerned. I figured it probably wouldn’t look so bad for me to, you know, have ethical standards. Also, our local contact had lied about her association with me and with my employer so I figured they’d take my side. But this goes back to #2 which is that some people and organizations have a vested interest in looking like they’re doing good whether or not they’re actually doing good. Try to have your support system in place if you go the whistle-blower route.
7) Take it all in stride
Yes, there were stressful moments. Yes, we literally planned an escape after we heard the details of the previous volunteer’s experience. But we also knew that things were going to be just fine, one way or another. Lean on your new friends, lean on family, escape to the beach, and just thank your lucky stars (as my grandmother would say) that you’re out of a bad situation with your reputation intact and that three weeks of dysfunction will make for years of stories. Also, how many times to you get to see for yourself how dysfunctional non-profits, NGOs, and other aid organization can be? That’s one reason you picked up and left, right? To get outside your comfort zone and learn something new about the world? Well, mission accomplished in our case but that doesn’t mean you need your experience to be as eventful as ours.
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I’m sure I didn’t cover all the bases so if you have anything to add or your own international volunteer horror stories, please share them in the comments. Happy volunteering and traveling!
We ended up making a nice home for ourselves at the YWCA in Kuala Lumpur. Stadium Negara was right down the block as were three train stations and all the food you could ever hope to eat in Chinatown. A very happy ending.
