Stipended transnational volunteering

Abstract

© David Horton Smith, Robert A. Stebbins, and Jurgen Grotz 2016 and Respective authors 2016. All rights reserved. This chapter explores the ever-evolving forms of stipended transnational volunteering (STV). When transnational volunteering is stipended or mandatory, it can be considered a hybrid between employment, volunteering, and/or compulsory service. This chapter provides a brief historical background, as well as contemporary trends of STV. The section on usable knowledge focuses on the provision of stipends and other financial supports to transnational volunteers, as well as how their rationale has become increasingly affected by the outcomes and priorities of donors or development projects. The section on future trends also discusses the slowly growing movement toward more South-North and South-South transnational volunteer placements. This chapter also explores research needed to better understand the differences between stipended volunteering for development cooperation and volunteering for intercultural understanding and global citizenship.