
Read why Sally was awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) as part of the Queen’s Birthday honours.
Is voluntourism – the act of travelling to a foreign country to ‘help’ those in need over the short term – a positive when it enforces a ‘white saviour complex’?
That’s the question Sally Hetherington OAM wrestles with in her autobiography It’s Not About Me. As the CEO of the Human and Hope Association Incorporated, based in Australia, It’s Not About Me is a labour of love, starting with how the then 25-year-old Hetherington spent a holiday in Cambodia.
Read about one traveller who questions her beliefs after reading Sally’s book.
Sally and Rachel have an important conversation about why short term, unskilled volunteering often does more harm than good. They chat about the need to change the narrative around volunteering, to be more aligned with principles of local-ownership and sustainable livelihoods.
Sally chats with Ashleigh and Verity about:
- The danger of unskilled volunteers.
- Why skilled volunteers are making skilled Cambodians redundant.
- Our impact on children at risk and how voluntourism adds to the lack of stability and impacts their attachment issues.
- How empowering women creates an intergenerational increase in education, allowing women to rise, and reducing domestic violence.
- How can we be ‘ethical travelers’ and be conscious of the footprint we leave behind in the countries we visit?
- Why the term ‘third world’ needs to be eradicated in order to combat poverty.
Listen to Sally speak about her book on this podcast dedicated to Australian woman writers.
Read about Sally’s journey to sustainable development in Cambodia.
From 24:26, learn about what Sally discovered when she moved to Cambodia.
How Do You Solve a Problem Like Mariah
Listen to Sally talk about her opinions on voluntourism in Cambodia and how those wanting to help can make sustainable change.
Read why Sally was awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) as part of the Queen’s Birthday Honours.
To interview Sally, please contact her directly at sally[@]humanandhopeassociation.org.