The transition to delivering a volunteering and global citizenship programme remotely required high levels of communication, coordination and cooperation between all stakeholders. UCDVO’s development education partner Comhlámh adapted the global citizenship programme for online delivery over a ‘Summer Series’ which helped forge connection and continuity in the programme. Three of UCDVO’s overseas partners came on board and worked together to adapt the previously planned volunteering projects for remote volunteering: a disability support project run with Nurture Africa in Uganda, and two ICT in education projects run with TanzEd in Tanzania and Nandri in India.

To take the example of the disability support project in Uganda, UCDVO and Nurture Africa worked closely to re-imagine the volunteering project in an online environment. 22 students (some of whom were on elective placement from UCD’s School of Public Health, Physiotherapy and Sports Science [SPHPSS]), led by a team coordinator and two clinical tutors (a qualified physiotherapist and dietician), alongside the Nurture Africa team in Uganda ran a three-week virtual rehabilitation camp for 30 Ugandan children with disabilities and their families. The transition to the virtual environment was supported by interventions such as a TeleHealth module developed by the SPHPSS to provide an ethical and clinical framework on best practice in remote delivery of health services.  Despite the inherent challenges, the programme was delivered successfully via pre-recorded videos, training manuals and other materials based on the needs of the community identified by the Nurture Africa team. At a live feedback session with the Ugandan participants, parents/guardians reported positive impacts including an increased understanding of the needs of the children, a breaking down of stigma around disability, and an atmosphere of support and solidarity for families.

Learning outcomes for volunteers in all three projects were tracked via surveys (June and September), focus groups and a ‘Moving Forward’ evaluation day. Some learning outcomes related to intercultural competencies; for example, health science students reported increased skills in communicating with families from a variety of backgrounds and cultures.  Outcomes also were captured in relation to active global citizenship; for example, there was a 12% increase between June and September in the number of participants who strongly agreed with the statement “I feel I have the ability to make a difference in my community” and a 9% increase for the statement “I am curious about social justice and excited to nurture this curiosity through further learning and action”.   

It is interesting to compare data from the 2020 virtual volunteers with data from 2019, when volunteers travelled overseas. There were no significant differences between the cohorts in their responses to the statement, “Following this (almost) year-long UCDVO volunteering and development education journey, I feel more equipped to reflect upon my role as a global citizen, with a strengthened understanding of what I can be doing, both in Ireland and overseas.” One 2020 participant reflected: “

What I have gained from the programme has greatly surpassed my expectations. From a development education perspective, I have learned a great deal more than I could have imagined. I feel as though I have gained a much broader perspective of the world and have grown significantly as a person. Of course, I was very disappointed that we were not able to engage in on-site volunteering this year. However, the virtual volunteering experience was far more rewarding that I initially expected.”

Overall, the evidence suggests that the virtual volunteering pilot was reasonably successful in achieving the planned outcomes both for the community in Uganda and the UCDVO volunteers. UCDVO has captured some lessons learned and has built these into the 2021 virtual volunteering and global citizenship programme. UCDVO intends to offer a hybrid programme in the future, with the possibility of travel for some projects in 2022.  

A UCDVO staff member commented, “To have engaged in a virtual volunteering pilot in the middle of a pandemic, with the immense challenges in everyone’s lives, was an achievement to be proud of. While solidarity is not easy to measure, the sense of not turning away from partners, and still wanting to connect and engage is very special.”  

Image:

• Teachers in Morogoro District, Tanzania participating in UCDVO's virtual volunteering pilot with partner TanzEd, July 2020. (main page and picture 1)

Credit: Robert Lyakurwa, TanzEd