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Settling in Overseas: The Experience of Western Volunteers in Animals Taiwan

by Maria Nawrocik

Student Volunteers at Animals Taiwan

Two years ago, Maria Nawrocik traveled from Poland to Taiwan to undertake a master’s degree program in International Human Resource Development. For over a year now, she has been a volunteer in a Taiwanese non-profit animal welfare organization called Animals Taiwan. Not only did she enjoy her volunteer work but Nawrocik soon realized that volunteering had become an important part of her overseas experience. She decided to conduct some research into how volunteering can help foreigners (and specifically Western volunteers) adapt to life in a temporary culture. In this From the Vantage Point of a Volunteer feature, Nawrocik shares some of her findings. She argues that volunteering changes the Western volunteers' perspectives of the host country, and generates a sense of empowerment and belonging to a community. She also provides an insider’s perspective of volunteer management practices of Animals Taiwan and the growing significance of the online community that the organization has created.

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