International Volunteering with Palms Australia

Palms Australia estimates the average cost of placing a volunteer for two years to be $38,581. Considering the value of a teacher, nurse, doctor, tradesperson, accountant or other professional in Australia is at least $50,000 per year (or $100,000 in total), this is remarkable value.

Palms receives no government funding for its work. This means that we are free of government agendas and are able to focus on building relationships and achieving truly sustainable development which benefits both the receiving community and Australia, not one at the expense of the other.

Example fundraising target for an individual placement.

The costs of a placement are covered by contributions from the following sources:

The volunteer: The volunteer contributes two years of his or her life. The value of this cannot be overestimated. It is much more than their possible salary of $100,000 that they are forgoing. Sometimes a volunteer also contributes financially, however to protect their privacy we include these contributions in the CommUNITY section of the above graph.

Palms grants and general donations: These are donations made to Palms by affiliated organisations and members of the organisation. These are used to cover the administrative and recruitment and selection costs of each placement. Various religious orders (listed on our links page) and Catholic Mission make financial contributions to this amount. The Australian Catholic Bishops assist cover the costs of a re-entry program for returning volunteers.

Corporate Sponsorship: Occasionally a business will sponsor an individual placement. In return the business may receive advertising on our website and on CommUNITY Newsletters. A small amount can make a big difference. For information, contact Brendan Joyce on (02) 9518 9551.

Palms Overseas Partner contributions: In some cases, the community requesting the volunteer can provide some assistance with aspects of a placement. This often includes accommodation and sometimes includes food or a simple living allowance. For example, a teacher in Papua New Guinea will often receive a local wage from the PNG Education Department. Partner contributions are an important part of Palms' approach because they:

• are an alternative to the paternalistic, colonial model which does not recognise the value of the local community or the importance of their involvement in their own community development;
• remove the temptation to employ a "free" foreign volunteer where a local person could adequately do the work;
• ensure that the community has in place, or will put in place, structures to support a local person in the role once the volunteer has departed.

Contributions from the partner organisations are made locally, not as cash donations through Palms Australia, but we believe it is important to recognise the value of these contributions.

CommUNITY Support: The remainder of an individual placement cost is raised from the Australian public through our CommUNITY Initiative. Due to other contributions this amount is usually between 25% and 50% of the total cost. This means that, for example, by raising $13,250 Australian CommUNITY Partners can provide a volunteer teacher to Kiribati, Solomon Islands or PNG for two years.

This is more than a fundraising scheme. It also serves to spread stories of volunteer and cross-cultural life throughout Australia. It is a method by which an Australian school, church, workplace, parish or club can enter into a mutual partnership with an overseas community through which they can learn about each other's cultures while contributing to a more just, sustainable, interdependent and peaceful world.