Volunteering overseas is life changing, and getting and giving the most from it requires an experienced partner. Learning Service is that partner, as the authors offer their combined lifetimes of accumulated knowledge. Gain insight and confidence for an adventure more rewarding than you'd ever imagined.

If you are among the growing number of today's travelers eager to give back in a positive way to the people and places you visit, then read this book now. The authors provide a profound understanding of what it takes to have a meaningful volunteer experience abroad with important insights that will also help guide you on a lifelong journey to make the world a better place.

Growing up in Nepal I witnessed the upsurge of volunteer tourism, noticing the mismatch between what the volunteers thought they were doing and the actual impact of their actions. I had always wished that there was a way to call them out on this and help volunteers understand the complexity of the issues they were engaging in, and also transform what they were doing for the better. Reading this book I saw my wish had come true. I hope it lands into the hands of every single person who wants to do 'service' to the world, as it will have a profound impact on the way they choose to do it.

Over the last few decades, international volunteering has grown in popularity, accessibility, and complexity. Learning Service explores the challenges for the sector, tackling the ethics and impact of international volunteering while simultaneously offering one simple message: if you want to help, you have to be willing to learn. It is packed with real-life stories that are in turn engaging and entertaining, as well as giving pause for thought. Learning Service's core message seamlessly aligns with VSO's People First theory of change, developed through six decades of experience in this field. This is recommended reading for all those considering volunteering in a developing country.

Learning Service is a must read for anyone considering volunteer tourism. Whether you are a would-be volunteer or an organization sending volunteer tourists abroad, this wise book gives clear warnings about the manifold and serious mistakes being made through insensitivity to outright corruption. The authors use their own years of trial and error as well as a deep understanding of current research to guide us to a humane and deeply-satisfying approach to helping ourselves learn through service.

This is an extraordinary contribution to the conversation on what effective volunteer service looks like, and how a learning service approach enriches volunteers and communities in equal measure. This book brings together theory, practice, and the wisdom of experience to map the landscape of challenges and opportunities you'll face before you leave, when you arrive, and after you return home. A manifesto for doing good well, this is an indispensable book for anyone volunteering overseas.