IVCO Think Piece "Unpacking the vā of international volunteering for development: Giving-as-relationship-building"

This think piece is part of the materials produced in advance of the 2024 International Volunteer Cooperation Organisations Conference (IVCO 2024), hosted by Northumbria University in partnership with Comhlámh. It is available in English, Spanish and French.

The think piece “Unpacking the vā of international volunteering for development: Giving-as-relationship-building” is written by Dr Aarthi Srinivasan, Dr Liyun Wendy Choo and Alofa Lopati who work at Te Tūao Tāwāhi Volunteer Service Abroad in Aotearoa, New Zealand. In this piece, they draw on the Pacific notion of vā, which refers to relational space, to rethink ideas of international volunteering, development and solidarity. In using a term and concept put forward by Pacific people(s) to think about international volunteering and interconnectedness, the authors seek to honour the Pacific communities with whom they work. The think piece highlights how Pacific people(s) understand relationships and suggests how international volunteering agencies can consider moving towards a volunteering for solidarity approach.