ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on the product of 13 years of experience with two different volunteer and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) in the Sacred Valley of the Incas – Urubamba, Cusco, Peru. In one district, there were 34 NGOs, many of them offering international "volunteer" programmes (IVPs) to support their projects, recruiting "volunteers to change lives". IVPs are an example of how unequal relationships, having been established, may be maintained by one who holds more power. Although the main purpose of IVPs should be the support of communities with the greatest needs, sending organisations often do not have the time to develop ties with host communities and merely trust programme providers to have strong relationships. The chapter needs to understand the nature of IVPs and how they started. Possibly an NGO/programme provider perceived a need: the interests of young people to go out to volunteer and took the opportunity; some of those programme providers wanted to do good, some to make money.
