Why and how should the international volunteer tourism experience be improved?

This paper aims to introduce the theme issue question “why and how should the international volunteer tourism experience be improved?”.

An Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) funded Festival of Social Science event entitled “Pursuing Quality in International Volunteering” was held at the University of Brighton in November 2013. This event brought together academics and practitioners in a successful debate, but it was also recognised that this was the first step on a long journey. The articles in this theme issue are drawn both from attendees at the ESRC event and from the wider international volunteer tourism network of academics and practitioners.

This paper introduces the key stakeholders of international volunteer tourism and the extent to which their voices are prominent (or not) in respect of the issues of achieving quality. Further, the paper highlights a number of quality mechanisms that are offered as solutions to the challenges that currently beleaguer international volunteer tourism.

Whilst not all the key stakeholder voices are represented in this theme issue, the discussions and implications that are drawn out are of importance to all stakeholder groups.

This is the first time a journal issue has focused on the challenges of achieving quality in respect of international volunteer tourism.