Discover Corps Brings a New Meaning to Volunteer Vacations

Andrew Motiwalla, founder of Discover Corps helps travellers explore life and culture around the world through grassroots volunteering projects.

As a part of our Travel Massive San Diego chapter, we invited Andrew to share a little more information about his purposeful travel and the work that he’s done through Discover Corps. Here is what he had to say:

What is Discover Corp about? 

Discover Corps is a grassroots travel company that is pioneering a new way to explore life and culture around the world — a way that rejuvenates the human spirit.

Our mission is to give travelers a deeper understanding of life in our international destinations, while also helping to improve the lives of the people we visit.

What inspired you to create Discover Corp?

In the late 90s, I served in the Peace Corps in Honduras — and my life would never be the same. After returning, I looked for a job, but I felt paralyzed by the thought of working in a business I didn’t care about. I decided someday I’d create a company where I could combine my business skills with my love of traveling and helping others. It’s been a long and winding road, but I’m finally there!  

I started Discover Corps because I wanted to give regular Americans the opportunity to have a deep, meaningful experience in a developing country, similar to my time in the Peace Corps.

When I told people I was joining the Peace Corps, so many people said, “Oh, I always wanted to join,” or “I would have loved to join — except that two-year commitment is too long.” Those sentiments told me there would be a market for this kind of trip.

I also sensed that American travelers were tired of packaged tours where they walk from one museum to another; I felt like travelers were craving a more authentic people-to-people experience where they see more than just the tourist sites.

Can you give us some more information on the volunteer projects themselves?

Our volunteer projects are driven by the local communities — not by us. We respond to requests where our travellers can make a meaningful contribution in a short amount of time. While our trips only last a week or two, we strive for a long-term impact by partnering with organizations that have ongoing relationships with the communities where we volunteer. This allows each of our volunteer groups to become a link in the chain of our partner’s ongoing work.

We also focus on preserving the cultural heritage of the destinations we visit, and supporting their economies by using small-scale suppliers and locally-owned lodging, and paying our employees fair wages.

How is Discover Corps helping to make travel better?

I believe the best way to get to know a country is through its people, and our volunteer vacations allow you to forge those personal connections that make travel so meaningful.  

This type of travel is important because it makes these faraway destinations real to our travelers. It helps to break down preconceived ideas and bridges the gap between people of different backgrounds — which, at its heart, is what travel is all about.

What do you think is the biggest challenge in the travel industry you would like to see resolved?

I’d love to remove the stigma associated with volunteer travel. Too many people have a negative reaction as soon as they see the words “voluntourism” or “volunteer vacation.”

Just like with anything else, there are good and bad kinds of volunteer travel. Unfortunately, the bad kind — when people go just to pad their resume or their Instagram profile — has proliferated the media.

But I want people to understand that not all volunteer travel is like that. At Discover Corps, we’ve worked really hard to make sure our trips are sustainable — and beneficial to both the local community and our travellers.

Purposeful Traveler is a series that profiles inspiring people or projects making a purposeful change to the way we travel. You can connect with Andrew and Discover Corps on Travel Massive.