I want to begin this blog by acknowledging Yusuf, the COO of Time to Help, because the conversation I’m writing about today came about through his thoughtful response to an unexpected challenge. When he reached out to LSE to share orphanage volunteering opportunities, he was met with a clear response that orphanage volunteerism is harmful, along with research to support the university’s position. How Yusuf responded is a real lesson to us all in the field. Rather than becomin

There is a quiet power in language, a stealthy force that can humanise or erase, uplift or condemn, draw people in or cast them out. One of the most dangerous things we do, often without realising, is other . It is a mechanism that allows us to create distance between ourselves and those whose lives or suffering challenge our sense of comfort or complicity. Theories of othering remind us that naming is never neutral. Edward Said’s (1978) work on Orientalism revealed how lan