Reflections on International Volunteer Day
Every year on December 5th, the world celebrates International Volunteer Day, established in 1985 by the United Nations to celebrate the essential work of volunteers at local, national and international levels. Discussing the role of volunteering in reaching the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), they emphasize that “volunteering is an intergenerational cycle … to achieve the SDGs. Volunteering makes people part of the solution.”
Communities supporting each other is nothing new, while collectively creating their own opportunities and development is surely as old as human societies themselves. Yet the idea of volunteering as a structured, organisational practice as we see it today has a few surprising origins.
A brief history of volunteering
The first instance of volunteerism dates back to medieval Europe. A time when religion and healthcare went hand in hand. By the 18th century, volunteering was recognised within the military service, when modern day volunteering began. Organisations like the Red Cross and Y.M.C.A started to collect donations, gain volunteers, and get involved in charity work.
Let’s take a look at what the statistics say about the impacts of volunteering today:
- Volunteerism has a value of over $184 billion dollars.
- There are more than 1.8 million active nonprofits in the USA alone.
- Those who volunteer regularly have a 27% better chance of gaining employment.
- 66% of volunteers give their time to improve their community, and 83% do so to contribute to a cause they care about. (Sterling Volunteers)
- In the USA 28.2% of Millennials volunteer each year. 30.7% of Baby Boomers volunteer each year and 24.8% of the Silent Generation volunteer each year.
- According to LinkedIn, the response to the COVID-19 pandemic added more than 110,000 volunteer activities per month, double the rate in 2017.
Yet the rise in international volunteer projects has created a more global concept of volunteering in which many volunteers travel to volunteer abroad in diverse projects. How have these projects changed the way we offer support? Are they always positive in how they impact communities, what is the relationship between volunteers and those receiving help?
Volunteering vs. Voluntourism?
In recent years there’s been heated discussion regarding the idea of ‘volunteer tourism’ (voluntourism) and how this can affect communities receiving volunteer support. How can we differentiate between the idea of volunteering and voluntourism? Generally, volunteering refers to unpaid work organised, agreed and undertaken between an individual and a non-profit organisation. Normally without an agency involved in logistical support, with no payment involved in providing this service.
Whereas voluntourism generally refers to the paid participation in grassroots projects organised by agencies, normally focused on more short-term projects, outside of the participants’ home country. Most organizational aspects are handled by an agency, charging a fixed fee to the volunteer for the service, sometimes as part of a travel package. Let’s get a little deeper into the potential effects of voluntourism on the receiving communities.
Under the surface of the volunteer industry
Some criticisms of international volunteering focus on the ‘saviour complex’ that such projects can perpetuate, the idea that volunteers from wealthier countries can ‘save’ less privileged communities, often overlooking the work these communities are already doing in empowering themselves.
Teju Cole argues that voluntourism can create “a global exchange of unequal transactions” in which global economic inequalities are overlooked in favour of more short-term, experienced based support from “well-meaning, but ultimately unskilled volunteers”.
Stronger connections, stronger communities
It’s clear however many NGOs and nonprofits are sustained and driven by volunteers, offering unique support networks and essential services within their communities. On a personal level we can see the wealth of evidence showing the psychological, health and professional benefits volunteers enjoy while strengthening social bonds, building communities capable of responding with resilience to the complex and multiple challenges of the modern world.
Why volunteer for The Community Revolution
As a dedicated team of volunteers from diverse backgrounds, The Community Revolution offers a unique opportunity to get involved in a large team of experienced professionals dedicated to a grassroots, community movement for positive social change with a global vision. With volunteer opportunities covering research, social media, journalism and graphic design, our international teams offer a chance to develop skills, create networks, share global perspectives and collaborate to create community solutions for positive social change.
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