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The Value of Volunteerism: United Nations State of the World’s Volunteerism Report

Fri, 01/06/2012 - 16:40

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This awesome article was brought to you by Katie Boyer

Katie studied public relations at Cal Poly in San Luis Obispo, CA and is now working with Go Overseas in the Bay Area. Her experiences with traveling abroad combined with her passion for Latin American culture and community service fuel her writing and creativity. Follow Katie on Twitter: @VolunteeReviews and her Blog.

State of the World’s Volunteerism Report

The first United Nations State of the World’s Volunteerism Report (SWVR) was published on December 5, 2011, also known as International Volunteer Day. The SWVR highlights the ways volunteerism allows people to control their own lives and make a difference.

The United Nations declared 2001 to be the International Year of Volunteers and last month marked the tenth anniversary. SWVR was published to define volunteerism in our world today, the motivating values behind it, and how it relates to human development.

The report states that “volunteerism is a basic expression of human relationships.” It benefits the individual and the community as a whole. While its popularity has been steadily increasing, the idea of volunteering is still greatly misrepresented and overlooked. By giving volunteerism the value it deserves, its connection to human development can be appreciated.

“The focus of this report is on the universal values that motivate people the world over to volunteer for the common good and on the impact of volunteer action on societies and individuals. We believe in the power of volunteering to promote cooperation, encourage participation and contribute to the well-being of individuals and of society as a whole.”

SWVR is a great report but most busy volunteers don’t have the time to read detailed, the 148-page document. Let's take a look at some of the most important themes of the report:

Volunteerism is universal and valuable

“Volunteering occurs in every society in the world. The terms which define it and the forms of its expression may vary in different languages and cultures, but the values which drive it are common and universal: a desire to contribute to the common good, out of free will and in a spirit of solidarity, without expectation of material reward.”

While the statement “volunteerism is universal” may seem obvious to current volunteers, it’s important to connect all of the ways volunteerism affects our lives. It happens everywhere and could have a greater impact if more people recognized it.

One of the big things I took away from the report was that volunteerism is undervalued. Better understanding of volunteering and its positive impacts will lead to appreciation and recognition that the work of volunteers deserves. This will allow for volunteerism to be taken more seriously by policy-makers and governments around the world for its potential to be an important society-changing tool.

Challenges of measuring volunteerism

Because of a lack of universal definitions and standards, many challenges have arisen when measuring volunteerism. Although difficult, measuring the impact of volunteerism is important for many reasons. For volunteers, it’s crucial that volunteers receive recognition for their hard work to sustain motivation. It helps organizations continually improve their efforts and outreach. Similarly, if governments were able to use and understand the measurements of volunteerism, they could see its economic value and it would have weight on national policies.

Collaborations and standardization of measurements are key to moving forward. One of the most important goals of publishing SWVR is to establish these standards.

Misconceptions about volunteerism

I found the misconceptions to be an especially important aspect of the report because stereotypes stand in the way of spreading the spirit of volunteerism. One of the most interesting misunderstood facts about volunteering is highlighted in “Chapter 4: Sustainable livelihoods,” which points to multiple surveys and studies that found that economically poor people and people from rural areas are as likely or more likely to volunteer as people with disposable time and incomes. This means that they are the givers and receivers for volunteer service. It benefits themselves and their community while also giving them a common voice through volunteerism. This knowledge will help address stereotypes of volunteers who are often perceived as retired, well-educated and wealthy individuals who are free from other peoples problems.

Other common misperceptions include:

Volunteerism only takes place through large, formal, structured groups. In reality, many developing countries don’t have resources to encourage creation of volunteer organizations so volunteers find small local groups, clubs, and associations to give their time to.
Volunteering is left to unskilled amateurs because paid work is exclusively for professionals. This may be because many volunteers are young people but there are also examples of professionals, like pro bono lawyers and community firefighters, that bring their skills and knowledge to their volunteer actions.
Most volunteers are women. While women may be slightly more likely to volunteer than men, the number of hours volunteered is about the same. The misconception is probably around because of women’s attention to common “private” aspects of volunteering like health care and childcare, while men are usually volunteers in the “public domain” like sports, environment and rescue. The “private domain” of helping others is usually given less authority in the working world.

The many benefits of volunteerism

SWVR does a great job of emphasizing the benefits of volunteerism. The benefits that stood out to me are ones that are rarely addressed by mainstream media conversations.

Social inclusion: The importance of social inclusion is rising due to a global concern for extreme needs and deficits around the world. By putting yourself in the shoes of another, considering their plights and hardships, you can help to include those that are pushed to the edges of society by prejudices and lack of opportunities. “Greater inclusion through volunteerism brings economic gains and helps to develop strong and cohesive nations.”
Cohesion and conflict management: Social cohesion and volunteerism can be linked in instances of violent conflict. Volunteerism can even be a powerful tool to prevent violence. Social unity often leads to greater volunteer actions which can help diminish violent conflicts. The values associated with volunteerism, like solidarity, are tied to combating violence and inequalities. Volunteerism is also a successful social tool before, during and after violent conflict. “Volunteer action should be an integral part of policies and programmes aimed at preventing and responding to conflict.”
Volunteerism in the developing world: Contributions of volunteerism to development are extremely effective in terms of “sustainable livelihoods and value-based notions of well-being.” Volunteering is a uniting force that can drive a community towards a common goal and purpose. This idea, recognizing volunteerism as a powerful means of progress, stands out for me because I truly believe volunteerism can change the world for the better.

“A central thesis running through this report is that the values inherent in volunteerism endow it with far-reaching potential for human development. This notion of development includes factors such as solidarity, social inclusion, empowerment, life satisfaction and individual and societal well-being.”

Volunteerism today and in the future

Changes in volunteerism in the 21st century: From the Internet to texting, technological developments have made it easier to connect from anywhere. This allows people to relate to each other around the globe more easily and quickly. “These [global connections through technology] range from tracking food insecurity to monitoring violent conflict, and from providing early warning of impending disasters to reporting election fraud.”

Another important change in volunteerism in the last decade is the increased involvement of the private sector. This sector has shown a greater interest in development and social responsibility than ever before through actions like donations and employee volunteering.

Lastly, the twenty-first century has shown people taking advantage of more travel opportunities and leisure time. The expanded travel industry has also helped the volunteering abroad industry grow. This section also covers voluntourism, short-term, and long-term volunteering abroad.

Volunteerism’s future: Volunteerism isn’t mean to replace jobs or government responsibilities but to build on opportunities and relationships. The growing recognition of volunteering, domestically and abroad, shows hope for the future. Even still, there are always needs for volunteers, especially in developing countries around the world. There has never been a better time to become a more active citizen and volunteer.

Volunteerism has great potential to change the world. I hope to see not only an increase in volunteerism, but also an increase in volunteer policies and recognition. With the help of reports like SWVR and volunteer work being done around the world, volunteerism will continue to improve the lives of many.