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Volunteering is a great way for community minded people to access work
experience and there are benefits for the agency offering the placement,
the community and the volunteer! Being a volunteer demonstrates initiative
and commitment to employers and provides a wonderful opportunity to
give something back to the community while:
- learning something new
- fostering new and relevant work references
- meeting new people and increasing network opportunities
- developing a greater understanding of areas of study
- practicing generic and discipline specific skills, and abilities
It is usual to consider volunteering as activity without an end date
and indeed many people do give their time freely over many years. But,
for many keen would be volunteers, this perception can be a barrier
to participate! With this in mind, it may be worthwhile to consider
offering volunteer options that are project based and which have an
'end-date'.
Project-based Voluntary Activities
A project based activity is typically characterised as having:
- a specific stand-alone task or a distinct activity within a larger
project to complete
- a defined outcome or outcomes
- a specified start and end date
- necessary resources to complete the activity
- an individual or team as responsible for completing the assigned
project
- someone assigned to mentor or supervise the project participant(s)
Project based activities can be a useful tool for not-for-profit and
volunteer agencies as they allow tasks to be managed and achieved within
specific time-frames. Other factors to consider are:
- managing tasks when more senior volunteers can help to mentor and
supervise
- the attractiveness to potential volunteers when set activities
and timeframes are made known
- timing activities to coincide with term breaks of schools, colleges
and universities
- breaking tasks down into manageable achievements that are of value
to the volunteer and to the agency
Attracting Applicants to a Project
Once a voluntary activity has been identified as a suitable project
based activity and a process to support the project is in place, the
next phase is to attract volunteers. Of course the category of volunteer
will depend on the project itself and may include sourcing from:
- the pool of current volunteers
- students at local high schools
- students within college and university systems
- community networks
- volunteer support networks such as govolunteer who provide specific
advice about advertising volunteer positions and Volunteering WA -
the peak volunteer body in Western Australia
Sometimes there can be benefits is advertising opportunities to more
than one source. Additionally, there can are benefits in building relationships
with community agencies and educational facilities to complete particular
projects.
Resources:
International Opportunities with
i-to-i - [.pdf | 90.18 kb]
i-to-i offers around 500 different volunteer projects in 25 countries
across the globe. From Giant Panda conservation in China to teaching
monks to speak English in Nepal there is a diverse range of projects
to suit everyone’s tastes to volunteer from as little as one week
to 24 weeks.
GoVolunteer
GoVolunteer provides you with all the information you might need to
find out about volunteering and volunteer opportunities in your area.
Legislation:
Volunteers and Safety and Health Laws
Protection for volunteers comes from other duties under the Act. Employers,
self employed persons and employees all have responsibilities to ensure
their work activities do not harm others (including volunteers).
Volunteering Western Australia,
Inc
As the peak body in WA, VolunteeringWA promotes the concept of volunteering
and provides a range of resources, services and support within a comprehensive
framework for cost-effective use in Western Australia.
Australian Volunteers International
AVI
Australian Volunteers International is Australia's largest and most
experienced international volunteer sending agency. Every year, we recruit,
prepare and support hundreds of Australians who volunteer to live alongside
people of other cultures and work towards the sustainable development
of communities.
Involving
Volunteers from Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Backgrounds
People from culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) backgrounds
make an important contribution to volunteering in Australia. While this
remains a largely under-researched area, particularly in emerging communities,
there is growing evidence that many thousands of CALD Australians volunteer
both within and outside their communities.
The Australian Youth Ambassadors
for Development AYAD
The Australian Youth Ambassadors for Development (AYAD) program places
skilled young Australian volunteers, aged 18-30, on short-term assignments
in developing countries throughout Asia and the Pacific.
Volunteer International
So why should you consider volunteering abroad? There are countless
reasons why thousands of people volunteer abroad each year. You may
start with a desire to travel, learn a new language, or meet new people.
By volunteering, you'll also have the opportunity to lend a hand to
people who are working to improve life in their communities. Through
your daily work and interactions with members of a local community,
you'll gain a better understanding of the culture, as well as the issues
that affect that part of the world. You'll also learn a lot about yourself,
as you take on the challenge of living and working in a completely new
environment.
Volunteer's
Resources Online
The role of the Volunteering Secretariat is to implement the Western
Australian Government’s Valuing Volunteers policy initiatives
and to ensure the across government and across community coordination
for the volunteering sector.
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