2001 International Year of Volunteers

2001 has been designated by the United Nations as the International Year of Volunteers (IYV), to celebrate and acknowledge the amazing achievements of volunteers across the world - ordinary people, extraordinary contribution.

2001 should leave a lasting impression on the Australian community, because the International Year of Volunteers occurs as we also celebrate the Centenary of our Federation as a nation. This is a unique coincidence, because both events are about recognizing the contribution made by ordinary Australians throughout our history, and yet they’re both also about our future.

More than 2.6 million Australians formally volunteer each year, contributing about 434 million hours, usually in more than one volunteering activity. Most have never received any official recognition for their effort - most never even think about that.

It has been said that the success of the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games could be attributed to the strong and positive culture of volunteering in Australia. While this may be so, there are some salient points to be made about the Olympic experience which are generic to ‘successful’ volunteering anywhere. The Olympic volunteers were carefully selected, their skills and expectations were matched to the available positions; they had clearly defined roles and responsibilities; they were trained and competent and this boosted their confidence; they had an identity within the community - they were clearly recognizable by their uniforms and there was a significant commitment to the infrastructure which supported the Olympic volunteer effort.

Voluntary commitment has been and can be in the future, a tool for social, cultural, economic and environmental development in a changing world. Because it’s based on personal motivation and choices, freely undertaken, it furthers active citizenship and community involvement, thus enhancing human potential and the quality of daily life.

Volunteering is about people, people who are seeking to create a stronger sense of community. Their development as an essential resource within the community is crucial. For organisations which utilize volunteers, it is imperative that sound Human Resource management principles and practices are evident.

Issues such as,
• the willingness of volunteers to serve must be considered alongside their skills and competencies;
• the organisation must have clear expectations of what volunteers can contribute;
• volunteers may be more skilled than paid staff;
• volunteers must be appreciated, affirmed and cared for.

Volunteers could also be encouraged to commit to specific times and projects, so that their volunteer experience and assistance would be meaningful, productive, and have a satisfactory conclusion.

Within organisations utilizing and nurturing volunteers, individual leadership abilities are developed, partnerships are created, communities are built, rebuilt and sustained.

Where there is a strong and committed volunteer ethos, there is a strong community.

The growth and development of community services and the recognition of their status as a professional sector within the Australian community requires not only that we value ourselves, but that we see our work as a contribution which impacts upon our nation, and further, that we position ourselves to advocate for our future involvement with articulate passion. Without community service organisations and without the efforts of volunteers, society as a whole would be poorer and less meaningful.

'Despite the difficulties often acknowledged, volunteering in Australia has a great future. But its future is dependent on the reshaping of our national and state agendas. …our work is not simply about improving the quality of services or delivering more services, it is about strengthening the social and economic fabric of our nation. Let volunteering be at the heart of our participatory democracy and a socially advanced nation.’ 1

An examination of the trends makes it clear that volunteering is undergoing change. The question we need to address is, are we in a transition period, or a crisis? Do we need system reform or a new way of thinking about the identity, the language and the behaviour of volunteering - indeed do we need a total paradigm shift?

‘What is needed is a new vocabulary that emphasizes civic involvement, innovation and results. What’s required is to search for the heart of what we do and begin using words that express our conviction and that convince others - words like leadership, impact, public engagement.’ 2

Given the current data about volunteering, considering the compelling trends which are evident and the inevitable march of demographic forces, a new paradigm which repositions volunteering is both crucial and timely.