United States
Political Volunteering: Lifeblood of Healthy Democracy
One of the most basic and vital types of volunteering is citizen involvement in democratic political processes. All the elements of volunteering and volunteer management are here: recruitment, volunteer leadership, supervision, volunteer motivation, etc. Guest contributor Debbie Macon is uniquely qualified to help bridge the perceived gap between citizen involvement and volunteering. She has had 10 years in public service as an elected official, and is a 20-year member of the League of Women Voters. In addition, she is a member of the Association for Volunteer Administration (AVA) and a member of the adjunct faculty of Wayne State University as co-instructor for "Managing Volunteer Programs" in the Nonprofit Sector Studies program.
Games People Play: New Ideas for Icebreakers
When designing a training workshop or planning a conference, you probably consider using an icebreaker or two as part of your format. Before settling for conventional icebreakers that you have used time and again in the past, take a moment to read this Training Design. Author Jim Laden explains why the “games people play” represent new ideas for icebreakers, which can bring added meaning and fun to the age-old practice of helping participants get to know each other. “Hello, my name is. . .” may never be the same again.
Boomers and Beyond: 12 Best Practices Vital to Volunteer Resources in the Future
It seems increasingly complex to offer what the different generations of volunteers want, particularly Baby Boomers and Millennials: high impact volunteer opportunities, a range of choices of positions, ways to apply their workplace skills and more. The good news is there is a wealth of research on the topic. The bad news is that many of today’s leaders of volunteers don't have the time to sort through the gigabits of information on generation change, are puzzled by (or sick of) the hype on Boomers, and face real barriers in implementing the necessary modifications in their organizations.
If They Know So Much About HR, Why Do Their Employees Prefer Volunteering Over Work?
Points of View authors Susan J. Ellis and Steve McCurley attended the 2010 National Conference on Volunteering and Service – a fascinating, huge and baroque affair that every manager of volunteer programs ought to experience at least once. There is no other venue, especially in the United States, which exposes managers to such diversity of volunteer programs, and to both the weaknesses and strengths of our volunteering systems.
Reflections on a Decade of e-Volunteerism
With this issue of e-Volunteerism, co-founders and co-publishing editors Susan J. Ellis and Steve McCurley begin their tenth year of publication. When they began this effort, both admit that they had no idea whether a venture like e-Volunteerism would succeed at all, much less flourish. “So we’ve been surprised, and pleased, and occasionally astounded,” the co-founders admit, as they reflect back on the publication’s 10 years. In this Points of View, Steve and Susan also consider how volunteering has changed over the past 10 years and how it might change during the next decade of e-Volunteerism.
Volunteer Management Lessons Learned from an Organic Vegetable Garden
For 30 years, Kate Hanson pursued two passions: growing vegetables and herbs in her organic garden and studying the complexities of working with others. Until recently, she viewed these passions as two completely different and separate areas of her life. But in this creative, delightful feature article for e-Volunteerism, Hanson asks an important question: “Could the basic principles of an organic approach to gardening also serve us as approaches for organizing and supervising volunteers?” Hanson provides the answer to this question and explains why the lessons she’s learned from her gardening can definitely be applied to working with others. You may never look at a tomato plant the same – and you’ll certainly never again plant a tomato beside a cabbage.
Our Community at Work: Reinventing Port Angeles
In the scenic Olympic Peninsula town of Port Angeles, Washington, businesses were struggling to survive the national economic meltdown. The six-week Hood Canal Bridge closure from May 1 to June 15, 2009, temporarily slowing the economy-driving flow of tourists from the Greater Seattle area to the Peninsula, was enough to make these businesses brace for the knock-out punch. Instead, residents of this feisty former logging community banded together, organized and launched an unprecedented drive toward sustainability. The plan: use the six-week period of isolation to transform the downtown core into a colorful, vibrant tourist destination that would draw visitors across the newly opened bridge.
In this e-Volunteerism feature article, Deborah A. Black reveals the step-by-step process that allowed a group of dedicated Port Angeles volunteers to take an ambitious community idea and turn it into a community success that exceeded all expectations. Today, the town has never looked better, the volunteer spirit has never been stronger and the tourists are coming back to Port Angeles.
Choosing the Right Training Method
This Training Design by Rick Lynch presents basic points about how to design an effective training session for volunteers. Co-author of the best-selling book, Volunteer Management, Lynch describes three distinct training arenas or “domains” – training to increase volunteer knowledge, training to improve volunteer skills and training to affect volunteer attitudes. He then guides the reader to understand what works best in each. Lynch’s suggestions for how to design a multi-hour training program provide both insights and valuable suggestions for anyone who has ever been involved in training volunteers.