Participate, activate, create: Volunteer

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Participate, activate, create Volunteer
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What well cover

• What is a volunteer?
• Why become a volunteer?
• Your rights as a volunteer
• How to become a volunteer
• Your questions and comments

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• Volunteering its not what you think it is

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You can

• Masquerade as a dignitary, perhaps even the
  queen
• Do a spot of bird watching, or breed frogs in
  your swimming pool
• Unearth ancient treasures
• Walk with a brown-eyed girl
• Turn your hand to knitting

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You can

• Invent a life-altering aid
• Go surfing or ten pin bowling
• Help plan a campaign
• Count every drop
• Hit the road

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What is a volunteer?

• When you are a volunteer you
• choose to give your skills and time
• help out the community and the not-for-profit
  organisation you volunteer with
• get something out of it yourself
• do it for free
• work in a specially assigned volunteer role

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Things to remember about volunteering

• Its always a matter of choice
• It only takes place in the not-for-profit sector
• Its about participating in the community
• Its unpaid
• It creates positive change

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Everyone counts

• In 2004, 6.3 million Australians over the age of
  18 volunteered
• They contributed approximately 836 million hours
  on average, 132 hours each
• Most volunteers are aged from 35-44 years. Those
  who worked the most hours in 2002 were aged 65-74
  (2.5 hours per week)

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Why is volunteering important?

• It empowers individuals
• It adds value to not-for-profit organisations
• It strengthens communities
• Its worth billions to the community

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Volunteering give it a try

• Do you want to
• give something back to the community?
• work for social change?
• have fun?
• learn new skills?
• help others?
• gain work experience?

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It takes all types
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Who benefits?

• the volunteer
• the organisation
• the client
• the community

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Whats it like to volunteer?

• Volunteering helps me put things in perspective
  it keeps me in touch with my community and what
  other peoples lives are like.
• Its the best decision Ive made.
• In a word? Stimulating. And challenging. And
  sometimes tiring. But always rewarding its
  incredibly rewarding. Actually, can I have more
  words?!

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Volunteering happens everywhere

• Sport/recreation
• Community/welfare
• Health
• Emergency
• Education/training/youth development

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Volunteering happens everywhere

• Religious
• Environmental/animal welfare
• Business/professional/union
• Law/justice/political
• Arts/culture

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What can you do?

• Empower people teach exchange skills
• Be indispensable - administration clerical
• Provide nourishment - prepare serve food
• Help the world go around - transport people
  goods

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What can you do?

• Keep things running smoothly repair maintain
• Save lives and property - emergency relief
• Build a sustainable world - environment
• Lead an organisation - management / committee
  work
• Make good work possible- fundraising and sales

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Your rights as a volunteer

• To work in a healthy and safe environment
• To be covered by insurance
• Not to be discriminated against
• Not to do the work of paid staff
• To receive orientation and training

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What do organisations expect of you?

• Theyll expect you to
• Be punctual and respectful of others
• Tell them when something goes wrong or isnt
  working
• Undertake any training you might need
• Carry out the job you have agreed to

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• Change your world
• START NOW!

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Choosing how and where

• How depends on what motivates you, your skills
  and the time available
• Where depends on which organisations meet your
  needs, and need your contribution
• GoVolunteer - www.volunteeringaustralia.org

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The application process

• diligent, but not daunting
• Application
• Interview
• Screening process
• Police checks (if necessary)

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• Questions?

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• Change your world
• START NOW!