Volunteers are needed everywhere and anywhere, so why are we seeing a decrease in participation since the pandemic?
As the need for volunteers climbs, the amount of volunteers plummets. Formal volunteering is down 7%, the lowest in nearly three decades, according to Forbes.
The downward slope in volunteer numbers should be raising more red flags than it is.
Whether it’s through Solano Community College or volunteering your time at food banks, in Solano County there are countless volunteering opportunities available. Yet people have stopped donating their time and energy to helping others. If this continues we will also see a decline in the health of our community.
To understand the drop in volunteer work, we must look at the fact that since COVID-19, people have been less inclined to participate in helping others.
Without a doubt the pandemic has forever altered our way of life, there have been many helpful inventions that let us stay safer than ever before. This does not mean that we can make volunteering a thing of the past.
Communities need to adapt and learn to navigate our ever changing environment.
This being said it is a lot to ask of people to have a consistent volunteer schedule, we live in an environment where being busy is the norm. On top of school, work, family and personal time most people don’t prioritize non-profits in their life. However without everyday people stepping up to give their time, numbers will only decrease.
How can we solve this problem? Well, there are many answers.
First making volunteer opportunities more advertised in the media. With the uproar of new technology there are thousands of ways people connect with others. Using the resources that are at our fingertips, volunteer organizations are likely to see a better turnout than ever before.
Second, we need to make volunteering more accessible. Creating volunteer opportunities with flexible schedules is a crucial part to get communities more involved in helping others.
Last but not least, creating a social norm of volunteering. When more and more people start to take initiative to help their community people are more likely to follow.
We can also implement and introduce volunteer work to our elementary and middle schools to get younger minds accustomed to volunteering. This will build healthy habits that the youth can take into their adulthood and pass on.
Anybody can volunteer and everybody should volunteer, in fact check around your campus, ask your co-workers if there is anything needed for your community.
Together we can lift each other up, and in turn better ourselves.