January 2012

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February Hot Topic: Volunteering Is Inherently Political

Submitted by Susan J Ellis
on Tue, 01/31/2012 - 22:03

The United States is at the start of a contentious presidential election year in which candidates with widely differing views each attract thousands of volunteers. We see election volunteering as a political act but any type of volunteering is inherently “political.” What does this mean for your organization?

Why We All Need to Take a Ride on VolunteerSpot's #TinyCars Campaign

Submitted by Cara Thenot
on Fri, 01/27/2012 - 21:22

On Tuesday, January 24, 2012, VolunteerSpot launched a “Tiny Cars” campaign to fight for support of H.R. 387: Charitable Driving Tax Relief Act of 2011.  Passage would mean an increase of the measly $.14 per mile tax deduction rate for charitable driving unchanged by the U.S. Congress since 1997. That’s compared to the 50 cents per mile deduction for business use of a personal vehicle in 2011.  And the new bill would also no longer count such reimbursement to volunteers as gross income.

Nonprofit Spark Radio Interview Makes Great Advocacy Tool for Volunteer Resource Managers

Submitted by Cara Thenot
on Tue, 01/24/2012 - 16:43

Thanks to Nonprofit Spark, an online radio show for new or emerging non-profits, volunteer resource managers have a new tool for garnering attention to the importance of volunteer involvement in their organizations. The January 23rd show, “The Case for Strategic Volunteerism in Your Non-profit,” makes a compelling case for being as strategic about involving volunteers as nonprofits are about other management issues such as fundraising.

Volunteering by Migrants: One Step toward Social Inclusion

Submitted by Susan J Ellis
on Thu, 01/19/2012 - 21:55

Increased migration – by choice or by force – throughout Europe has created economic and social concerns in many countries.  Last year, through the impetus of the European Year of Volunteering, Portuguese academic Henrique Pinto invited a range of scholars and practitioners to write articles about the connection of volunteering and migration for a special theme issue of Migrações Journal, “Migrantes e Voluntariado.”  It was published in December 2011 with half the chapters in Portuguese and half in English.

Volunteers Prove the Printed Book is Not Dead. It’s Free.

Submitted by Tristan Dahn
on Mon, 01/16/2012 - 20:28

Situated on a small side street off of a busy commercial lane is an unassuming warehouse.  Inside, however, one finds a bustling scene.  Community members, such as libraries, publishers, authors, and individuals, drop off donations of unwanted books, while volunteers sort them and shelve them.   Everyone is welcome to come during open hours to take as many as they’d like, for free.

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