April 2006
IN THIS ISSUE
● The Editor’s Travelogue
● Boletin Electronico en Español
● Update on Plans for the World Conference 2006
● New U.N. General Assembly Resolution on Volunteering
● The Manifesto on Volunteering in Europe Launched
● Voluntary Action: Acting for Solidarity and Participation to Start Life Again
● Plans for Youth Conference in Nigeria
● More on Conference Scams
● New Volunteer Portal Launched in Israel
● IAVE Youth in Nigeria Celebrate Valentine’s Day
● Resources You Can Use
Hi! This issue is coming to you a few days late from Sydney, Australia where I am just winding up a 17-day trip that has taken me to Beijing, China and to Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane in Australia. In Beijing, I was working with the Beijing Youth Federation to prepare 20 Chinese volunteer directors for a month-long study tour to the U.S. that we are managing for them. This is part of their preparation to mobilize 100,000 volunteers for the 2008 Olympics and Paralympics. In Australia, we have been introducing the Performance Indicators for World-Class Corporate Volunteering to companies with employee volunteer programs and have been doing workshops for nonprofits on how to build strong volunteer partnerships with businesses.
What has struck me throughout this trip is the extent to which our concerns, our challenges and our best practices are very much the same, wherever we are in the world. When we asked our Chinese colleagues to teach us about volunteering in China, what they described could have been coming from almost any IAVE member anywhere in the world. They have the same problems with recruitment, retention and management that we hear everywhere.
It suggests to me, once again, that we need to turn attention to trying to understand the dynamics of volunteer engagement at a global level, identifying and drawing best practices from throughout the world and building models that can help all of us do our jobs better.
So, sorry this issue is a little late. We will be back on schedule again in May!
Thanks!
-- Kenn Allen
BOLETIN ELECTRONICO EN ESPAÑOL
We are pleased to announce that Maria Teresa Gnecco, IAVE board member from Colombia, has begun translating E-IAVE into Spanish and distributing it to our members in Spanish-speaking Latin America. Hooray!!
UPDATE ON PLANS FOR THE WORLD CONFERENCE 2006
[The following has been received from Indira Dasgupta on behalf of the conference secretariat.]
Hi from Secretariat of XIX IAVE World Volunteer Conference!
Catch the EARLY BIRD DISCOUNT! by registering before June 15, 2006.
Mark the Date in your Diary! 10-14 November 2006!
Volunteer to Mark this mail out to your friends around the Globe!
Let’s MEET in INDIA at New Delhi to confer on "Volunteering for Peace in Multicultural Societies”
The IAVE World Volunteer Conference is the leading biannual Global event for inspired Volunteer leaders, researchers, activists, concerned business leaders and government representatives to celebrate the “spirit of Volunteering” even as they remain engaged in meeting critical challenges towards creating a more Better World.
The Conference would be a meeting point of various cultures and ideas of those who care for the young or old, marginalised or displaced, in organisations small or large, while being leaders, managers, innovators, academicians, or the regular guy and gal interested in making a Difference. It is a place to make friends and discuss, share and develop Learn to make the Best of the Worst even as we realised with the large scale Volunteering seen post Tsunami that Disasters can Unite when we empathise with others.
Look at www.volunteerindia.org for all details regarding:
• How to participate
• Registering online
• Details on themes, forums and workshops
• Agenda
• Submitting your abstracts
• Booking exhibition space
• Sponsoring the Conference!
• And much more…
Do look at the FAQ to answers to your queries or contact us at pidt@del6.vsnl.net.in. Please submit an abstract of your paper to be considered for scholarships.
Make your hotel reservations early since November is the best season to be in India. Contact at iave2006@saharaglobal.in for your hotel and tour booking arrangements.
NEW U.N. GENERAL ASSEMBLY RESOLUTION ON VOLUNTEERING
[Mae Chao, Volunteer Infrastructure Specialist, Research & Development Unit, United Nations Volunteers wrote and suggested an article about the adoption of the UN General Assembly Resolution on the Follow-up to the implementation of the IYV in December 2005. She writes, “We are hoping it will also be raised at the upcoming IAVE World cnference. It is not too soon for the community to begin thinking about proposals to mark IYV plus 10.” The following is taken from the World Volunteer Web.
This UN General Assembly resolution (A/RES/60/134), co-sponsored by 84 Member States and adopted on 16 December 2005, invites all stakeholders, especially from the private sector community and from private foundations, to support volunteerism as a strategic tool to enhance economic and social development, including by expanding corporate volunteering.
The resolution also encourages governments to establish partnerships with civil society in order to build up volunteer potential at the national level, “given the important contribution that volunteerism makes to the fulfillment of the internationally agreed development goals, including those contained in the Millennium Declaration”.
The resolution noted “with appreciation the efforts to increase understanding and awareness of volunteerism through research, global information sharing and education, including efforts to develop an effective network for volunteers through, inter alia, the World Volunteer Web and linked national sites.”
Note: The full resolution can be found at HERE
THE MANIFESTO ON VOLUNTEERING IN EUROPE LAUNCHED
[We have two reports on the launch of the new Manifesto on Volunteering in Europe. The first, from the CEV newsletter is a brief report on the successful launch event on March 28. Immediately following is a press release on the Manifesto sent to us by Colette Robert, IAVE board member from the Europe region. The first version of the Manifesto, in English, French and German texts, can be found at http://www.cev.be/Documents/CEVManifesto.pdf. There are plans to publish it in all European languages.]
From the CEV Newsletter
On 28 March 2006 CEV has launched its Manifesto on Volunteering in Europe at the European Parliament. More than 100 delegates from 20 European countries representing volunteer organizations, business, media, government at different levels – and volunteers obviously – have attended the event. We were delighted about this as it clearly a signal of the increasing attention that volunteering gets in the European public sphere. We were very pleased to hear from the speakers of the European Parliament, the European Commission and the business sector that they widely support our claims for the recognition and promotion of volunteering as an instrument to foster active European citizenship and to create a volunteering friendly society.
From the Press Release
Since the first version of the Manifesto on Volunteering in Europe published in 2003 the political landscape in the EU has changed: We have welcomed 10 new Member States; the Eurofestation in Maastricht 2004 has proposed in its ROADMAP 2010 concrete steps for how different stakeholders such as volunteer organisations, the corporate sector and --- governments can work together to recognize, promote and facilitate volunteering and networking; the European Commission has acknowledged the role of volunteering in its proposal for a new Active Citizenship Programme and the United Kingdom has celebrated a very successful Year of the Volunteer in 2005.
The new Manifesto explains why volunteering matters and how volunteering contributes to the EU’s actions in different fields such as the promotion of a socially cohesive society, fostering a meaningful life long learning policy or the development of an active European citizenship. More than 100 Mio citizens in Europe engage in a variety of tasks as volunteers to protect the environment, to support marginalized groups of society, to provide catastrophe relief or to protect citizens – and simply to enjoy themselves working together on a common cause of general interest. “Volunteering while freely given is not cost free! For volunteering to be effective and accessible to all, we need a targeted volunteering infrastructure supported by all stakeholders. While we have seen progress in some Member States, much still remains to be done – especially at European level. We still do not have an EU Policy on Volunteering; there is no single access point for volunteering either in the Commission or in the European Parliament; and, despite its huge contribution, volunteering is still mainly invisible in national and European statistics” says Christopher Spence, President of CEV. Underlining the added value of a common effort of different stakeholders, Celia Moore from IBM Corporate Community Relations and CSR Europe Vice Chair of the Board adds: “Business volunteers bring a wide range of skills to support and strengthen local communities. Partnerships between business and volunteer organisations add value by targeting and matching needs and resources.”
CEV proposes 23 concrete actions on how representatives of the EU institutions can within their respective powers recognize, promote and facilitate volunteering as an expression of Active European Citizenship in the EU – amongst them the call for a European Year of Active Citizenship through Volunteering. “These more than 100 Mio people throughout Europe are a huge reservoir of active citizens – a reservoir the EU can tap into in its efforts to build an Active European Citizenship adding a European dimension to their engagement at local level,” states Markus Held, CEV Director.
VOLUNTARY ACTION: ACTING FOR SOLIDARITY AND PARTICIPATION TO START LIFE AGAIN
[This article was received from Mohammed Khandriche, IAVE National Representative in Algeria and former member of the IAVE Board of Directors.]
A seism of 6,8 magnitude has overtaken the area of Alger : it is the District of Boumerdès on may 21st 2003 at 8 p.m. The consequences of this seism are a disaster for the population and the economy of this region :
● 2300 dead people
● 10,000 injured
● 182,000 victims
● 45 damaged communities
● 182,000 damaged lodgings among which 19,000 crumbled down
● 6200 damaged equipment
Volunteers of the association Touiza have gathered from the very first day to demonstrate their solidarity to the victims helping them by bringing food, medical and psychological cares.
Over a hundred volunteers, each one in his field of activity have dedicated themselves to the population during the three summer months to work on the reconstruction fields and in the temporary camps.
For more than two years, strong sessions of partner works between public and private Algerian and French stakeholders have initiated a strong relationship towards a common mobilization for the general benefit. After the periods of urgency and post-urgency, Touiza Algérie and Touiza Solidarité France have devoted themselves to actions for supporting the material, economical and social reconstruction and wish to go on working in this direction.
The participation of everybody and all, the strengthening of the relationship between the different stakeholders and especially between Algerian and French public powers have contributed to make easier the way back to better days for the inhabitants of the district of Boumerdès.
The associations Touiza Algérie and Touiza Solidarité France have achieved, in a complementary and coordinated way, actions of support towards the populations who suffered the catastrophe of 21 mai 2003.
I. Completed works
1) The reconstruction of the school of 5th july at Sidi Daoud
The primary school of Sidi Daoud had been greatly damaged by the seism. The project of reconstruction began immediately during summer 2003 and allowed this school to function again in November 2003. The official opening took place on 07 December 2003. The school receives 260 pupils. It consists of 8 classrooms and a workshop of informatics. The playground of the school has also been built according to the plan of this project.
2) The volunteer works
During the summers of 2003 an 2004, 14 works of young volunteers have been undertaken in the damaged zone. They were sociocultural works (helping women with their activities, entertaining children in the camps, cleaning the beaches, …) or reconstruction/ rebuilding collective equipments (school, cultural center, health center, sports room). 209 young people altogether participated to these works.
3) Formation/Action to the management of associative projects for supporting young people
The aim of the project is to allow some associations invested in the region concerned by the earthquake to achieve permanent actions for the benefit of populations who suffered the seism.
4) The sociocultural center of Boudouaou El Bahri
The aim of the project is to realize a center of socio-cultural animation in the district of Boudouaou El Bahri in order to give the citizens and particularly women, youth and children, a better way of life.
5) The health center and the polyvalent unit of medicine for children of Sidi Daoud
The extension of the existing health center, by its reorganization as well as the achievement of a polyvalent unit of medicine for children have permitted to allow better sanitary cares for the district of Sidi Daoud and the villages of the neighbourhood.
6) The school canteen of Sidi Daoud
Once the building of the school was finished, its seemed important that it be completed by a canteen.
II. PROJECTS IN PROGRESS
1) Support to the micro-contractors of the district of Boumerdés
The rate of unemployment in this region has risen from 30 to 45% after the seism. The associations Touiza and Touiza Solidarité wished to help redynamising this zone by sustaining projects supporters. They aim at giving the victims of the region, the possibility to undertake again activities generating income.
2) The training center for women of Sidi Daoud
The housing places consist in bungalows with nothing for the collectivity. For women and girls this situation is harder since their living space is often limited to the quarter of the bungalows. The building and the equipment of a training center aim at training them to different crafts or activities generating income (computers, sewing and embroidering, hair styling, cooking...)
3) Building houses at Sidi Daoud
In partnership with la Fondation Abbé Pierre and the district of Sidi Daoud, the associations Touiza and Touiza Solidarité plan to build twenty individual houses on the district of Sidi Daoud. 482 damaged families of Sidi Daoud are still living in bungalows, about 2400 persons. This modest program will allow to accommodate 20 widows with their children. Every house will be built on 55 square meters and will take into account parasismic norms.
Conclusion
For the first time a strong solidarity has shown among the French society to support the victims of the Algerian population. The association Touiza Solidarité has accompanied the Fondation de France for a campaign of solidarity in Algeria. Almost 60,000 French givers and Algerian migrants have brought over 6 millions and a half euros for the reconstruction of this region. Thanks to this support, voluntary works have been organized as well as the reconstruction of basic equipments. A partnership has arisen between the associations, the population and the local collectivities to undertake high standard realizations.
This high quality voluntary work has allowed us to convince the authorities of the country of the merits of the associations: they have the capacity to mobilize for the general benefit and come in addition of the State action in difficult times. The hope of this experience is to see in the future the public instances change their attitude towards the associative world so as to consider it as an actor and an absolutely necessary partner.
PLANS FOR YOUTH CONFERENCE IN NIGERIA
[The following information was received from Vitalis Anopue, Program Director and National Youth Coordinator for IAVE Nigeria describing a conference to be held there May 11-12. We apologize that it was not possible to get this information out sooner and look forward to reporting on the outcomes of the conference in a future issue. For more information on the conference, you may contact Vitaliz at cussonsvit@yahoo.com or iave_nigeria@yahoo.co.uk.]
In order to show leadership for the development of volunteering in Africa, the IAVE world president, Elizabeth Burns C.M.G, O.B.E was in Nigeria January 13-17, 2006 to pave the way for taking volunteering to the next level.
The effective leadership of a people is the catalytic core group of that society that is able to bring about a change within the whole society. The federal government has embarked on huge rights based economic and social reforms which cannot be carried out successfully unless the leadership at all levels of the society is equipped and strengthened to bring about the much needed change and also to sustain this change.
While government is tasked with service delivery, communities, families and individuals are tasked with maintaining the right values, being self-reliant and resourceful.
The concern for youths to acquire noble qualities of volunteerism is stimulated by the acquisition of skills of making an honest living, self reliance, economic resourcefulness and enterprise development which are also functions of training education and exposure both at formal and informal levels.
In Nigeria, IAVE has been working in close partnership with First Lady’s Save Our Youth Campaign, Citizenship and Leadership Training Centre and the Nigerian National Volunteer Service at the Presidency in the area of promoting youth volunteering and Sustainable Human Development Rights.
In pursuance of these goals, we will be holding an international youth conference on the above-mentioned theme.
The objectives of the conference are:
• To sensitize the youth on the need to acquire volunteering, leadership and self reliance skills
• To teach youth leaders on the basic steps of acquiring these skills and organizing youth programmes.
• To acquaint youth leaders with the process of evaluating their roles with respect to MDGs and Sustainable Human Development Rights and to put in place relevant self-reliant structures to augment the short- falls to be identified.
• To develop a framework for partnership and networking with the proposed African – European Youth Network (AFEYON).
• To co-opt state youth regulatory and implementation departments in the drive to create leadership roles for active youth volunteering.
Vitalis Anopue, National Youth Coordinator from IAVE Nigeria has called our attention to yet another scam involving invitations to non-existent conferences. This one if for something called the World Youth Organization for Human Welfare, supposedly based in California and sponsoring a world conference in both California and Dakar, Senegal in June.
Rose Ekeleme, our wonderful colleague from Nigeria, rightly asked the question, "How do you know it is a scam?" Here is what I wrote back to her as what seem to be reasonable guidelines to evaluate something like this.
The basic test is to use Google or one of the other internet search engines and put in the name of the group making the invitation. If it is legitimate, it should be in the top four or five things that come up.
I also look for:
• the absence of a web site mention in their email – everyone has a web site these days – why don’t they?
• the fact that the conference is to take place in two places, one of which is usually the US and one always in West Africa
• there is always either unnamed donors or ones whose names are spelled wrong – believe me, anyone getting money for a conference knows how to spell the name of the company or foundation giving them the money
• the idea that they found the recipient of the email by chance – why would anyone go to an NGO’s website and find an email from someone and use that as the basis for an invitation like this, not to mention the incredible amount of work that would take
• there is never a phone number given to reach the person signing the email or any of the organizations mentioned in it
• if you search for the conference on the internet, you won’t find it
• there will be some suggestion that they can get you a visa – that just is not happening these days – a colleague of mine in Brazil had to wait three months to get an appointment for an interview for a visa to the US – can these folks magically make all of that disappear and arrange the visas some other way?
In short, skepticism should be the order of the day. Check it out before you send money!
-- Kenn Allen
NEW VOLUNTEER PORTAL LAUNCHED IN ISRAEL
[Some of you may have received an email from Israel in Hebrew over the past couple of months. Liz Burns responded with a request for an English translation and received the following information from Yael Caplin at the Institute for Volunteer Management in Jerusalem.]
On the December 5th 2005, the Israeli Volunteer Portal was launched. The Portal acts as the gateway to the volunteer sector in Israel providing information on a wide range of issues in this field. It addresses a large audience including: organizations working with volunteers, volunteer managers, academics and potential volunteers.
The Portal consists of the following features:
Matching Volunteers - organizations are invited to advertise their volunteering and financial needs, as well as and other needs which can be filled in kind. Prospective volunteers and/or contributors can search through the database to find the organizations which best matches their interests.
Articles and information – Articles are posted up featuring volunteering on-going projects ad-hoc activities and events taking place around the country.
Voluntary Organization Database – A large comprehensive database of all organizations working with volunteers and contributing to the volunteer efforts of the sector.
Links - a list of links of recommended websites in Israel and around the world
Training center – a list of training courses in the field of volunteerism and the organizations providing them. Organizations can "shop around" for the most suitable training courses.
Resource centre – the resource centre includes articles, books, journals and periodicals, all dealing with issues of volunteerism. Readers are referred to materials available on-line or in various libraries across the country.
Award and appreciation – A list of national awards which organizations can nominate their outstanding volunteers for. The list includes all the relevant information including application forms.
Discussion Forums - A number of discussion forums have been opened for different interest groups within the sector. The topics raised in these forums include: volunteering amongst the elderly, lay leadership, corporate volunteering, environmental groups, and groups providing legal aid. The forums provide excellent opportunities for professionals within the sector to exchange views and develop fruitful debates, hopefully leading to the formation of future partnerships, collaborations and coalitions between these organizations.
Volunteers Needed – short ads of volunteers urgently needed by voluntary organizations.
Calendar of Events – Organizations are invited to publicize, free of charge on a central platform, all training courses, workshops, conferences and events pertaining to the sector. In addition, professional consultants and umbrella support organizations able to advertise their services (such as marketing the organization, accountancy, and developing long-term strategic plans). This will allow voluntary organizations to be able to "shop around" for the most suitable service provider in this sector.
This project is a joint effort among the following leading organizations in this field: "The National Council of Volunteerism in Israel" (the official representative of Israeli volunteerism in the international arena), "Joint Israel", "The Jewish Agency", "Yad Sarah", "The Community Center Company", "Ruach Tova" and "The Israel Center for Youth Volunteerism". The Government is also represented in this venture by the Ministry Quality of the Environment, with the Ministry of Welfare taking a leading role. In addition, corporate partners have helped to develop the Portal and contributed financial support to the project, they include: Microsoft Israel, Intel Israel and Daronet.
At the moment the Portal is only in Hebrew. We hope to have an English version sometime in the next few months.
IAVE YOUTH IN NIGERIA CELEBRATES VALENTINE’S VOLUNTEER DAY!!
[Submitted by Vitalis Anopue, Program Director and National Youth Coordinator for IAVE Nigeria.]
IAVE Youth in Nigeria held a seminar on 14th February 2006 at Michael Okpara Auditorium Umuahia, Abia State, Nigeria. The theme was VALENTINE'S, DAY VOLUNTEERS DAY!!! The objective was to re-focus the mind of our young people as to the true import of Valentine's Day. Hitherto it was viewed as a day for youthful gaiety and irresponsibility. But we successfully established that it is a day to show love and kindness to one's neighbors. Youth in rural areas were encouraged to fetch water and fire wood for the elderly people and to clean their environment for them. Youth in urban areas were encouraged to visit the orphans/motherless babies, prisoners etc and to show support for environmental sustainability by cleaning their environment. It was largely attended and was so successful that our guest lecturer sent a message across which reads "thank you, Vitalis, for giving me the opportunity to review my stand on Saint Valentine's Day celebration." His name is Rev. Fr. Prof. Jerome Okonkwo (Okosisi), Dean Faculty of Humanities, Imo State University, Owerri, Nigeria.
[The first two that follow are from E-CIVICUS 287, April 13; the third, from E-CIVICUS 288, April 21.]
NGO Support Toolkit CD-ROM – This toolkit covers a range of subject areas to support organisations working on issues related to HIV/AIDS. More than 500 resources have been collated and updated from different organisations, with detailed guidance and suggestions based on the experiences of the AIDS Alliance. This CD-ROM brings together resources for people who are establishing, managing or studying programmes or systems for supporting non-governmental/community-based organisations. For more information, see www.aidsalliance.org/sw33972.asp
Analysis advocates strategic approach to corporate social responsibility – This article in McKinsey Quarterly provides in-depth analysis of a January 2006 survey documenting increasing executive interest in corporate social responsibility (CSR), a finding correlated by an American Society for Quality (ASQ) poll. The ASQ poll of 100 business leaders from Fortune 500 companies, conducted in February 2006, documents rising interest in CSR, but also reveals significant lags in implementing commitments to CSR. For more information, see HERE
Successful Communication: A toolkit for researchers and civil society organisations from the Overseas Development Institute – Within the field of international development, perhaps it is not more communication of evidence that is needed, but rather better communication of evidence. Towards this end, this toolkit presents 23 tools, divided into the categories of 'Planning', 'Packaging', 'Targeting' and 'Monitoring.' The toolkit addresses how researchers and CSOs can best communicate evidence in order to inform or influence policy, to achieve their own stated development objectives or simply to make their own knowledge accessible and understandable to a wider audience. For more information, visit www.dev-zone.org/cgi-bin/knowledge/jump.cgi?ID=10038
AS ALWAYS: LET US HEAR FROM YOU!!! The more news we get from you, the better E-IAVE will be! Thanks!