International Volunteer Day

Sunday 5 December 2010

International Volunteer Day (IVD) will be celebrated on Saturday 5 December. IVD is a United Nations auspiced day that commenced in 1985 and is now celebrated around the world as a day to recognise the contribution of volunteers in their communities. There are a number of ways you can get involved in IVD, whether you are an organisation or an individual:

Organisations

Volunteering Australia has a number of free resources on the website to get your celebrations off the ground. Take a look at:

- Top 10 ways to celebrate IVD 
- Media release basics
- IVD 2009 Certificate of appreciation
- How to recognise your volunteers
- Facts on volunteering in Australia
- United Nations World Volunteer Web www.worldvolunteerweb.org/intl-vol-day.html

Individuals

Considering volunteering? IVD is a perfect time for people who do not yet volunteer to consider what they can do to help others in their communities. Volunteering Australia manages the largest volunteer opportunity website GoVolunteer.

GoVolunteer is a website dedicated to listing volunteer opportunities nationally with a search function that enables you to find opportunities in your own area. More than 11,000 volunteering opportunities are listed per month and organisations are checked to ensure they have appropriate volunteer insurance before having their listing placed on the site.

You can also get in touch with your local Volunteer Resource Centre who can help and provide advice on where and how to volunteer. A full list is available on the website.

Volunteering Australia encourages you to join in this international celebration.