Ahead of National Volunteer Week, Volunteer Canada, IPSOS Public Affairs, and Investors Group released their study “Recognizing Volunteers in 2017.” At first glance, we thought the study would be about volunteer recognition: how organizations can celebrate and recognize their volunteers in new and meaningful ways. Instead, this study identifies common trends in Canadian volunteerism.
As an organization who promotes the value of volunteerism, we understand how difficult it can be to capture data and share the value of volunteering for community. This study gave us some food for thought and some valuable takeaways that we want to share.
Common Definitions
Volunteer Canada offers four categories of volunteering and giving:
(Regular) formal volunteering: Giving unpaid help (at least once a month) through groups, clubs or organizations to benefit other people or the environment.- (Regular) informal volunteering: Giving unpaid help (at least once a month) as an individual to people who are not relatives.
- Social action: Giving unpaid help to support a community event, campaign or project.
- Charitable donation: Donating money to charitable causes.
These categories are helpful for distinguishing the different ways someone might support your organization or community; however, they are not all widely used by Canadians:
There is momentum building globally to expand the definition of volunteering to include informal volunteering, organic movements, and the many ways that people put their values into action. Canadians continue to perceive volunteering as a vital part of communities, and while they engage in community in diverse ways, they do not necessarily consider informal activities to be volunteering.
Canadian Opinions on Volunteering
So what do Canadians think about volunteering? For this report, IPSOS Public Affairs surveyed 1200 Canadians aged 16 and over in 2016. The poll found that Canadians greatly value volunteering: 87% felt that our society would suffer without volunteers, and 75% felt the economy would suffer without volunteers. At the same time, respondents considered helping family, random acts of kindness, and improving one’s community as more important than volunteering.
Some other interesting findings from the survey include:
- 75% of Canadians view volunteering as an easy activity.
- 75% of Canadians are very willing to volunteer in times of crisis.
- 68% would be more motivated to choose an employer with a strong volunteer culture.
- 82% of Canadians believe that all Canadians have something to offer.
- 72% of Canadians agree that communities thrive when people know each other.
This is a great foundation of passion and interest for nonprofits to continue to build on!
The survey also explored the barriers to greater involvement that Canadians face. The main barrier is lack of physical or social opportunities (ex. lack of time and resources; friends and family not volunteering), followed by lack of physical or psychological capability (ex. lack of skills or knowledge). These insights provide opportunities for nonprofits to be flexible and meet volunteers where they are at. For instance, from the poll:
- 60% agreed people would volunteer more if it was organized by their employer.
- 68% agreed people would volunteer more if they could do it as a family.
Does your nonprofit currently offer employee-supported volunteering (ESV) opportunities or volunteer work that could be done as a family? Volunteer Canada has more resources on both styles of volunteer engagement on their website.
Find out more about “Recognizing Volunteers in 2017” – read the full report for more statistics and insights about volunteering in Canada.