By Dr. Megan Conway and Christine Trauttmansdorff
“Don’t it always seem to go, you don’t know what you’ve got ‘til it’s gone.” Joni Mitchell penned those words 50 years ago to caution us about the existential threat posed by unchecked urban development. Today, that same refrain is being sung in communities across our country as scout troops go without leaders, teams go without coaches, board positions sit empty, community events are cancelled, and organizations that provide needed services in our communities struggle to keep up with demand. What’s the common denominator in all of these scenarios? Volunteers. Or, more precisely, the lack of them.
We can say with confidence that no one has ever taken the contributions made by volunteers for granted. Canada has a long and proud history of volunteerism and participation, and organizations at the local, regional, and national levels are keen to recognize and celebrate volunteers and all that they do. So how did we get to a place where the demand for volunteers is outpacing the supply?
While the pandemic had a huge impact on the volunteer sector — an impact that is still being felt today, with many organizations struggling to get lost volunteers to return — some challenges predated and were exacerbated by the pandemic.
Canada’s demographics are changing. As our population ages, it is also becoming more diverse. In fact, the 2021 census tells us that 1.3 million newcomers settled in Canada between 2016 and 2021; this is the highest number of recent immigrants recorded in Canadian census history. Are we adapting our volunteer spaces inclusive and accessible to these new Canadians? And as our demographics change, the meaning of words like “volunteer” and “participation” also need to evolve.
Canadian society has changed too. The pandemic weakened social connections, increasing loneliness and isolation. And it seems that any perceived divisions and differences in our society were exacerbated during the pandemic period, resulting in more mistrust and polarization.
Everyone working in the volunteer sector knows these facts to be true. And they know the impact that these demographic and societal changes are having on their ability to recruit and retain volunteers. But there are still so many questions that have not been answered. How do people perceive their role in society and in the communities that they are a part of? What motivates them to get involved? What barriers stand in their way? And how do they want to contribute? What socioeconomic factors or other barriers stop some of them from volunteering? How does the situation in rural Canada differ from the situation in our urban centres? What is happening in individual communities around the need for services and existing gaps?
That’s why our most pressing needs are for more robust, timely, and disaggregated data, as well as the capacity to do the necessary related analysis and research. That call for data is one of the pillars of the roadmap that Volunteer Canada created to guide us toward the creation of a National Volunteer Action Strategy.
The roadmap also identifies the need for tools and infrastructure at the national level so that individuals, organizations, grassroots groups, and networks have greater access to what they need to enable and support volunteering and participation. This includes a system for accessible, affordable, and timely volunteer sector checks, as well as a system that enables volunteer matching. It also includes the ability to share resources and materials that will help facilitate recruitment and retention.
Other challenges in the current system exist in the areas of funding, capacity, research, systems, and frameworks. An integrated, consistent, and cohesive approach at the national level — one that is embedded in and supported by the National Volunteer Action Strategy — will help us address these challenges to ultimately protect, support, and facilitate volunteering in communities across our country. The strategy will also help us work together to create new participation and engagement frameworks and pathways — along with new ways to talk about volunteering that resonate with different groups — so that more people see themselves as volunteers, and every person who wants to volunteer can find a place within the volunteer ecosystem.
The goal of the strategy is to optimize and futureproof volunteering so that everyone in Canada can participate and benefit. Because we know the power of volunteering. We know that volunteering helps to increase feelings of belonging and inclusion. We know that volunteering helps to build strong, inclusive, and connected communities. We know that volunteering helps to uphold our social support system and build community resilience.
Now is the time to solidify volunteering and participation as foundational building blocks of a strong, inclusive, and resilient future. Together we need to shape a shared vision for inclusive participation and volunteering that recognizes, amplifies, promotes, and supports the many different ways Canadians work together in communities all across our country.
Visit www.volunteerstrategy.ca to get more information and to get involved.
Dr. Megan Conway is CEO of Volunteer Canada and Christine Trauttmansdorff is CEO of Volunteer Ottawa.
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