In December 2023, the UN General Assembly declared 2026 the International Year for Volunteers for Sustainable Development, or IVY 2026. They are calling for
“all Member States, organisations of the United Nations system, other international and regional organisations and other relevant stakeholders, including civil society, the private sector and academia, to observe the International Year, as appropriate, in order to promote the importance of volunteers for sustainable development.”
A scoping group of international volunteer-involving organisations and partners has been set up in the lead up to IVY 2026 to prepare for this opportunity, to focus attention on the power and potential of volunteering, to deliver greater investment in volunteering, to secure commitments from governments and others on how they will support volunteering, and the enabling environment in which volunteering will flourish.
Global Call to Action for the Future of Volunteering
The scoping group has launched an online Global Survey (linked for your convenience) to identify key actions which need to be in place to recognise, enable and deliver greater investment in volunteering worldwide to enhance sustainability for people and planet. This survey will be used to inform a Global Call to Action for the Future of Volunteering, to be launched as part of the 2026 International Year of Volunteering.
The Global Call to Action will outline what needs to change, and who can provide the leadership to make that change happen. Governments, corporations, philanthropy groups, education and training institutions, leadership organisations for volunteering and volunteer-involving organisations (local, national, or global), and volunteers are the intended audience of the Global Call to Action.
As a first step, the International Association for Volunteer Effort (IAVE) commissioned a Challenge Paper to surface and explore topics to be addressed in the Call to Action. The Challenge Paper reviews recent trends in global volunteering, the concept of an enabling environment in which it thrives, the role of key actors in creating and maintaining this environment. It also poses questions as a starting point for the online survey.
Everyone’s input is crucial and as many voices as possible are needed in this survey, to help shape the Global Call to Action and give it authority. Everyone involved in volunteering in whatever capacity is invited to take part.
The survey will close to new responses on Wednesday 25 June 2025.
To submit your response, or for further information, please visit the SurveyMonkey page.
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