Introduction
“Volunteers never get paid. It is useless to volunteer for free. Volunteerism will not bring a change in the nation. Most of the volunteer organisation are involved in fraudulent activities, and it is not safe to volunteer for them.” Current youth generation has faced this cynical talk at some point in their lives from time to time. But these are far from the truth. Studies have shown that volunteers play a pivotal factor in the development of the nation. Such so, which makes their job more important than the general work of the corporate sector. The truth is, volunteers have a bigger purpose than money, like helping underprivileged people and animals. Volunteers are the lifelines for the disadvantaged population, and they are ready to sacrifice their time for the betterment of the country. They are the first responders in times of crisis who are available in a moments notice. For example, during the collapse of Rana Plaza in Savar on April 24, 2013 volunteers from several organisations were the ones present in the region even before the arrival of the fire service personnel. By this, they reduced the casualty of the garment workers stuck under the rubbles of the collapsed building.
What is Volunteerism?
Most of the people believe that volunteerism is helping people for social responsibility. In reality, this is a superpower that exists for the development of an individual, group, and the country. The word volunteer came from French of the Middle Ages ‘voluntaire’ in the early 17th century, which stands for “one who offers himself for military service”. Then in the late 20th-century volunteerism was mostly associated with social service and community development with the creation of voluntary organisations like Rotary International and Lions Club International. Volunteers serve the community with no hope for any financial or social gains. They get exposure to diverse networks from various backgrounds and skills that they can use in all aspects of their lives. They are specially taught by experts in several fields to work in areas, like medicine, education, military, sports, and disaster relief. Youth have the opportunity to engage in various types of volunteering and have the liberty to work for a particular cause like community, virtual, disaster support and skill-based etc. There are countless benefits of volunteerism. They have enormous priveledges primarily in the physical, mental, social and professional sector, which helps them equip themselves for a better future.
Effect of Voluntarism
Research on the social effect of volunteerism was conducted to see how voluntary activity has influenced the general public and the nation as a whole. Reports from several voluntary organisations show extensive evidence of the positive features and the ways they are contributing to the development of the country. Volunteers acted as the first responder in various crisis and provided support with relief in many forms like food, shelter and emotional care. They engage in many social responsibilities like health camp, clothes distribution and children fair. This reduced stereotypes and created empathy towards the marginalised population of the country and created bonding between them.
Benefits of Volunteer
People believe that volunteers do not get anything at all. The truth is that volunteers are getting more than they give in return. They are the prime factor in building an extensive community by which they can cultivate fruitful friendships with other fellow volunteers. To decrease the loneliness and social isolation rate among the youth population, they can volunteer for a cause. Socialising will be more accessible by which they can connect with others from various backgrounds easily, thus building bonds in the process. For the people suffering depression, anxiety, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, issuing volunteering will help them create a sense of purpose. Nowadays, teens and young adults are suffering from low self-esteem and volunteering will help them come out of it. Volunteering can be used to help people affected by mental health issues by spending time with them and giving them emotional support. Many volunteer opportunities support individuals by exposing them to corporate experience, which helps them provide better job recruits. It also improves their overall academic experience, by which their grades improve and make them a top academic performer. Activities volunteers can do by which they can lose weight are visiting an elderly & orphan in neighbourhood nursing home and playing with children. It is fun to volunteer that add years to the lifespan, which helps prevent many illnesses like and heart attack and stroke. They are trained and equipped with the skills that they can use in their professional life.
Short Brief of VBD
Volunteer For Bangladesh (VBD) is the youth wing of JAAGO Foundation, founded in 2009 with the help of U.S. Embassy. Their main aim is to educate the youth about the current situation of Bangladesh and how they can ensure quality education to the underprivileged children. Their vision is to develop an interdependent Bangladesh by encouraging the youth generation to contribute to the voluntary activities. They organise various projects which adhere to the development of social and humanitarian causes like ‘My Road My Responsibility’, ‘Beat Harassment, Be the Protector’ ‘My School, My Responsibility’ ‘Fight The Bite’ and ‘Clean Surma, Green Sylhet’ etc. VBD started their journey with Universal Children’s Day in 2009, where 500 volunteers took part in the initiative. From there, VBD has a proud family of 35000 volunteers spanning from 32 districts, and all of them are working with various social campaigns to achieve Sustainable Development Goal. VBD has conducted various social awareness projects & seminars where volunteers educate themselves about the current development scope of the nation. VBD regularly conducts training and skill development programs, like ‘A Conversation With Youth’ where potential volunteers have a thorough knowledge of a particular topic in which they can contribute.
Summary
There is a tremendous opportunity for the young generation who wants to bring a change in their community. And this is only possible by engaging in volunteer organisations like VBD where they can exercise their leadership capability. Thus the benefits of volunteerism are huge, which develops an individual and prepare themselves for the real world.
