The contributions that youth make to the community are often overlooked. Individual adult or corporate giving will often take the spotlight when youth contributions are assumed to be very small or insubstantial.
In 2000, a study prepared by the National Survey of Giving, Volunteering and Participating (NSGVP) found that youth represent 6% of annual donations totaling an astonishing $308 million. A similar report released in 2004 by Statistics Canada for Imagine Canada found that youth represented 17% of total volunteer hours.
Youth may represent a small percentage of overall donations but a contribution of $308 million is quite substantial. In addition, the value of volunteer hours can be immeasurable. Many charities and non-profits would be unable to provide a full range of programming and services without the aid and support of their volunteers.
When searching for this information I was happy to see that the youth movement and their philanthropic belief system is not much different than adults. Youth are impacted by and drawn to volunteerism and fundraising in the same ways. The divide between adult and youth giving occurs in how youth go about raising funds and attracting support.
Today’s youth have mastered social networking sites like MySpace or Facebook to discuss, encourage and gather support for their volunteer and fundraising activities. By using technology youth are changing the face of fundraising. Online activities may soon become the primary vehicle for raising funds and the use of other fundraising tools (such as paper pledge forms) will become secondary methods.
The youth of today will grow into the adult population of tomorrow and as they age they will continue to increase their gifts of both time and money to their charities of choice. Hopefully they will encourage their children to follow their path and work to increase youth giving individually as well as through school-based activities.
We can all contribute to recognizing and supporting youth giving initiatives whenever possible. Often all it takes is a thank you or a simple recognition of their contribution. If you notice youth in your community taking an active role in volunteerism or fundraising let them know that you notice and value their contribution. Fostering a positive environment for volunteerism and fundraising will lay the ground work today for the next generation of youth looking to get involved and make a difference in their community.
References
The Giving and Volunteering of Youth, http://www.givingandvolunteering.ca/pdf/factsheets/2000_CA_youth_giving_and_volunteering.pdf
Caring Canadians, Involved Canadians: Highlights from the 2004 Canada Survey of Giving, Volunteering and Participating, http://www.givingandvolunteering.ca/pdf/CSGVP_Highlights_2004_en.pdf
2 comments:
Giving is one of the most importatn attributes parents can teach their kids. I am thankful to have come across www.DreamsforKids.org, since becoming a volunteer Life has been great. I wish everyone could experience charity work atleast once in their life. You will never regret it!
We charities couldn't do what we do without the support of our volunteers!
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