FROM THE EDITOR 

Yes, we noticed.  This February issue is coming at the end of the month.  Oh, well.  Isn’t it worth waiting for?

The main reason for delay is that we have geared up our Global Corporate Volunteering Research Project and I had the opportunity to spend a week in London meeting and interviewing companies that are participating. 

The major feature of this month’s newsletter – the first complete details on the Singapore conference!

— Kenn Allen

From the World President

We are moving fast toward 2011, IYV+10.  I want to encourage each member of IAVE to begin planning now how to use that occasion to call attention to volunteering in his or her own country or region – and will plan to participate as much as possible in IAVE’s planned activities.

Here are five specific ideas:

1.  Next month we will announce the process for reviewing and revising the Universal Declaration on Volunteering first articulated in 2001 through a participatory process open to all IAVE members.  Once again, we will want your input – your reactions to the current version and your ideas for the new one.  Our goal is to announce it at the IAVE World Volunteer Conference in Singapore next January.  It will be a key part of our effort to have the UN General Assembly declare volunteering a basic human right.

2. United Nations Volunteers is campaigning for the year 2011 to be declared by all UN member countries as the Year of Volunteering.  I urge you to support this effort in your own country and to let us know the results.

3.  Later this year, as lead-ups to Singapore, we will have our first ever regional conference in the Arab Nations and our first regional conference in several years in Latin America.  I urge all of our members in those regions to take advantage of these opportunities to convene and to use the conferences as platforms for strengthening volunteering in their regions.

4.  In order to encourage IAVE members to strengthen their activities and position within their countries, I would welcome the opportunity to participate in or send a message to any country in which you are holding a national volunteer conference.  

5.  The Singapore conference next January will be the launch point for IAVE’s celebration of IYV+10 and also an important time for our members to come together in solidarity.  I urge you to begin planning now to attend the conference, to seek the funding you require and to be there.  

Thank you all for your continued leadership for volunteering and for what you are doing to take full advantage of IYV+10.

Dr. Kang Hyun Lee

World President

IYV+10…the countdown continues

ONLY 10 MONTHS TO GO!  2011 is the 10^th Anniversary of the United Nation’s International Year of Volunteers in 2001.  As it did in 2001, IAVE is giving leadership to the nongovernmental volunteer community in celebrating this global recognition of volunteering. 

HAVE YOU “SIGNED ON” YET?

IAVE is calling on volunteers worldwide to sign up in support of the tenth anniversary of the UN International Year of Volunteers (IYV+10) in 2011. To build momentum for this important anniversary, we need you to add your voice to the call to make IVY+10 another landmark year for volunteering and to encourage others to do so. 

Here is all you need to do:

1.  Go to http://www.iave.org/iyv10 and sign the online statement of support for IYV+10.

2.  After you have signed on, use the “Tell A Friend” feature that comes up automatically to invite others to join as well.

3.  Help us build this into a true viral online campaign by forwarding the address http://www.iave.org/iyv10 to as many volunteers, volunteer-involving organizations, government agencies and others as you can find.  Urge them to “Sign On” as well.

UPDATE ON THE 2011 WORLD VOLUNTEER CONFERENCE

The 21st IAVE World Volunteer Conference is now gathering momentum.  Singapore is preparing to open its doors to host 1000 volunteer sector practitioners. With Honorable President of Singapore, Mr. S.R. Nathan as Patron and other internationally acclaimed speakers and delegates present, the 21^st IAVE World Volunteer Conference 2011 promises to be an event not to be missed!

Registration

Registration fees have been finalised and IAVE members stand to benefit from generous discounts.  For the World Volunteer Conference, we have drawn a clear distinction in fees between the non-profit organisations and other categories.  Within each of these categories, IAVE members enjoy more than 25% discount off their fees. Each delegate stands to pay fees starting from a modest sum of US $400 for a 2.5 day conference, which includes world-class speakers, site visits and numerous social events. 

IAVE members have even more benefits; group registrations of 10 delegates stand to enjoy a concessionary conference pass for their Country Representative. Please contact the organisers or National Representatives to get more details on group concessions. The fee structure is provided in the table below.

*Students with valid passes; below 25 years of age

** All above stated Fees are subject to 7% GST charges

Early-bird registrations commence March 2010.  Check the ‘World Volunteer Conference’ website regularly at www.iave2011.org for updates.

   Accommodation Details

A special deal has been worked out with the conference venue, Resorts World Sentosa, with room rates starting at US$166++ per night. Limited rooms are available in the conference hotels – Hard Rock Hotel & Festive Hotel. Register early for a guaranteed place at the conference venue itself. The rooms are generously sized with further accommodation available for triple sharing in Hard Rock at a fee.  Listed below are Special Rates at these hotels, only for WVC delegates.   

Visit the following links to gather more information on these exciting new hotels: 

http://www.rwsentosa.com/language/en-US/Hotels/HardRockHotel

http://www.rwsentosa.com/language/en-US/Hotels/FestiveHotel

   Programming:  “Volunteering to Change the World”  

With emphasis on impactful volunteering, the conference will be presented along 5 tracks:

1. The Power of One

This track brings into focus the initiatives by high profile volunteers that are impacting local communities in a big way. Hear from speakers like actress Michelle Yeoh, UN Global Ambassador, “Make our Roads Safe” campaign.  Be inspired by accounts from Michelle and others, like Singapore’s very own Ashoka Fellow, Jack Sim, who founded the World Toilet Organization.

2. Many Helping Hands

Recognizing that one person can only do so much, this track focuses on the volunteer agencies that have successfully partnered governments, businesses and other non-profits to achieve their life mission.  This is also where delegates will hear for the first time the significant findings of the global research piece related to corporate volunteering that IAVE’s Global Corporate Volunteering Council (GCVC) commissioned.

3. From Good to Great

New to IAVE world conferences, the focus in this track is ‘Leadership’.  To truly change the world through volunteering efforts, able leaders are required to take volunteer programmes to the next level.  This platform is specifically designed for world-class, volunteer-driven agencies to share how they have grown their programmes to reach international recognition, through the practice of wise leadership principles applied to non-profit sector operations.

4. Volunteering Megatrends

This track focuses on identifying volunteer needs and supply trends in the current day and age.  Humanitarian relief, mega events, faith-based volunteering and elderly volunteering rank highly amongst areas that call for discussion of issues. Volunteering Megatrends provides the ideal stage for these discussions.

5. Strategic Issues in Volunteer Management

This track aims to take delegates beyond the traditional discussions revolving around volunteer recruitment and retention. Moving into the strategies behind successful implementation of these discussions, hear from top industry practitioners on topics like ‘Usage of Staff Versus Volunteers’. 

   The Pitch

We are proud to announce that UBS has signed on as a strategic partner volunteering their corporate resources as well as sponsoring the prize money for a global competition for well-led promising volunteer programmes to pitch and win additional funding to upscale and grow in impact. Look out for more details in future issues or on the 21^st World Volunteer Conference 2011 website.

Call for Papers

Please consider to contribute to the World Volunteer Conference 2011, workshops. Authors are now invited to submit comprehensive synopses of papers developed around the aforementioned tracks, which are not under review in any other conference or journal.

Accepted papers will be followed by an invitation to the author to present at a World Volunteer Conference workshop alongside other esteemed workshop leaders. Please visit the conference website for more details – www.iave2011.org.
Talk to Us

We welcome feedback and suggestions on how to make the 21st IAVE World Volunteer Conference 2011 the best ever. For enquiries or suggestions please e-mail iave2011@nvpc.org.sg for assistance.

IAVE’s IYV+10 calendar

Here is how our calendar is shaping up for the lead-in to and celebration of the 10^th Anniversary of the International Year of Volunteers:

2010

June    North American Regional Meeting at the National

Conference on Volunteering and Service in New

York City

Meeting of the IAVE Board of Directors in New York City (to be confirmed)

September   Arab Nations Regional Conference in Lebanon

September 27-29 Latin America Regional Conference in Colombia

2011

January 2011  21^st World Volunteer Conference in Singapore in partnership with the

National Volunteer and Philanthropy Centre

November 2011 Global Youth Volunteer Summit in Barranquilla, Colombia in partnership

with Partners of the Americas

13^th Asia-Pacific Regional Conference in South Korea

2012

September   22^nd World Volunteer Conference in Ireland in partnership with

Volunteering Ireland

news from iave

Marcel Umesi Elected to IAVE Board from Africa

We are very pleased to announce that Mr. Marcel Umesi of Nigeria has been elected as the new Anglophone Regional Representative to the IAVE board from Africa.  It seems the best way to introduce him to you is to share what he provided as background on himself that was sent to African members in the voting papers.

“Marcel Chukwunyere Umesi, a BSc. degree holder in Education-Social Studies, started volunteering very early in his youth as he helped the ‘elderly’ in his local community by bringing together youths to fetch firewood and water for them.

“As local youth leader, he mobilized and influenced his fellow youths to adopt a regular clean up exercise within the community which has remained even till date.

“Heis the current IAVE Youth President who was elected into office in 2006.

“He has been involved in many volunteer activities which include leading the IAVE youths to visit many destitute homes within Umuahia, Abia State and its environs. During such visits the youth usually take to those homes some food items, toiletries and used clothing.  He also leads the youths periodically to clean up the premises of the Federal Medical Center (hospital), here in Umuahia Abia State.

“Other such places that he organizes the youths to go for clean up exercise includes The School for the Blind in Umuahia, Abia State, because this is a school where even some of their teachers themselves are blind too, so any form of assistance given to them at any time goes a long way in helping them have a better study environment. At such visits the IAVE youths also donates items for their basic necessity.

“As a team player he has also led the IAVE youths to community outreach where issues like HIV/AIDS were discussed and its hazards and prevention shared to the community dwellers, which has gone a long way in promoting IAVE within the rural communities.

“He has been part of activities marking World Volunteer day. He has represented IAVE in some summits and has been part of IAVE fund raising committees.

“He is a vibrant young man whose attitude to work will help promote the growth of IAVE worldwide, especially within the African region.”

Mr. Umesi can be reached by email at chukasbra@yahoo.com.

We congratulate him and welcome him to IAVE’s board of directors.

PLANS FOR THE IAVE LATIN AMERICA REGIONAL CONFERENCE

From the 27 to the 29 of September of this year the Regional Conference of Latin America will take place in the city of Bogotá, capital of Colombia.

We want to welcome you by telling you about our country, our capital and the conference.

The country is located in the Northwest corner of South America, with  coasts in the Atlantic and Pacific Ocean. Its language is Spanish.

Bogotá has more than 8 million inhabitants and has an average temperature of 14C (57 F) degrees all year round without seasonal variations. At night, the temperature may drop as low as 5C (40F).

The city is known for its cultural activity. Different artists, symphony orchestras and national and international musical groups offer concerts during the year. Bogotá has 45 theatres, 58 museums, 62 art galleries, 40 movie theaters and 28 churches of tourist interest. During the last five years Bogotá has had a very positive transformation. Today it is recognized  internationally for its different initiatives in urban development, citizen security and life quality.

Bogotá has received many awards in the last five years.  Among them are: the World Capital of Books 2007, recognition of UNESCO; the Union of Capital Cities of Ibero America granted in 2007 a special recognition as the Iberoamerican Capital of Culture and, the City with a Heart given by the United Nations in 2005 for its volunteer work as a force that contributes to Bogotá urban development.

The Conference will be hosted in Pontificia Universidad Javeriana, a private higher education institution founded in 1623. It is one of the oldest and most traditional Colombian universities, directed by the Society of Jesus. It has an enrollment of 22.000 students, is composed of 18 Schools comprising 61 departments and 181 academic programs in to different areas of knowledge, giving the university its multidisciplinary nature. Its campus has 45 buildings in 44.5 acres and is located in a strategic and easily accessible part of the city.

The theme of the conference is “Volunteering: Key in Social Responsibility”. It will have three plenary sessions: Poverty in Latin America and Volunteering; Volunteering and Social Responsibility; and Personal Testimonies of world figures such as Juanes, Shakira or Juan Pablo Montoya.

The Conference will have four parallel forums: (1) Poverty and Inequality in Latin America (2) Environment, (3) Corporate Volunteering and (4)Youth Volunteering. Several workshops in different topics according to main themes are included in the program.

Registration fee are as follows:   

IAVE Members – USD$50 until July 31; USD$70 from August 1

Non-IAVE Participants – USD$100 until July 31; USD$120 from August 1

With this fee each person will receive: a CD with the plenary sessions and the forums; a bag, tag, pen and notebook; two lunches; three coffee breaks and a city tour. Persons that bring a group of a minimum of 10 participants will not pay registration

Colombia has a very affordable exchange rate. The price of four and five star hotels runs from US$60 to USD$170 for double rooms with breakfast included. Other accommodations are retreat houses that cost USD$ 28 for individual rooms with private bath and breakfast   

For more information: mariatgnecco@gmail.com.

We will be waiting for you!!!

FROM IAVE MEMBERS

GCVC Member Starbucks Hosts Community Service Summit

[This article comes to us from Sarah Hayes, Director of IAVE’s Global Corporate Volunteer Council, who participated in this event.]

As all companies with employee volunteer and community service programs will attest to, measuring the value and capturing the impact of our efforts is often the most difficult and elusive process. To initiate a dialogue on the subject, Starbucks determined to invite people from a number of companies, non-profits and other community organizations together for a day of lively interaction and great networking around the topics of what constitutes value, what are key trends in social impact, what and how to measure these important things. The event took place on January 6 at Starbucks headquarter location in Seattle, Washington, USA.

In addition to numerous attendees from many departments within Starbucks, other company attendees included new G-CVC Member Nike, Microsoft and Gap, with representatives from Wal-Mart and Timberland on the phone. Other attendees included City Year, the Conference Board, Hands On Network, IBLF, the International Youth Foundation, Net Impact, United Way of King County, UN Volunteers, the Washington Commission for National and Community Service and the World Food Programme.

The evening before the Summit, many of the attendees were treated to a reception at Roy Street Coffee and Tea, a new concept of coffee house that Starbucks is developing. Attendees were treated to delicious appetizers and wine, and to getting to know each other around questions of accomplishments within their various programs as well as challenges faced.

The next day participants gathered at the beautiful Starbucks Support Center in downtown Seattle to begin a fruitful and interesting learning experience. Led by Jason Saul from Mission Measurement, participants examined the changing landscape of non-profit work and its effect on company involvement programs. We discussed how companies are moving from CSR 1.0 (Charity and Checklists) through CSR 2.0 (Strategic Philanthropy), and arriving at CSR 3.0 (Social Innovation) – moving from awareness of having a “Social Contract” to embracing a “Social Capital Market.” With the help of our facilitator, we explored the differences between evaluation and measurement, activities and outcomes, and the difference between good measures and ineffective ones.

The ultimate goal of the day was to move towards a common framework – common metrics and the principles behind them that can be agreed upon by the majority of stakeholders to show true value and success in the myriad of efforts going on to induce social change. It was a tall order, but one the group felt it made some real headway on during this special event. Everyone was invigorated and inspired to put what we learned into practice in our own organizations as well as be a part of the continuing dialogue with the overall group – with the ultimate goal of offering something to the entire field of CSR and community involvement that will be of benefit, of value, and can improve the way we all develop and drive our efforts, as well as how we look at the effects of those efforts.

Bravo to Starbucks (and our great contacts there – Anna Cunningham and Rodney Hines) for jumping in with both feet to stimulate this important discussion! Look for more information on future meetings and material yet to come from this dialogue, begun in beautiful Seattle!

Volunteer Management and Leadership Training in Kenya

[Johnson Kinyua, head of NAVNET, the national network for volunteering in Kenya and an IAVE member, shared this information about their training programs.]

National Volunteer Network Trust (NAVNET) is in the business of strengthening the volunteer sector in Kenya by training volunteers and volunteer managers in Volunteer Management and Leadership Courses in 2010.  Organizations can sponsor their volunteers and CBO/NGO partners who work with volunteers. The courses are:

• Foundation training on Volunteerism (1 day) every month,
• Basic Certificate Course on Volunteer Management (3 days) every month;
• Leadership and Management Course for Volunteer Managers (3 days) every month; and,
• Monitoring and Evaluation Course of volunteer programs (3 days) every month.

The Foundation Training is FREE for all registered and renewed (2010) NAVNET members.

All courses are non-residential.  Participants receive a Certificate of Training for each completed course.

NAVNET is committed to the advancement of knowledge in Volunteer Management and

Leadership. We build the capacity of individuals, volunteer involving organizations, Government Ministries/departments, corporations (private sector), universities, NGOs, CBOs, schools and colleges to improve their volunteer management and leadership skills for improved service delivery, volunteer satisfaction & organizational growth.