Our research & fluid volunteering
In Australia volunteering has traditionally been categorised as formal or informal.
Formal volunteering typically refers to more structured and organised volunteering activities that are often carried out through established organisations or non-profits. Informal volunteering on the other hand tends to be volunteering that is done on an ad-hoc basis, often without a formal structure or organisation.
However, we believe that these categories don’t accurately reflect the true nature of volunteering in the country, especially across multicultural communities.
In a recent Volunteer West study we found that volunteering experiences go beyond the common formal-informal categories of volunteering, where the ‘informal’ label is often associated with volunteering undertaken in multicultural and multifaith context. There is an implicit disenfranchisement in such terminology, suggesting that activities undertaken are of lesser value than ‘formal’ volunteering activities. Participation in “informal” activities is not accurately depicted as volunteering in official reports, such as the Australian census statistics.
As a result, we found the need to re-conceptualise active forms of volunteering, broadly referred to as role-based volunteering and fluid volunteering, each with resulting practice implications.
Role-based volunteering is bounded by roles and agreements.
Fluid volunteering is shaped by needs of circumstance and capability of the individual volunteer, allows movement across various roles
The notion of ‘fluid volunteering’ more aptly describes a practice where volunteers engage in activities that meet the needs of the community, whether these are within or outside structured organisational settings.
Our culturally inclusive volunteer toolkit builds upon the recommendations of the research, which highlighted the need to proactively address barriers to volunteering through sustained engagement with culturally-sensitive and inclusive volunteering practices across the sector.
We are elevating fluid volunteering with appreciative inquiry; through our co-designing with stakeholders and building a network committed to inclusive volunteering practices we aim to develop resource that supports fluid-volunteering.
Learn more about the research here.