Ways to get more young people to be volunteers

The spirit of philanthropy is growing in Singapore, and more people are volunteering their services.

However, more young people can make the effort to volunteer their time and talents to help others.

One way they can do so would be through ad hoc volunteering.

As young people have busy schedules, homework to do and various other commitments, they can opt for more flexible and ad hoc volunteering opportunities, to be able to plan their schedules more easily.

This would allow them to balance their time between schoolwork and volunteer work properly, as the timings for volunteer work are more flexible.

Another way young people can contribute would be through lifestyle volunteering.

Young people nowadays have a wider range of interests, from sports to leisure activities.

They can do volunteer work that relates to these interests. This can be done during their free time or holidays.

A third way would be through microvolunteering.

In recent years, microvolunteering has been increasing in popularity, as it can be done any time and anywhere.

Microvolunteering combines small little actions, such as projects done online, by many people, to create a big impact.

It can be done at home, in school, or even while on holiday.

Organisations like Help From Home support microvolunteering.

Volunteers need only go to the website and follow the instructions to volunteer.

As a youth volunteer, I strongly encourage other young people to be volunteers too.

Volunteering need not necessarily be boring.

It can involve working with animals or the environment, or simply doing things you are interested in.

Volunteers get to meet different people, do different things, and learn new skills or apply what they have learnt.

A single act of volunteering goes a long way towards changing other people's lives positively.

- Tiang Zi Xuan