Exploring the World of Digital Volunteering

Link to Article: https://www.matter.ngo/virtual-volunteering/

The idea of ‘virtual volunteering’ has become more popular with the arrival of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. Also called ‘digital volunteering’, ‘online volunteering’ or ‘cyber volunteering’, volunteering this way is a virtual opportunity that’s been around since the rise of the Internet in the 1990s but hasn’t really taken hold until recently. Before the COVID-19 pandemic turned our lives upside down, most people considered volunteering in the traditional sense – giving of their time at a specific charity or location like a school, food pantry, soup kitchen, crisis center, youth service, a library, or a retirement care home. With the pandemic forcing widespread quarantines, many of these volunteer opportunities have been put on hold. But that hasn’t stopped people from wanting to help their neighbors. In fact, as the pandemic spread and the needs grew, so did the desire of many to help their communities get through this unprecedented time. Turning to a virtual opportunity for volunteering became a safe way to help people and nonprofit organizations during this time.

Becoming an online volunteer is easy. All you need is a computer and an Internet connection and you, too, can join the global army of online volunteers making a difference in one organization, or more, from the comfort and safety of their homes.