Vrijwilligerswerk - So much to do, so little time to do it!

Over the last week I've turned my attention to the questions of who volunteers and why. This past week I was told that some individuals who received financial assistance from the government must in turn volunteer a certain number of hours per week as a stipulation of this assistance. This is not a requirement in all cases and nor are all volunteers receiving financial assistance from the government; however, I thought this stipulation - of giving back to society through volunteering - to be an interesting one.

I assume that this stipulation has created a larger volunteer pool from which agencies in need can access willing volunteers. I think this has also created somewhat of a volunteering industry here in Rotterdam as there are even companies that distribute volunteers to other companies or causes in need. For example, if you have a one-day event planned and you need volunteers then there are services that will 'lend' out their volunteers to your cause. There are also funds provided by the government to facilitate the distribution of volunteers - such as Participatie Fonds here in Rotterdam. Thus, there is a bit of competition and some money to be made in the volunteering business (although I'm not sure of how much money there actually is to be made, or whether or not it's evenly distributed, or what regulations go along with the provision of this funding, etc.).

Which volunteers do what is a matter of interest, availability and knowledge that such events are indeed happening. I think that the themes of this blog hark back to the previous entry where I mused over who uses the neighbourhood centre and why. A lot of it boils down to whether or not people have the want and the need to volunteer their time or take part in a neighbourhood activity. The volunteering however has a bit of an added incentive which is something that I must also keep in mind when looking at who is participating in the community in everyday life, here in Rotterdam. It would also be interesting to learn how government funds are distributed and what regulations there are, that influence the dealings within the volunteer industry. So much to do and so little time!