Hello and welcome to the August edition of Volunteering Matters!

We hope you've been having a lovely summer, and enjoying the recent sunshine. Keep reading for news about the Volunteer Ireland Awards, ideas for how you can volunteer, and details of our upcoming training sessions.

Wanted! Ireland's Volunteer of the Year

Nominations are now open for the 2022 Volunteer Ireland Awards, the award ceremony that celebrates the amazing volunteers helping out in our communities. And we need your help. Do you know a volunteer who deserves an award? Then please be sure to nominate them!

Volunteering opportunities

Find your perfect volunteering role at I-VOL, the national database of volunteering opportunities. Sign up today, then search and apply for the roles that suit you. You can refine your search by your location, availability, age, etc.

Volunteering to support displaced Ukrainian people

There's been a fantastic outpouring of support from the people of Ireland in response to the war in Ukraine. If you’d like to volunteer to support displaced persons living in Ireland, please visit volunteer.ie/ukraine for information.
 

PS: It’s best to volunteer your time with existing registered charities who have experience supporting volunteers and working with displaced people. 

'Week of Possibilities' in Cork, Dublin, Mayo & Sligo

We were delighted to partner with pharma company AbbVie for their Week of Possibilities this summer, a global week of giving back where 15,000+ AbbVie employees volunteer on projects in over 50 countries.

Over the course of a week, AbbVie Ireland employees transformed six schools throughout the country, creating outdoor learning spaces and revitalised playgrounds for students to enjoy for years to come.

Five ways volunteering enhances wellbeing

And lastly,

Does your organisation engage volunteers, or do you work as a Volunteer Manager? Then don't miss our upcoming training sessions!

Volunteer Policy – The Fundamentals

Wed 31 August

 An hour-long, interactive lunchtime session to help demystify volunteer policy for your organisation.

Fundamentals of garda vetting

Mon 5 September

Learn how Garda vetting applies to your organisation and how to ensure good practice in implementation.

Measuring & evaluating impact

Thu 29 September

This workshop will help you measure and evalute the impact of your volunteering programme.

www.volunteer.ie