Engage Library

On any given day, The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art in Kansas City, Missouri welcomes thousands of guests through its doors. During their visits, guests might encounter several of the museum’s more than 400 volunteers at multiple points. These museum volunteers – ranging from…

In honor of the start of our 25th year at Engage (formerly e-Volunteerism), authors Rob Jackson and Erin R. Spink revisit the first ever Points of View from our journal's founding co-editors, Susan J. Ellis and Steve McCurley. Never known to mince words or shy away from a spicy…

After 13 years of dedicated service to Engage, Laurie Mook, PhD, is stepping down as editor of the Research to Practice section. An engaged professor and scholar, Dr. Mook’s own body of research has contributed significantly to the study of volunteering and Volunteer Engagement…

In today’s rapidly changing and unpredictable world, managing volunteers comes with distinct challenges. Volatile social and political climates, frequent technological disruptions, and the ongoing impact of global events such as pandemics and social movements have created an…

Volunteering is at the heart of most social change, and volunteers form a crucial part of electoral politics and campaigning. But imagine being co-leader of a local campaign group during a critical referendum to recognize the First Nations peoples in the Australian constitution…

For as long as there's been a formal practice of Volunteer Management, there's also been a notion that professional Volunteer Managers should do a better job of training a more effective volunteer. That notion is about to change. Could it be possible that one of AI’s hidden…

The COVID-19 pandemic, the war in Ukraine, the ongoing conflict in Israel….what do these three global crises have in common when it comes to volunteers? In Ethics, author Stuart Garland explains that all three require ethical considerations for volunteer rights, welfare and…

In Voices, author Breauna Dorelus explores the deeply rewarding and unique Points of Light Conference that she and other BIPOC attendees experienced this summer in Houston. “As soon as I knew I was going to the Points of Light Conference, I also knew that this year some ideas…

Allyson Drinnon, a Volunteer Management expert and the author of this Engage feature, admits that she “stumbled into a career as a Volunteer Engagement professional without any formal training, and without a real plan.” Her professional career began at a large international…

Engaging volunteers to transition into lifelong donors is a challenge for any nonprofit organization seeking sustainable support. In Ahead of the Curve, author Sam Fankuchen explores effective strategies and mechanisms to convert volunteer commitment into long-term financial…

In this Ethics column, author Ruth Leonard reviews the ethical dimensions of how those who involve volunteers characterise their engagement mechanism. For instance, volunteer opportunities are frequently packaged up as 'products' to be marketed to 'customers.' But while the move…

Part Four of a Four-Part Series During their recent, three-part Engage series into Care Circles, author Todd McMullin with DanaLitwin and Joan Cardellino defined, described, taught and inspired readers of Engage with thepotential of harnessing this organic construct to address…

The year 2024 marks the 40th anniversary of International Volunteer Managers Day. With this in mind, Points of View co-author Erin R. Spink did a little digging. She discovered that in just three years from now, 2027 will mark the 80th anniversary of the first document that…

If you’re a reader of this section, you know that Research to Practice typically highlights research published in academic journals and shares key findings and implications for Volunteer Engagement leaders. However, in addition to sharing relevant research published in other…

One of the most recognizable basics of Volunteer Engagement practice is the “3 Rs:” Recruit, Retain and Recognize. The 3 Rs are in most Volunteer Engagement job descriptions and Volunteer Management 101 texts and blogs, and remain a constant and ongoing topic of conversation…

In the beginning, there were sign-in sheets. Then there were time-tracking tools, followed by web registration forms. While these processes began to engage a volunteer, they did little to help understand who that volunteer is. At the fundamental level, knowing a person means…

In this Ethics column, authors and Volunteer Engagement professionals Gabriella Civico and Rita Marques examine the ethics of voluntourism. Voluntourism is defined as a form of tourism in which travelers participate in volunteering activities - ranging from tracking sea turtles…

For 17 years, author Sam Clift has worked in Volunteer Engagement, in paid and volunteer roles across museums, arts and educational settings. In his role as the Volunteer Resource Manager for the London Transport Museum, he reported a volunteer satisfaction rating of 93 percent…

Without volunteers, community sporting clubs in Australia would not exist. In 2022, according to reports, sport volunteers comprised the largest volunteer sector in Australia and contributed $4 billion annually in terms of labour to the Australian national economy. But the…

Alongside recruitment and recognition, volunteer retention remains a primary concern of Volunteer Engagement leaders and is one of the basic "3 Rs" of Volunteer Engagement practice.  In addition to ensuring that organizations have the human resources needed to get things done,…