Shagun Sharma shares her journey of meaningful volunteering and explores how volunteering grows and multiples social change leaders.
My journey in the development sector started in a red-light district.
At the age of 18, and only a few months out of school, I began exploring the “problems that women face” by visiting a red-light area.
Little did I know that this journey would lead me to presenting research to the United Nations only three years later.
Rethinking Volunteering.
In many Indian households, volunteering is another “extra curricular” activity that college students do.
Volunteering is not looked at as a catalyst to build young people. This was the same for my household as well. Possibly many young people across the globe feel the same?
This needs to change. Because volunteering changed me.
Ever since that visit to the red-light district, I have volunteered in the field every second month, trying to understand what communities go through.
While a couple of my initial projects did not pan out for the sustainable change I was aiming for, nevertheless, the learning and short term milestones fuelled my will to learn more via volunteering.
What makes a project community-centric and how should projects be designed? How does fundraising and reporting work in practice? Excitingly, how should young people from marginalised communities be engaged meaningfully and how can we advocate together to create sustainable change?
These are not questions that can be truly answered in a textbook, a course or online.
My Meaningful Volunteering Journey.
There is no limit to the experiences, stories, challenges and the skills that volunteering brings for each passionate volunteer.
I have learnt different dynamics of the global development sector by doing: launching community projects, supporting gender movements, contributing to peacebuilding, networking and growing with young leaders like me.
Last year, I represented Restless Development at the United Nations Data Forum after conducting research with youth in my community on gender-based violence and sexual-reproductive health.
Addressing stakeholders from media, government bodies and civil societies gave me the confidence to believe that these stakeholders want to be engaged and want to engage youth meaningfully!
Ever since, I have engaged in various global advocacy initiatives to advocate for issues related to youth development.
Now, my family has started to believe that what I do is create an impact somewhere out there.
Much More than Free Labour.
Organisations need to look at volunteers not as unpaid labour.
Instead, they should see catalysts for creating change, for growing their impact and for sustainable leadership.
Social change leaders must understand that to create sustainable change, the approach has to be bottom-to-top. Not vice-versa. We need to hear youth voices from communities. We need to understand the challenges they face. When they stand-up to volunteer, they not only impact our work.
They are also impacted personally.
Leaders must see volunteers as more than labour. When they do, they will see meaningful volunteering not only as a means to advance the organisational cause.
They will also see volunteering as a way to create young leaders to carry forward their banner of change.
Make Meaningful Volunteering a Tool for Sustainable Leadership.
By understanding the magic that volunteering can create, we can create more sustainable change, together and deepen meaningful youth engagement.
Now, I ask: If one young person’s volunteering journey for a period of over 4 years can change that person’s personality and build her confidence to understand and push for issues that matter, can meaningful volunteering not change the lives of multitude of young people across the globe?
My answer: A definite yes!
For a sustainable and peaceful society, make youth volunteering meaningful – starting today. And if you’re wondering how you can help to make it happen, please read this Youth Manifesto launched this week.
As one of the Youth Manifesto’s writers, we highlight #YouthPriorities and solutions on how to engage youth meaningfully in leading change.
Please sign the manifesto here to help many more young people on their leadership journey.
