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How to develop active volunteers Good practice guidelines for organising and managing volunteers in Cambodia By Grusche Michelsen National Volunteer Research Adviser VSO Cambodia April 2013
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How to develop active volunteers

Good practice guidelines for organising and managing volunteers in Cambodia

By Grusche Michelsen National Volunteer Research Adviser VSO Cambodia April 2013

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Acknowledgements First of all I would like to send a big thank you to VSO and CUSO International for providing funding support to this important initiative. I would also like to thank and acknowledge HR and Operations Manager Dawn Hoyle, VSO Cambodia, for her encouragement and support in the completion of these guidelines. Thank you to all the participants that gave up their time and enthusiastically talked about how their volunteer programme supports and manages volunteers, it was very helpful and inspiring. A huge thank you also goes to all the youth volunteers that participated in the group work session at the 2nd National Forum on Volunteerism in Cambodia 2012 and in the session in Ratanakiri in December 2012. Last but not least, a big thank you to the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport for being very helpful and supportive of the research.

Front cover photo: Youth volunteers in discussion at the 2

nd National Forum on Volunteerism, Cambodia

December 2012

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Table of contents

Acknowledgements .......................................................................................................... 2

Abstract ........................................................................................................................... 5

Acronyms ......................................................................................................................... 5

Chapter 1: Introduction .................................................................................................... 6 Who are the guidelines for? ............................................................................................................... 8 Volunteering in Cambodia .................................................................................................................. 8 Defining volunteering ......................................................................................................................... 9 The structure of the good guidelines ................................................................................................ 10 A volunteer’s life cycle ...................................................................................................................... 10

Chapter 2: Motivations and influencing factors ............................................................... 11 New experiences and more knowledge ............................................................................................ 11 Personal development and social network ...................................................................................... 12 Develop the community and Cambodia ........................................................................................... 12 The volunteer programmes’ views on young people’s motives ....................................................... 12 Influencing and discouraging factors ................................................................................................ 13 What young people want/need when they volunteer? ................................................................... 14

Chapter 3: Volunteer strategy ......................................................................................... 15 What topics can be included in a volunteer strategy? ..................................................................... 15 Volunteer insurance .......................................................................................................................... 16 Volunteer expenses .......................................................................................................................... 17

Chapter 4: Recruitment .................................................................................................. 18 Job description .................................................................................................................................. 18 What to include in a volunteer profile: ............................................................................................. 18 Word of mouth ................................................................................................................................. 19 Bring a friend ..................................................................................................................................... 19 Getting parents and the community on board ................................................................................. 19 Existing volunteers promoting the programme ................................................................................ 20 Recruitment in schools and getting teachers to promote volunteerism .......................................... 20 Being role models for younger generations ..................................................................................... 20 Website ............................................................................................................................................. 21 Posters/flyers .................................................................................................................................... 21 Radio, newspaper and TV ................................................................................................................. 21 Social network ................................................................................................................................... 22 Clear and precise communication .................................................................................................... 22 Selection ............................................................................................................................................ 22 Information meeting ......................................................................................................................... 22 Application and interview ................................................................................................................. 22

Chapter 5: Induction ....................................................................................................... 23 Be prepared for your volunteer when they arrive ............................................................................ 23 Trial period ........................................................................................................................................ 23

Chapter 6: Training and development ............................................................................. 24 Training and workshops .................................................................................................................... 24 On the job training ............................................................................................................................ 24 Other roles ........................................................................................................................................ 25 Listen and involve your volunteers ................................................................................................... 26

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Chapter 7: Recognition and appreciation ........................................................................ 27 Ways you can show that you appreciate them ................................................................................ 27

Chapter 8: Progression or saying goodbye ....................................................................... 28

Chapter 9: Support and supervision ................................................................................ 29 Things to include when you support and supervise your volunteers: .............................................. 29 Planning your support and supervision: ........................................................................................... 30 Annual appraisal and evaluation ...................................................................................................... 30 Communication ................................................................................................................................. 30

Chapter 10: Recommendations ....................................................................................... 31 Flexible volunteer opportunities ....................................................................................................... 31 Raising awareness ............................................................................................................................. 31 End notes .......................................................................................................................................... 32

Bibliography ................................................................................................................... 33 Websites ........................................................................................................................................... 33 Speeches ........................................................................................................................................... 34

Appendix 1: Methodology .............................................................................................. 35 Semi-structured interviews and group work sessions ...................................................................... 35 Data collection .................................................................................................................................. 35

Appendix 2: Respondents ............................................................................................... 37

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Abstract Youth volunteering in Cambodia is growing. Several youth volunteering programmes exist across Cambodia and, with the newly approved National Policy on Cambodian Youth Development and its focus on promoting volunteerism amongst young people, a good foundation is being built for the future of youth volunteering in Cambodia. These good practice guidelines are part of the strategy to develop youth volunteering in Cambodia. The guidelines are based on desktop research of volunteering as well as research into Cambodian youth volunteer programmes’ experience and good ways of working with youth volunteers. The guidelines also include Cambodian youth volunteer’s motives to volunteer and what support they need when taking part in volunteering. The good practice guidelines are meant as an inspiration for existing youth volunteering programmes and for people that wants to start up a new youth volunteer programme or youth group. The guidelines look at what motivates young people to volunteer, the influencing factors as well as what barriers that might exist for young people considering volunteering. The motives and barriers are important factors to consider before you develop a volunteer strategy. The structure of the guidelines follows the volunteer life cycle, outlining and describing how to recruit and induct, train and develop volunteers as well as looking at how to recognise and appreciate your volunteers. The guidelines also include how to help your volunteers to progress within your organisation or youth club, how to support and manage them throughout their volunteering experience as well as giving advice on how to say goodbye to the volunteers that are leaving – as they come full cycle. The good practice guidelines include tips on how to develop your volunteer strategy. A volunteer strategy helps you to think about how you want to work with your volunteers, including ideas of how you will recruit, train, manage, support and reward your volunteers, helping to create a framework for your overall work with your volunteers.

Acronyms CIYA Cambodian Indigenous Youth Association

IPHIA Indigenous People Health Improvement Association

KAWP KROM Akphiwat Phum

KYA Khmer Youth Association

YRDP Youth Resource Development Program

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Chapter 1: Introduction It is more than ten years since the UN declared 5th December International Volunteers’ Day and around the world there exists a very encouraging atmosphere for promoting and supporting volunteerism. Many governments and civil society recognise that volunteerism is a powerful and essential resource for development. Volunteer action is seen as having the potential to make important contributions, both economically and socially, to building more united societies through trust amongst its citizens and creating mutual benefits for citizens (Mysliwiec, 2005, p. 22, http://www.unv.org/swvr2011.html). Developing a culture of volunteerism is seen as essential to both specific development goals, like improving the quality of education, health awareness or improving youth employment, as well as a strategy for building democracy (Brown, E., 2008, p. 13, Managing the Placement of Volunteers, July 2005). Volunteering in Cambodia is developing. The Royal Government of Cambodia has developed a new policy and strategies to be implemented in the area of youth volunteering as well as raising awareness about the importance of volunteerism. Research done in 2008 by the UN, focusing on volunteerism in Cambodia and its development potential, found that local NGOs in Cambodia form the majority of organisations working with and though volunteers. The research also highlighted that there was more room for volunteer action than has historically been the case in Cambodia, as well as a great need for it which shows the importance of the newly implemented policy by the Royal Government of Cambodia (Brown, E, 2008, p. 8-13), (National Policy on Cambodian Youth Development). Even though awareness about, and the acknowledgment of, volunteerism is increasing in Cambodia, and youth volunteering is growing as a result, there is still some way to go in educating the public and young people about the benefits of volunteering. In June 2011 the Royal Government of Cambodia, as part of raising awareness about the importance of youth volunteering, endorsed strategies on youth volunteering in the National Policy for Youth Development, which aspires for all young people to be active citizens. Part of the policy goal is to develop an enabling environment for youth to share ideas/opinions and participate in decision-making at community and national levels. In Cambodia’s social, cultural and political context, youths are male and female, with a Cambodian nationality, married or unmarried, between 15 to 30 years old (National Policy On Cambodia Youth Development, p. 6). The Royal Government of Cambodia, together with local and international NGOs and civil society, has recognised the need to increase youth participation in volunteering in order to ensure the continued development of Cambodia as well as a way of tackling youth unemployment. Cambodia has approximately 13.4 million people with 70% of the population under the age of 30 years old and 52% under the age of 18 years old. Young people represent a huge resource the country can draw on in developing Cambodia and achieving its development goals. But a lot of Cambodian youth feel hopeless and frustrated as few opportunities exist to find work and, even with a university degree, young people are finding it hard to find employment (Mysliwiec, 2005, p. 6- 19). Being engaged in volunteer activities can be a way forward for Cambodia’s youth as it is recognised that volunteering can help equip young people with new skills, knowledge and experience to become active citizens in the society, as well as increasing their opportunity to find work (Speech by Mr. Heng Chantha, Director of Youth Centre department, 2nd National Forum on Volunteerism in

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Cambodia 4th December 2012, National Policy On Cambodia Youth Development, p. 8, www.worldvolunteerweb.org).

Several socio economic factors influence/impact the participation of youths in volunteering and can be both a motivational factor and a barrier for young people. A lot of Cambodian parents want their children to get a job and earn an income after they finish their education. It can be a challenge to convince them that participating in unpaid volunteer work could be beneficial to their children (Mysliwiec, 2005, p. 2). The Royal Government of Cambodia and local youth volunteering organisations have a big task on their hands in trying to engage young people and keep them involved in volunteer activity, as well as creating an environment where volunteering is seen positively and has the support of the young people’s parents. It will be crucial that the Royal Government of Cambodia, together with local NGOs and local youth volunteering programmes, promotes volunteerism and demonstrates the benefits to individual volunteers and to society (Mysliwiec, 2005, p. 2). The National Youth Policy of Cambodia was approved by the Royal Government of Cambodia in 2011 and focuses on specific strategies to be implemented in the area of volunteerism in paragraph 5.10:

Raise youth awareness of the importance of volunteerism and develop networks of volunteers at national and sub-national levels;

Promote the spirit and momentum of volunteerism and integrate in the National Strategic Development Plan and humanitarian activities;

Promote formal recognition, respectful value, and provide awards and prizes for youth volunteers;

Support all initiatives by local volunteers, volunteerism organisations, and projects initiated by youth volunteers; and

Develop facilitation mechanisms and enhance effective cooperation between governmental institutions, national and international organisations, and private sector to help youth volunteers.

(Speech by H.E. Sean Borath, Adviser to Samdech Akka Motha Sena Padei Techo HUN SEN, Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Cambodia and Secretary of the Ministry of Education, at the 2nd National Forum on Volunteerism in Cambodia 2012, National Policy On Cambodia Youth Development, p. 6). A survey conducted in 2004 on youth volunteering in Cambodia by the founder of Youth Star, Eva Mysliwiec, found a need to develop strategies to not only raise awareness about volunteerism but also to develop strategies to recruit volunteers. It found that even though Cambodia’s youth organisations and NGOs working with young volunteers were very active and highly motivated, many of the programmes did not have a strong organisational structure due to a lack of experience and knowledge (Mysliwiec, 2005, p.10).

“Creating youth volunteering projects in villages and including volunteers in development efforts can help prevent young people from migrating and instead support them in developing the skills to sustain their livelihoods. They can help create peace in the villages and improve the standard of living”. (Amos Kephas, VSO)

“Creating a volunteer culture can be very useful and beneficial to the community and villages involved, as the volunteers start to work together between villages to solve problems and help each other in crisis situations”. (Yves Bureau, VSO)

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As a result of the new policy and the need to establish good guidelines to encourage, promote and implement youth focused volunteering programmes in Cambodia, the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport together with VSO Cambodia (set out to research and develop a set of good practice guidelines of youth volunteering in Cambodia. This report and set of good practice guidelines are a result of that research, which was conducted between October 2012 and February 2013. The purpose of the good practice guidelines for creating active volunteers in Cambodia is:

To describe the context in which youth volunteering is currently taking place in Cambodia

To provide some guiding principles, based on existing organisations’ experience, and good ways of working with youth volunteers - how to recruit, develop and manage young people as volunteers

To provide guiding principles based on young people’s own accounts of what motivates them to be volunteers and their suggestions of what support they would need/want

To highlight the value of volunteering as part of developing Cambodia

Who are the guidelines for? The guidelines are for everyone. From well-established youth volunteer programmes that want to develop their volunteer programme, to new programmes, to people that want to set up a project or youth group in their community and want to involve volunteers. These guidelines offer ideas on how to start the recruitment, advice on how to manage volunteers, and how to support, develop or retain them. The guidelines also contain information about volunteers’ motivations and reasons for volunteering and some of the barriers to participating in volunteering that Cambodian youth are experiencing. The guidelines are not meant as a one size fits all approach. They are intended as an inspiration of ways to go about involving volunteers, as each programme’s structure, environment and way of working is unique (www.citizensinformationboard.ie/.../Managing_Volunteers_08.pdf). These good guidelines have been created from:

Interviews with youth volunteering programmes in Cambodia

Interviews with VSO volunteers, working with their partner organisations, developing and supporting youth groups in Battambang, Ratanakiri and Mondulkiri

Interviews with representatives from the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports

Group work sessions conducted with Cambodian youth volunteers

The research of relevant literature on the subject of youth volunteering, adapted to fit Cambodia

The term volunteer programme has been used throughout the guidelines and includes both volunteer organisations, projects and youth clubs and refers to all activities that involve volunteers. The guidelines are intended as much for programmes that only involve a few volunteers, as well as larger programmes with two hundred volunteers. Most of the principles and suggestions of good ways of dealing with volunteers are similar, regardless of how many volunteers you involve (www.citizensinformationboard.ie/.../Managing_Volunteers_08.pdf).

Volunteering in Cambodia Volunteering in Cambodia is not a new development. Cambodia has a long history of mutual assistance and helping each other in the community; this is often centred around temples and pagodas. Pagoda associations are a form of volunteerism and are seen as traditional volunteering. These have existed in Cambodia for a long time, disappearing while the Khmer Rouge were in power from 1975 to 1979 and re-emerging in the 1980s when the regime fell. In today’s society these pagoda associations are once more a traditional feature of communities, established by the villagers themselves as a way of helping each other. They are often led by Buddhist beliefs and ways of living.

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Traditional volunteering and mutual help processes are often started by individuals who want to work together and create an environment of solidarity in the community. They are started by older people who are respected and trusted members of the community. Youth do not often participate in this kind of volunteering, as the young person is not regarded as someone that the community would feel comfortable asking for advice, which is part of the traditional volunteer role (Mysliwiec, 2005, p.9). Research done in 2008, focusing on harnessing the potential to develop Cambodia through volunteerism, found that ‘traditional’ volunteerism has been essential to the formation of communities and to their access to resources such as education (Brown, E, 2008, p 7). However, new forms of volunteering action have started to surface in addition to traditional volunteerism and various programmes have started to promote volunteerism especially among young people. A count of youth programmes in Cambodia carried out by Forum Syd in 2002 lists between 50-60 youth initiated programmes in the country. Many of these promote and rely on volunteers as a way of developing local communities and working for the future of Cambodia. Many of these programmes engage high school and university students throughout the country, offering them an opportunity to develop self-awareness, increase their confidence and improve their knowledge of social issues. They also offer them opportunities to gain work experience, enhancing their job prospects. According to a youth survey conducted in 2005, this is perhaps the leading motivation for volunteering amongst university students in Cambodia (Mysliwiec, 2005, p. 10). These guidelines focus on these new, emerging forms of volunteering instead of looking at mutual assistance association and traditional forms of volunteering as those mostly attract and involve adults and not young people.

Defining volunteering This research adapts the definition of volunteering from the United Nations and the International Year of Volunteers. The UN recognises three significant characteristics of volunteering:

1. The activity should not be undertaken primarily for financial reward, although the reimbursement of expenses and some token payment may be allowed.

2. The activity should be undertaken voluntarily, according to an individual’s own free-will. 3. The activity should be of benefit to someone other than the volunteer, or to society at large,

although it is recognised that volunteering brings significant benefit to the volunteer as well. (www.eyv2011.europak-online.net/wp.../UN-definition-volunteering.pdf). In this definition of volunteering at least four different types of volunteer activity are identified:

Mutual aid or self help

Philanthropy or services to others

Participation or civic engagement

Advocacy or campaigning Each of these types of volunteering occur in all parts of the world, but how they play out and what they look like, as well as the balance between them, are different from country to country. They are influenced by the country’s economic, social and political make-up and its stage of development (www.ivr.org.uk/component/ivr/volunteering-and-social-development). In this research, and in the development of these guidelines, the focus has been mainly on the experiences of volunteering programmes that have adopted a more formal structure in their volunteering programme. The programmes and the young Cambodian volunteers included in the research were working within all four types of volunteer activities.

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The structure of the good guidelines The structure of the good guidelines follows the volunteer’s life cycle and describes the different elements involved in the life cycle and youth volunteer management. The phases in the volunteer life cycle are: recruitment and induction; training and development; recognition and appreciation; progression or saying goodbye. The element of support will be covered in a separate section, however support is an element that is tied into all four phases in the life cycle. It is considered an essential part of good management of volunteers. In addition, some of the recommendations that emerged from the research will be considered, and useful things to consider going forward with developing volunteerism in Cambodia will be highlighted (www.vds.org.uk/.../Growing%20Better%20Youth%20Work.pdf). In addition to the four phases, the guidelines also cover volunteers’ motives for volunteering and factors that can be barriers for young people engaging in volunteer activities. The guidelines look at what young people ask for when they participate in volunteer activities, linking it in with the four phases of the volunteer life cycle. Dividing the guidelines into different phases of the volunteer’s life cycle makes it easier for readers to dip into the specific area they are interested in, want to know more about or want to develop in their work with volunteers.

A volunteer’s life cycle A volunteer’s motivation

* Between each phase there is potential for the volunteer exiting the circle if they lose interest and motivation, or are not supported enough.

Before beginning to look at the different phases of a volunteers’ life cycle it is important to look at how your volunteer programme can get ready to receive volunteers. You should also gain an understanding of Cambodian youth’s motives for volunteering as this will help in recruiting and retaining volunteers. Understanding their motivation will support and help in managing the volunteer’s life cycle (www.ivr.org.uk/component/ivr/the-volunteer-life-cycle).

Active volunteering

Recruitment and

induction

(support)

Training and development

(support)

Recognition and

appreciation

(support)

Progression or saying goodbye

(support)

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Chapter 2: Motivations and influencing factors A lot of research has been conducted into volunteers’ motivations and reasons for volunteering. As a volunteer programme it is useful to be aware of theses motives to assist in trying to meet the volunteers’ needs. It will help with the recruitment process and the management and retention of volunteers (www.ivr.org.uk/component/ivr/the-volunteer-life-cycle). There are many different reasons why young people choose to engage in volunteer work and previous studies have found that the reasons and motives are as complex and varied as the people who volunteer. No reason or motive is more valid than another (www.volunteeringwesternisles.co.uk/.../guidefinalversion).

Research conducted with Cambodian youth volunteers at the 2nd National Forum of Volunteerism in Phnom Penh on 4thDecember 2012, and with members of a student council in Ratanakiri in December 2012, found the following three main reasons for taking part in volunteer work:

New experiences and more knowledge One of the key themes that that emerged from the young people’s answers was that they wanted to gain new experience and knowledge from becoming volunteers. They wanted to understand more about Cambodian society, discover social problems and learn how to solve them. Knowing about the ‘real’ society by being exposed to it was a driving factor in becoming a volunteer.

•Gain new experiences and more knowledge about society

•Learn more about social problems and how to solve them

•Get work experience that can help their career

New experiences and knowledge

•Develop personally

•Create and build a social network

•Meet other young people

•Become good leaders and role models for younger generations

Personal development and

social network

•Help out and develop the community

•See the community and Cambodia prosper

Develop the community and

Cambodia

“People volunteer for different reasons – It is important to find out what they are looking for from the experience and what, if anything, they hope to gain. By finding out their expectations and planning to meet them you will be taking the first steps towards a long and rewarding relationship”. (www.volunteeringwesternisles.co.uk/.../guidefinalversion, p. 13)

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In general, they wanted to increase their knowledge and know-how, but also be able to share this knowledge with other young people, with Cambodian citizens and in their community. Part of the reason for volunteering was to improve their CV, getting more work experience and through that the prospect of a job. This links in with what was mentioned in the introduction where work experience and enhanced job prospects where the leading motives for volunteering amongst university students.

Personal development and social network Other reasons for taking part in voluntary work were because the young people wanted to meet new people, develop personally, create a network of contacts and build relationships with their peers. They also said they just wanted to have fun volunteering. Becoming a role model was another motive for volunteering. They wanted to set an example and become good leaders. They stated that they would like to enhance their leadership skills and get a good reputation in society through their volunteer work. Personal development, being empowered to express their personal capacity, was something that was also a driving factor in becoming a volunteer, as well as getting experience with building relationships and learning how to work in teams.

Develop the community and Cambodia A lot of the answers from the group work sessions revolved around wanting to develop the community. The young people cared about society and their motivation for volunteering was to develop the community and see Cambodia prosper. Some of the areas and topics that the youth were interested in were reducing poverty, promoting gender, healthcare, literacy, and training human resources. They also wanted to educate citizens about health and safety issues in their lives. They wanted to reduce violence, migration, gangsters and social insecurities. The young people participating in the forum wished to build a society full of solidarity.

The volunteer programmes’ views on young people’s motives Youth volunteering programmes in Cambodia gave similar answers as to why young people volunteer in Cambodia. Their experience is that young people are motivated because they want to participate in training that offers new skills and knowledge in relevant subjects to the work they are going to be doing. Certificates and recognition for their volunteering contribution, as well as encouragement, are some of the motivating factors (Cambodian Scouts, Gemma Bangcal and Anna Mukudi).

The volunteer programmes also highlighted that some of the young people want to volunteer because they just want to help out in their community, as they feel committed to their culture and want to build capacity, which ties with what the youth volunteers expressed (CIYA). Volunteers will be motivated and attracted by different combinations of objectives and goals, therefore different volunteering opportunities will appeal to different people. Programmes that can offer interesting and fulfilling volunteer roles that match the volunteer’s motives will find it easier to attract new volunteers and keep them (www.volunteeringwesternisles.co.uk/.../guidefinalversion).

“The reasons that our volunteers come, are because they feel like a family”. (YRDP)

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Influencing and discouraging factors When thinking about involving and recruiting youth volunteers it is important not only to look at what motivates, but also to look at what discourages young people from engaging in volunteer work. This has an impact on how you plan your volunteer recruitment and develop your volunteer strategy. Below are the main reasons given by the youth and the volunteer programmes for young people not taking part in volunteer work.

Young people’s perspective Volunteer programmes’ perspective

Lack of time

Lack of information

Not enough clear information

No support or encouragement from

family, friends or society

Not knowing the benefits of volunteering

Not knowing about volunteering

opportunities

Lack of time

Responsibilities to the family

Have to study

No family support

Financial issues

Too far away

Not enough flexible volunteer

opportunities

Too big a commitment

The youth volunteers said that having support and being encouraged to volunteer was a strong influencing factor. Parents’ support and encouragement was the most important, but encouragement from family and friends as well as the wider community also had an impact on their decision to volunteer. The lack of support could be a major barrier to young people volunteering. If volunteering is seen as something positive, and there is greater awareness about the importance of volunteering in the community and society, young people said that they would be more motivated to volunteer. This is because they want to be role models to their peers and also get a good reputation in the community. The young people, who already volunteer themselves, highlighted that there does not exist enough clear information about the importance of volunteering. They thought that if young people had greater knowledge about the significance of participating it would make them more likely to volunteer. They did not specify who should provide the information and how it should be distributed to them, but having greater knowledge and clear information about the importance of volunteering ties in with the government’s goal of raising awareness about volunteering. The volunteer programmes interviewed also described factors that influenced young people’s participation in volunteering. They mentioned young people not being able to commit because they had other obligations - to their studies, their families or other activities that they felt were more interesting than volunteering. They explained that a lot of young people do not have a goal in their life and do not know why they want to volunteer which influences their motivation and often results in them dropping out. They also highlighted that the young people could not commit for a long period of time, as they have other commitments.

“Make it fun – volunteering has to compete with other activities so it must stand out”. (www.do-it.org.uk/product-support/resources/involving-young)

“Have fun activities and be creative in motivating people to volunteer – use music”. (SmallWorld)

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Another barrier was that a lot of young people’s families live in a financially difficult situation and engaging in volunteer work means that the young people cannot earn money for their families. Even though the young people want to volunteer, they have to consider their family’s basic needs first (KYA).

What young people want/need when they volunteer? Besides taking into account what motivates young people to volunteer and what factors prevent them from volunteering, it is also useful to consider what they feel they need/want when they have decided to volunteer. This will help you plan support and training and help retain volunteers. A volunteer friendly environment, showing appreciation, providing training and having fun increases the volunteers’ satisfaction with the experience and has been proved to increase the length of their service (www.ivr.org.uk/component/ivr/the-volunteer-life-cycle).

What the Cambodian youth volunteers expressed they needed when volunteering: Support from family, the community, society and the NGO they volunteer for

Recognition

Knowledge and experience

To have fun

To meet new people and be able to create networks

Being taken seriously

Influence in decision making processes

Places to stay and easy access to the youth centre/club

Support from the place or people where they are placed as volunteers

Supplies, material for teams to perform their duties in different areas

Annual evaluation

Medical cover

Safety

Food, transport and accommodation

Emotional support It is important to include and take into account the different needs your volunteers have when volunteering. The list above shows what the youth volunteers want and can be used as a guideline when planning your volunteer strategy (further explanation below). Some programmes will be able to include and apply all the points on the list while others will only be able to include a few of the points. The important thing is that you consider the volunteers’ needs and include the points that fit to your unique programme structure.

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Chapter 3: Volunteer strategy To help you start involving volunteers in your programme, or to help improve how you work with volunteers already, there are different things you can consider and plan. These will help you to have a clearer idea of why and how you do things in your volunteer programme. A volunteer strategy can be part of good guidelines on youth volunteering as it helps you think about the volunteer’s life cycle and how you will manage your volunteers during each phase. A volunteer’s life cycle can last for days, weeks, months or years. It all depends on your specific volunteer programme or the specific volunteer job. However, no matter how long the life cycle lasts, you always have to pay attention to the different phases when managing volunteers. A volunteer strategy will give you an overall framework for volunteer involvement in your programme. Having a strategy shows that you care and have thought about why you involve volunteers. A strategy ensures consistency and clarity, not only for your volunteer, but also for yourself, allowing volunteers to know where they stand and how they can expect to be treated. A volunteer strategy does not need to be a long and complicated document, it can be some bullets points about how you would like to work with your volunteers, making sure that everybody knows the thoughts behind it (www.gedlingcvs.org.uk).

A clear volunteer strategy is also something that the youth volunteers asked for.

What topics can be included in a volunteer strategy?

• An explanation of why you want to use volunteers • What kind of roles, work, and duties the volunteers will do • Who you want as volunteers • How the work will be divided between staff and volunteers • Who is responsible for the induction, management and support of the volunteers • How you will recruit and select volunteers (if you have selection criteria) • Induction and training • Support and supervision • Communication • Recognition and reward • Development • Insurance • Expenses • Saying goodbye

(www.bh-impetus.org/volunteeringgoodpractice, www.frivillighed.dk/Webnodes/Frivilligpolitik+og+frivilligpleje/689, www.bh- impetus.org/volunteeringgoodpractice, www.gedlingcvs.org.uk).

“You need to be organised to offer the quality volunteering opportunity that will lead to a happy committed volunteer”. (Brown, E., 2008)

“Key for them is that the organisations have proper plans and structures in place in regards to the volunteering programme and the volunteer work, a clear timeline of the volunteering work, clearly defined principles and specific projects with obvious objectives. A clear goal with the purpose of the volunteer work is very important for them”. (Group work at the 2

nd National Forum on Volunteerism 4

th December 2012, Phnom Penh)

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As you can see, some of the topics/issues you can include in a volunteer strategy are entwined with the phases of the volunteer life cycle. Additionally, the volunteer strategy could include a description of daily ways of working and everyday activities that ensure quality in the work that the volunteers do. It could also include information about your programme’s plan for how to appreciate your volunteers’ work and how you plan to develop them on a personal as well as professional level (www.frivillighed.dk/Webnodes/Frivilligpolitik+og+frivilligpleje/689). Having a good framework and a good volunteer strategy helps to support the volunteer’s engagement, developing it over time and ensuring that they stay committed. There will be other elements that can be included in your volunteer strategy and some of those mentioned above might not be relevant for your programme. The volunteer strategy is unique to your volunteer programme and should be something that is tailored and fits your way of working with volunteers. Volunteer insurance All volunteer programmes should aim to minimise the risk of their volunteers while they are volunteering and make sure if something happens to the volunteers they are able to cover the medical costs etc. However it all depends on your financial situation and the structure of your programme. It might not be feasible to have insurance that covers all the volunteers and the activities carried out by them and your volunteer programme (www.volunteeringwesternisles.co.uk/.../guidefinalversion). If you do have insurance, check with your insurance company to see if your policy covers the range of volunteer activities you plan to undertake and make any adjustments to the policy prior to the volunteer starting. You should let volunteers know if you do or don’t have insurance that covers them. You will also need to inform them of what the insurance includes. It's useful for everyone in the programme to know about the insurance terms.

“It is very important and crucial to have clear guidelines and structures in place outlining the key volunteering activities properly”. (Daniel Nsubuga, VSO)

“It is easier to recruit when the volunteers know exactly what they are doing and the objectives of it”. (SmallWorld)

“It is important that there are clear instructions about what the volunteers should do, because if they volunteers are unsure of the role and the work they will be doing they will leave. It would be good practice that host organisations have a volunteer manual”. (KYA)

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(www.citizensinformationboard.ie/publications/voluntary_sector/managing_volunteers/7daytoday_publications_voluntary_managing.html).

Volunteer expenses The payment of expenses can be extremely important to volunteers and is one of the barriers to volunteering. Being able to reimburse volunteers’ expenses makes volunteering accessible to a wider group of people. It then becomes more about who has the skills and interest in volunteering and not about who can afford to volunteer (www.volunteeringwesternisles.co.uk/.../guidefinalversion). It's accepted as good practice that volunteers should not incur any financial costs when volunteering and that cost should not be a barrier to volunteering. However, the reality is that many volunteer programmes could not afford to have volunteers if they adopted this guideline. However, consider if there are any costs that you can realistically afford to have your volunteers claim back, for example, transport, accommodation, food and medical insurance, then set out a procedure for claiming expenses and inform your potential volunteers about it (www.citizensinformationboard.ie/publications/voluntary_sector/managing_volunteers/7daytoday_publications_voluntary_managing.html). The volunteer programmes interviewed manage the issue of expenses very differently. Some pay their volunteers’ expenses; others do not have the financial capacity to do so. Some charge a small membership fee or charge when the volunteers take part in training (SmallWorld, KYA, Youth Star, YRDP, Cambodian Scouts). KAWP highlighted that their young people have to think about their basic needs first, so for them it is important to give their volunteers financial support. Other programmes expressed that paying their volunteers an incentive (per diem) when taking part in training and providing food and money for transportation helps them be able to participate. Some people would not come if they did not get their expenses paid (Patricia T. Sibarani and Lucita Narag).

For volunteer programmes that can’t reimburse the volunteers financially, their selling point is that they increase the young person’s chance of getting a job after volunteering (KYA). When asked about what support they need when volunteering, young people reiterated that they need financial support. This would cover costs such as transport, food, and accommodation if travelling outside their community, plus equipment and supplies for volunteering activities and funds to organise activities. Some also expressed that they needed financial support in the form of health insurance while volunteering. There is no right or wrong in the issue of providing financial support to volunteers. It is an individual assessment of what suits your volunteer programme and your potential volunteers’ best. You have to assess whether your target group/future volunteers can afford to or would take part if they weren’t offered a financial incentive or what you are able to afford.

“Some volunteers in the provinces are living in very remote villages and for them it can be difficult to attend workshops and training, if they do not get money for petrol and lunch, as some of them are very poor”. (Yves Bureau, VSO)

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Chapter 4: Recruitment Job description Thinking about what kind of work the volunteer will be doing and who you want to volunteer for you is one of the first steps in the recruitment process. These questions will help you to formulate a clear job description:

What kind of work will the volunteer be doing?

What are the specific roles and tasks the volunteer is expected to do?

When and where?

What is the aim/goal/purpose of the work? Having a job description will enable the young person to make an informed decision about their commitment. This will also help minimise one of the barriers to volunteering mentioned earlier, that young people said they did not have clear enough information about volunteer work and the purpose of it.

Deciding on how to recruit all depends on who you want to do the job. Do you want people with specific skills or experience? Is it a role where you just want young people to take part? Having a volunteer profile helps you make those decisions and also helps you to attract the right people. What to include in a volunteer profile:

How many volunteers are needed for the job

Male/female

Age

Qualifications – education/work experience

Specific skills needed, for example someone that can write English or someone with specific IT-skills or leadership skills

Being clear about the job description and your volunteer profile makes it easier for you to decide how best to recruit. If you want a volunteer with specific skills and knowledge, think where you are likely to find these people. For example, if you want a volunteer with IT-skills, you could focus your recruitment at universities in Cambodia that offer IT degrees/courses or put up flyers in internet cafes. There are many recruitment methods and you can choose to only use one or combine several of them. It all depends on what suits your programme and what will be most useful for your target group. Some of the methods might be too expensive or not possible for you to use as the size of the programme’s financial resources will determine what methods are possible. Again, it is important that you use choose the method that fits your programme (www.ivr.org.uk/component/ivr/the-volunteer-life-cycle).

“We want clear guidelines and information about the volunteer role and what the goal is”. (Group responses from 2

nd

National Forum of Volunteerism, Phnom Penh 4

th December 2012)

“A good rule of thumb is to be as concrete and specific as possible. Your recruiting message can provide examples of the kind of things volunteers will be doing in the program”. (www.nationalserviceresources.org)

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Below are some suggested methods to use for recruiting young people. Word of mouth

• Ask friends, family or colleagues to promote your project and share that you want more people to join

• Most effective way of recruiting • Cheapest way of recruiting

Bring a friend Get your volunteers to bring a friend to an open day or induction meeting so they can get a better idea of what it is that you’re doing (www.softball.org.nz/site/softballnz/files/images/Development/Club_tool_box/volunteers/Ideas_for__increasing__volunteers.pdf). Getting parents and the community on board Having support and encouragement from parents and the community is important to youth in Cambodia. Inviting parents or people from the community to attend youth groups meetings, open days or information meetings will help them to get a better understanding of what it is that the young volunteers are doing or will be involved in. Asking community elders to be involved in supporting the young volunteers with their work could also help build a bridge between generations, as well as raising awareness and creating support for the work at hand.

It could also be useful to get supportive parents of current volunteers to influence and encourage other parents to be supportive. Ask them to be involved in your open days or information meetings and get them to talk about their positive experience with their children volunteering.

“To be able to carry out the volunteer programme in the community it is vital that you have the backup and support from the Commune Council and community leaders, or else we won’t be able to work”. (YRDP)

“When organising youth volunteering projects in the provinces, it is a good idea to meet with the village elders and the Commune Council to get them on board and get their support as they can help to influence the young people and also support them”. (Anna Mukudi, VSO and Gemma Bangcal, VSO)

“Parents are not always positive in the beginning about their children volunteering, but they change their attitude towards their children volunteering when they see them grow”. (YRDP)

“Remember to involve the community and the youth’s parents as it is crucial that they are supporting the young people in their decision to volunteer. It has a great impact if the community and the parents are involved and supportive of the young people”. (Patricia T. Sibarani, VSO)

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Existing volunteers promoting the programme Using existing volunteers is a good way to recruit new ones, as they will be able to share their own experiences for anyone who is interested in becoming a volunteer. Ask your volunteers to be part of promoting your programme and volunteer work at national volunteer days/events, at volunteer fairs or talks at schools, universities or work places. This could also help with getting the support from parents and communities if existing or old volunteers can express how they have developed ((www.softball.org.nz/site/softballnz/files/images/Development/Club_tool_box/volunteers/Ideas_for__increasing__volunteers.pdf).

Recruitment in schools and getting teachers to promote volunteerism Recruitment in schools and linking with teachers in schools or universities as a recruitment method is very effective. CIYA, Youth Star, SmallWorld and YRDP all work and collaborate with schools and universities to recruit new volunteers and raise awareness about the importance of volunteering. The Cambodian Scouts also have good links with schools. They recruit new Scouts through contacting the principals and delivering talks about the Scouts. Involving teachers to promote volunteering amongst students can have a great effect, as seen from an example in Ratanakiri:

Young people themselves expressed that they want encouragement and support from teachers to volunteer. Build relationships with teachers is a good way of improving your network, raising awareness about volunteerism, creating role models for young people and motivating them though an authority figure supporting volunteering.

Being role models for younger generations The young people highlighted that being a role model for the younger generation was one of the driving factors for becoming a volunteer. If volunteering is recognised, valued and seen as a good thing by the community and society, young people will be encouraged to become volunteers. Your existing volunteers can inspire other young people by telling them about their experiences, the new skills and knowledge they have gained as well as the good work they have done. This could help create an environment where being a volunteer is someone to look up to and something younger generations aspire to.

Good story from Ratanakiri: “Young people from a youth club that took part in the International Day of Volunteering and 2

nd National Forum on Volunteerism in Phnom Penh in December 2012 were very motivated by

the event and felt very important for participating with representatives from the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports. They felt very valued and were telling their friends about it when they returned home. They were an inspiration to their friends – motivating other people to volunteer”. (Patricia T. Sibarani, VSO and Lucita Narag, VSO)

“One of the teachers (overseeing the student council) that participated in the International Day of Volunteerism and the 2

nd National Forum of Volunteers in Phnom Penh in December

2012, was so motivated and inspired that he went back to his school and recruited 40 young people to participate in a volunteer youth group by encouraging them and inspiring them to take part”. (Anna Wills, VSO)

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Website Aside from involving people in your recruitment process there are other methods that you can use. If you have a website for your volunteer programme or project then use it to announce that you are recruiting new volunteers. Upload the volunteer ‘job descriptions’ and list the different volunteer opportunities you have, how people can get in contact with you and what the volunteer recruitment and selection process is – be specific. Remember to respond to any enquires. You can also use your website to promote your programme by uploading your volunteers’ success stories. Get volunteers to talk about their good experiences; get representatives from the community to tell about the impact your volunteers’ work has had. These could be written stories with pictures or small video clips. Everybody wants to be part of a success and real life stories have a great impact. The stories of the impact of volunteering links with what the young people expressed in the research - they want to know the benefits of volunteering as well as wanting to develop personally and support the community. In your stories you can show how volunteering has changed and helped the community, the people and the volunteers themselves.

Posters/flyers Create your own posters or flyers and put them up wherever your target group might see them – this could be in schools, pagodas, universities, public spaces, health centres, or in other volunteer programmes like national youth centres or NGOs. It could also be in private organisations where you can ask to put it up on their notice board. Cafes, restaurants and gyms or sports club where you know young people go could also be places to advertise. Remember that it is important to be specific in your advert and briefly describe the volunteer work, your programme’s objectives and the goal, the opportunities, how people can get involved and who to contact. Remember who you are ‘talking to’; speak/write in a language that young people speak in - remember who your target group is. The Cambodian youth also said that posting banners or information boards in public spaces were good advertising.

Radio, newspaper and TV If you have the resources, contact local or national newspapers and try to get an article in the newspaper about your volunteer work. Profile existing volunteers and make sure that they talk about your volunteer programme and the benefits of volunteering. This can help raise your profile and young people might be inspired by their stories and contact your programme for more information. You could also advertise in the newspaper for new volunteers ((www.softball.org.nz/site/softballnz/files/images/Development/Club_tool_box/volunteers/Ideas_for__increasing__volunteers.pdf). This can also be done in local TV and in radio spots. The Cambodian youth said to use media broadcasts to inform the public about the benefits of volunteerism.

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Social network More and more young people are using social networking sites, such as Facebook, to keep up to date with what is happening and communicate with their friends. By creating a Facebook profile you can promote your work, provide information about events and advertise current volunteering positions. Facebook is a cost effective way of recruiting new volunteers and raising your volunteer programme’s profile (www.volunteeringnow.org.nz).

Clear and precise communication Whatever you do, whether it is using your website, creating flyers and posters or using newspapers to advertise your programme and recruit new volunteers, it is important to give precise information about your programme and the volunteer work. Share the purpose of the job and a little about your programme. Remember to inform about how often, when and where people will volunteer and who to contact for more information (www.frivillighed.dk/Webnodes/Frivilligpolitik+og+frivilligpleje/689). What recruitment method you use all depends on your programme, the target group and, of course, your financial resources. But remember the most effective method is the cheapest – word of mouth.

Selection If you have chosen to have a formal recruitment process, part of it will be the selection of your volunteers. However, before you start the selection process you could hold an information meeting where potentially volunteers can hear more about the volunteer opportunities and the volunteer programme.

Information meeting Some volunteer programmes have an information meeting for interested young people where they talk about the work, the volunteer programme, their goal and mission. They explain how to be involved, what is expected of the volunteers and what they provide. The young people also have an opportunity to ask questions about the volunteer work and work out if it appeals to them (Youth Star). Sharing this information helps potential volunteers to get a clear idea of the volunteer opportunities and what is expected, which can help to reduce people dropping out after they have joined.

Application and interview You might want to have potential new volunteers write an application for the job you are offering, which some more formally structured volunteer programmes require (Youth Star, YRDP). In the application you can ask the young person to write what motivates them, why they want to volunteer and how they will meet the requirements of the job description. Some programmes combine the application with an interview. At the interview you can ask further questions about the young person’s qualifications and reasons for wanting to become a volunteer, to see if they are committed and motivated. The interview is also a chance for the young person to ask further questions about the volunteer role. When the interview is done, it is important to inform the young person about the outcome and let them know if they have been accepted. If they have not been accepted it is important to give them constructive feedback about why they have not made the cut. You can advise what other qualifications or experience they will need or potentially offer them another volunteer role if possible. Remember to communicate in a positive and good manner, so your programme does not get a negative reputation.

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Chapter 5: Induction When you have selected your volunteers, the next step is the introduction process. It is important that your new volunteer feels welcomed on their first day meeting your organisation, your project or the other members of the youth club. Below are some things that you can consider to make sure that new volunteers feel welcomed and want to come back:

Be prepared for your volunteer when they arrive Don't bring a volunteer in until you have everything worked out, from the job description to

a place to work with proper equipment (if the role needs it), to something to do immediately

Make them feel welcomed. If they have a good first day they are more they likely to come back

Have someone to welcome them. It can be a member of staff, a volunteer or the leader of the youth club

If possible, have a volunteer welcome pack

Show the volunteer around – introduce them to the staff, other volunteers or members of the youth club

Don't let your volunteer feel uncomfortable. Show that your organisation or your volunteer project or youth club is warm, friendly, helpful, and is happy to meet them

Inform them of the workshops, training etc. they will need

If they will have a mentor or will shadow an existing volunteer in their induction period, introduce them to each other

Trial period As part of the volunteer induction process, some volunteer programmes have a trial period. This helps the volunteer to see if the work appeals to them and also helps the organisation to determine if the volunteer has the right skills and abilities to do the job. This period can also help the volunteer to see if they are able to commit the time required for the job or they are truly interested in the work or the cause. Your trial period can be a day, a week or three months; it all depends on the work and the length of time you want to plan for your trial period. Remember to inform the new volunteer about the trial period and have a meeting/talk with them at the end of the period to discuss the outcome. Do they want to stay or do you think they fit your organisation and the work or the volunteer project? If you decide that they do not fit, make sure that you give the volunteer constructive feedback and the reasons why they are not right for the organisation. It is important, as mentioned earlier, for the volunteer to depart in a good manner. You want to make sure that it is a positive goodbye so they do not give your organisation or youth club a bad reputation amongst other young people, making it difficult in the future to recruit more volunteers. If the young person decides that the work is not for them, thank them for trying it out and say that they can always come back if they have more time to commit in the future, again saying good bye in a positive manner (www.vds.org.uk/.../Growing%20Better%20Youth%20Work.pdf, CIYA).

“Successful organisations are prepared for the volunteer, plan and organise their placements well, develop roles that use the skills of the volunteer and, where necessary, provide support to build new skills”. (www.volunteeringaustralia.org/News-and-Events/-General-News/Minister-launches-National-Volunteering-Strategy-at-the-National-Conference-on-Volunteering-2011.asp, p. 24)

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Chapter 6: Training and development Some volunteer roles require specific knowledge or skills. If that is the case, make sure you give your volunteer the right training and information so they feel equipped and confident in doing the job. Try and make sure that your new volunteer gets information on the first day about what training they need to do, when and where and for how long, so they can plan and know what their schedule is. Teaching volunteers new skills or developing existing ones can be planned and carried out in different ways, all depending on the needs or the make-up of your organisation or volunteer programme.

Training and workshops Most of the programmes interviewed delivered both training and workshops to their volunteers. Some of them have more structured training programmes that cover different topics that the volunteers have to complete before they can start volunteering. Others provide workshops that the volunteers can take part in after they have started to volunteer (KYA, YRDP, KYA, CIYA, Youth Star). Depending on the work your volunteer will be doing, it is important to assess whether they have to complete specific training before becoming an active volunteer. Some programmes have very structured training processes. Youth Star, for example, has three to four weeks pre-departure training before their volunteers are placed in the community, working within areas such as education, youth development, health education and good governance. Youth Star also has on-site training as well as re-call training after six months (Youth Star). YRDP works a little bit differently but is also very structured in their training approach, providing skills training and specific workshops to their volunteers. YRDP has 18 basic courses and 14 specific courses that aim to raise awareness about the challenges facing Cambodia. The volunteers have to attend a basic course before they can attend the specific courses. After each course the volunteers are require to participate in field practice to apply what they have learnt (YRDP). Both YRDP and Youth Star’s training course are very structured and the volunteers have to take part in training and gain specific knowledge and skills before they can volunteer in the field. How you decide to plan and structure the training of your volunteers all depends on the work they will be doing and how you want to manage and work with them.

On the job training Instead of having specific and structured workshops and training course some programmes do on the job training instead. Learning on the job (learning by doing) is a very useful teaching method, recognising that a lot of useful learning takes place while doing the volunteer role. A new volunteer can shadow an existing volunteer doing the job, or they can be allocated a mentor that teaches them and oversees them carrying out the work, creating a connection between theory and practice (http://users.ugent.be/~mvalcke/LI_1213/experiencial_learning.pdf) Using on the job training/learning is a very good way of getting the volunteer involved and active quickly. It is also a good way of using your existing volunteers’ skills and experience. Getting existing volunteers to teach a new volunteer to do the job creates a learning space where the new volunteer learns new skills and your existing volunteer develops new skills by having a new role and new responsibilities.

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This links in with what the young people expressed they want when they volunteer; they want to develop and have responsibilities. Creating development opportunities for your existing volunteers and offering them new roles helps them stay motivated and increase retention.

Remember the following when having a mentor teaching or someone shadowing: Introduce them to each other

Make sure your existing volunteer knows what their role is

Check up on the progress of the new volunteer to see if they are learning and make sure that they get the support they need

Give extra support to the mentor and support them with their new responsibilities and in their new role

(http://nonprofit.about.com/od/volunteers/a/volposdescsample.htm, www.vds.org.uk/.../Growing%20Better%20Youth%20Work.pdf). Developing an environment where your volunteers can develop the skills they already have or learn new ones, by getting new opportunities in their roles, keeps people interested, enthusiastic and motivated. Good practice is to ask and listen to what the volunteers themselves want to do, if they want to develop and how they would like to develop. If they would like to change volunteer role or take on more responsibilities. An example could be that someone in your youth group aspires to become the leader of the group. It is important that you listen to that young person’s aspiration and wishes and talk to them about how you can support them to fulfil that dream. If you have opportunities in your volunteer programme for your volunteers to progress, creating development plans with your volunteers that outline what the process would involve - training, another role or more responsibility - is good practice (www.do-it.org.uk/product-support/resources/involving-young).

Other roles Being a mentor for new volunteers is not the only role you can offer to your existing volunteers who want to progress and develop their skills. Asking them to help out with showing new volunteers around, becoming a team leader, helping out with workshops and training of new volunteers, or asking them to talk at introduction days all helps to develop their skills and gives them more responsibilities. It could also be that they become representatives of the volunteer programme or your organisation. They can talk to the media about volunteering and help with fundraising for your organisation or project. Again, it all depends on your organisation or volunteer project’s make-up, what you need and how much capacity you have to develop your volunteers.

“Increasing your volunteers skills help them to be even more confident in the work they are doing and allows them to perform to the best of their abilities”. (www.vds.org.uk/.../Growing%20Better%20Youth%20Work.pdf).

“Make sure that other team members involved in volunteer support and supervision are adequately trained and supported to do the task”. (www.citizensinformationboard.ie/publications/voluntary_sector/managing_volunteers/7daytoday_publications_voluntary_managing.html)

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Listen and involve your volunteers Most of the young people that participated in the workshops for this research said that one of the motivational factors for participating in volunteer work was increased knowledge and new skills. They also expressed that they wanted training that could help them develop and they wanted to be listened to and involved in decisions being made in the organisation or project. They wanted to be included, taken seriously, take action and learn about leadership (Group work session 4th December 2012, Phnom Penh). Knowing what motivates your volunteers, and ensuring that their volunteer role will meet their expectations and desires, will help you get satisfied volunteers and retain them for longer (www.volunteeringwesternisles.co.uk/.../guidefinalversion ).

It is not only the young volunteers that expressed that they want to be included and listened to. A key message that emerged from the interviews conducted with the programmes and people working with youth volunteers was that it is important to listen to the young people as a way of involving them in the work and motivating them. Finding out what the volunteers want and trying to achieve that means they will feel more involved and inspired (SmallWorld, KYA, Patricia T. Sibarani and Lucita Narag, Amos Kephas). Involving the young people and giving them ownership of the work/ project will encourage and motivate them. In the youth clubs, the people working with young people said that it was important that the ideas should come from the young people. They should take on the role of leadership in the youth groups; organising themselves, voting for leaders and agreeing the rules (KYA, Amos Kephas).

Volunteer jobs that volunteers find boring or not satisfying lead to a high turnover of volunteers. Volunteer roles that are interesting and challenging develop the volunteer’s skills and are rewarding, lead to satisfaction and a good result (www.volunteeringwesternisles.co.uk/.../guidefinalversion). Listening to your volunteers’ needs and wishes to develop shows that you care, you are interested in their development and you value their commitment.

“Always listen to the volunteers, their needs, aspiration, motivations and expectations”. (www.volunteeringwesternisles.co.uk/.../guidefinalversion)

“Increasing young people’s involvement helps and motivates them even more”. (SmallWorld)

“KYA give youth ownership by asking them to name their own youth group, select their leaders and agreed their own rules and form the structure of the network”. (KYA)

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Chapter 7: Recognition and appreciation Keeping your volunteers is largely a matter of making them feel valued and important. When a person feels good about their job, paid or unpaid, they look forward to doing it (www.volunteeringwesternisles.co.uk/.../guidefinalversion). Recognising the work your volunteers do is very important. Make them aware that you appreciate the time and effort they give to your organisation, project or youth club. This will help keep them motivated and also keep them coming back.

Ways you can show that you appreciate them Say ‘thank you’ on a regular basis

Tell your volunteers frequently when they are doing a good job

Reward your volunteers – it could be with study tours/field trips/participation in workshops

Arrange your own volunteer day where you show you appreciate their work and invite parents and the community to the ceremony

Certificate of appreciation

Make sure that your volunteers feel that they belong to the organisation and are not ‘just’ volunteers. Make sure that they know that their opinions, ideas and suggestions matter

Listen to them

Arranging social events and encouraging friendships amongst the volunteers will help increase the young people’s commitment.

Creating networks and promoting friendships are some of the things the young people are looking for when choosing to volunteer and it is also something that you can promote when recruiting new volunteers. It also helps to maintain team spirit and shared goals (www.ivr.org.uk/component/ivr/the-volunteer-life-cycle).

“Part of good practice is study tours, workshops, training and certificates”. (Anna Mukudi, VSO and Gemma Bangcal, VSO)

“Fundamentally, in any relationship people need three things – they need to be valued, recognised and appreciated. If people get that in a voluntary sector setting, then they will stay with the organisation”. (www.ivr.org.uk/component/ivr/the-volunteer-life-cycle)

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Chapter 8: Progression or saying goodbye The volunteer life cycle has come full circle and the ‘final’ phase is progression or saying good bye. In this phase, your volunteer’s placement may have come to an agreed end or the job is finished. It is here you either say ‘good bye’ to your volunteer or you help them progress on to another role within your organisation or volunteer programme. Saying good bye to a volunteer is a natural process as most volunteers do not volunteer for life. So, when a volunteer decides to finish with their volunteering, it is important to say good bye in a positive way.

Ways to say good bye in a positive manner: Say thank you for their time

Make a volunteer certificate with the hours or length of time they have given to show that you appreciate them

If they need one, offer to give them a reference

Have a farewell or thank you party/dinner/lunch

Make sure to have a handover meeting where they can hand over their tasks to another volunteer, if needed

(www.frivillighed.dk/Webnodes/Frivilligpolitik+og+frivilligpleje/689). If you make sure you say good bye in a positive manner and your volunteer’s experience has been a good one, your ‘old’ volunteer will be the best ambassador for your organisation and can help you recruit new volunteers and spread the word (www.frivillighed.dk/Webnodes/Frivilligpolitik+og+frivilligpleje/689). If your volunteer chooses to continue and take on more responsibilities or do another volunteer role, the volunteer life cycle starts over. You might have to introduce them to the new role and offer them additional training. If you find that your volunteer is not doing a good enough job or is not committed enough and you want to see them go, after you have tried to support them in improving, it’s important to do it in a positive manner and explain to the volunteer why you want them to leave. Arrange a meeting with them and explain the circumstances; provide them with constructive feedback and remember to say thank you for their contribution. Again, it is important to say good bye in a positive manner as you do not want your former volunteer to talk negatively about your organisation. In some situations you can offer the volunteer another role, if they do not have the right skills for their current role, or invite them to come back in a few months time when they have more time to give, if it is a matter of lack of commitment. If you as an organisation or volunteer project want to improve and develop your own work, it is important that you support and create an environment where your volunteers can progress. If you manage to keep your volunteers, you also keep their acquired knowledge and experience which is beneficial to your organisation and programme (www.frivillighed.dk/Webnodes/Frivilligpolitik+og+frivilligpleje/689).

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Chapter 9: Support and supervision How you choose to support and supervise your volunteers all depends on what kind of work they will be involved in. However, good practice would be that the volunteer has a designated person that they talk to about their concerns, wishes and feelings. It is important that your volunteers know the name of the person who they can ask for support and who it is that will provide regular support and supervision for them (www.volunteeringwesternisles.co.uk/.../guidefinalversion).

Remember that in each phase of the volunteer’s life cycle the volunteer needs support according to where they are in the cycle.

Volunteer support and supervision is very important and is crucial to volunteer management. Whether formal or informal, most programmes have a system of showing volunteers how to do their job and also making sure that they do the job well.

Things to include when you support and supervise your volunteers: A space to give and get feedback

Evaluate the contribution the volunteer is making to your organisation or volunteer project

Ensure that the volunteer’s work is in line with the aims and objectives of your organisation or volunteer project

The time and resources given to volunteer support and supervision will vary depending on your human resources, how your organisation and volunteer programme is set up and what work the volunteer is doing. For example, the role of a volunteer driver will require less supervision compared to a volunteer working with children with HIV and AIDS. It will also depend on the amount of hours your volunteer gives you. If the volunteer works 15 hours a week they will need more support compared to someone that only works two hours a week. Some volunteers will require more support and supervision than others. This can depend on the role but also on the volunteer’s skills and experience and emotional state/wellbeing. It is a good idea to reassess in the second or third supervision if your volunteer needs more support, making sure that you then are able to provide it. Most importantly, when giving support and supervision, your aim is to enable your volunteer to do the work to the best of their ability. Help their learning process, motivate them and also, as mentioned earlier, say thank you for their time and effort.

“Youth Star’s programme officer goes on field visits to see the volunteer and deliver supervision every second month but is also reachable on the phone if the volunteers need extra support”. (Youth Star)

“Having a know face to turn to can make all the difference to a volunteer. Telling a volunteer what to do and leaving them to get on with it will quickly lead to a feeling of abandonment and a lack of appreciation. Support and supervision doesn’t need to be formal but having a formal approach will ensure no-one gets forgotten”. (www.volunteeringwesternisles.co.uk/.../guidefinalversion, p.33)

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Planning your support and supervision: Decide what support and supervision each role or volunteer requires. Make sure that you

allow the volunteer to approach you and get extra support if needed between supervisions.

Agree how often it will happen. In the beginning the volunteer might need more supervision and support because they are new to the role.

Prepare for the supervision by finding out about the specific work the volunteer has been doing and also asking them if they have any topics or issues they want to talk about.

Meet the volunteer one to two weeks after they have started their volunteering to evaluate and talk about how it is going and find out how they feel about the work.

In supervision, give and get feedback. Make sure that the volunteer can ask questions and discuss any issues that they have.

For the first supervision it is always good to have feedback from the volunteer’s mentor if they have had one.

Have an open door policy for volunteers to talk to you at other times.

It's important to address any issues that arise while volunteering during the support and supervision meeting. Doing so as early as possible will hopefully avoid problems escalating.

(www.citizensinformationboard.ie/publications/voluntary_sector/managing_volunteers/7daytoday_publications_voluntary_managing.html).

Annual appraisal and evaluation Besides supervision, daily support and appreciation, having an annual or six month appraisal meeting with your volunteer, where the focus is on their work and progression and how they want to develop, is good practice. This was also one of the things that the young people expressed they need when volunteering; evaluation of their work and how they do their job.

Communication Regular and clear communication is also part of the way you support your volunteers. Regular communication is motivating for volunteers, while the lack of it is one of the most common reasons volunteers become dissatisfied. Volunteers like to have a particular person who looks after them. If your organisation does not have a volunteer coordinator, be sure to assign someone to be the point of contact for your volunteers. Be ready to listen to volunteers and respond to concerns immediately. Telephone them, have meetings, invite them to stop by your office, send info via social media, email them regular updates or send a volunteer newsletter (http://nonprofit.about.com/od/volunteers/tp/whatvolunteerswant.htm). Being aware of what goes on in the organisation makes the volunteer feel like they belong and are part of the organisation.

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Chapter 10: Recommendations Flexible volunteer opportunities During the research and the development of the guidelines, additional issues were identified as important for developing a successful volunteer strategy and having success with recruiting youth volunteers. Flexible volunteer opportunities were highlighted as a useful strategy to allow more young people to participate in volunteering as it will fit around their busy lives. Some of the volunteer programmes highlighted that young people do not have enough time to commit to long term or full time volunteering as they have other commitments in their life. Creating a flexible volunteer programme, with different volunteer opportunities, would help to minimise that barrier and the risk of losing volunteers because they find that they do not have enough time (SmallWorld).

Creating different volunteering opportunities that young people can choose from, for example, a couple of hours a week, a onetime project, a couple of months or for the ones that are interested in longer term, full time and several months, gives the young person a chance to choose something that suits their lives (SmallWorld). Research shows that if young people have had a successful and positive volunteering experience once they are more likely to do it again, continue or recommend it to their friends. A few of the volunteer programmes interviewed are already successful with offering different volunteering opportunities that young people can be involved in, varying from a couple of hours a week to full time volunteering. Research shows that young people are more sympathetic to programmes that have different projects to be involved in that imposed minimum time commitment, making it more suitable to the young people’s lives. Thinking about creating flexible volunteer opportunities when developing your volunteer strategy, can therefore be a good idea (www.volunteeringaustralia.org/News-and-Events/-General-News/Minister-launches-National-Volunteering-Strategy-at-the-National-Conference-on-Volunteering-2011.asp).

Raising awareness Another issue that was highlighted again and again was the significance of raising awareness about the importance of volunteering. Both volunteer programmes and young volunteers themselves expressed that raising the profile of volunteering will be important for the recruitment and retention of volunteers. When communicating to young people about volunteering, it is important to be clear about how they can benefit from volunteering as well as how volunteerism benefits their community and Cambodia.

“It is useful to offer flexible and varied volunteering opportunities, as not many young people are able to or interested in volunteering for a long time or can commit full time to a volunteer role”. (SmallWorld)

”… most people live busy lifestyles, and are likely to volunteer in organisations which take account of this fact…” (http://www.dpmc.gov.au/publications/national_volunteering/, p. 7).

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Thinking about including the community and young people’s parents when communicating about your volunteering opportunities can be a valuable strategy, as young people expressed that the support and encouragement from their parents and the community were important factors in their decision to volunteer. One of the strategies of volunteerism in The National Youth Policy of Cambodia is to promote formal recognition and provide awards and prizes for youth volunteers which will help raise the profile of volunteerism nationally. The International Day of Volunteering and also the National Forum will be an excellent platform for the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports to recognise and award youth volunteers. And having different media to cover the event will help spread the word and highlight the importance of youth volunteering.

End notes Thank you for reading the good practice guidelines on youth volunteering in Cambodia. I hope you have found the guidelines useful for your further work with your youth volunteers and your volunteer programme. There already are many youth volunteer programmes here in Cambodia that do excellent work and I am grateful that I have been able to learn from some of them, as part of developing the good practice guidelines. I hope that these guidelines will inspire more to develop and that youth volunteer programmes will continue to grow in Cambodia. Remember that volunteering can contribute to the improvement of life within your communities. Volunteering can empower individuals, can build community cohesion and trust and helps to promote civic engagement, so please continue to support volunteerism and raise awareness about its importance for the development of Cambodia. I wish you all the best of luck! Yours sincerely, Grusche Michelsen

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Bibliography Brown, E. (2008) Volunteerism. Harnessing the Potential to Develop Cambodia. Youth Star Cambodia in cooperating with United Nation volunteers. International Printing House Kvale, S. (1996) Interviews: An introduction to Qualitative Research Interviewing. SAGE Publications, Inc. Managing the Placement of Volunteers. A VSO Guide. July 2005 Mysliwiec, E. (2005) Youth, Volunteering and Social Capital in Cambodia. Results of a feasibility study conducted for a Cambodian youth service program. Copyright Youth star Cambodia 2005. Design and production by DESIGNGroup

Websites Day-to-day Volunteer Management – (www.citizensinformationboard.ie/publications/voluntary_sector/managing_volunteers/7daytoday_publications_voluntary_managing.html) Experiential Learning: Theoretical Underpinnings – (http://users.ugent.be/~mvalcke/LI_1213/experiencial_learning.pdf) Get it Right from the Start. Volunteer policies – the key to diverse volunteer involvement - (http://www.gedlingcvs.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2010/10/Get-It-Right-From-The-Start.pdf) Growing better youth work. A guide to strengthening your volunteer team – (www.vds.org.uk/.../Growing%20Better%20Youth%20Work.pdf) Hjertet alene goer det ikke – om frivillighedpolitik - (www.frivillighed.dk/Webnodes/Frivilligpolitik+og+frivilligpleje/689) How to Keep you Volunteers! Good Practice Guidelines For Organisations - (www.volunteeringwesternisles.co.uk/.../guidefinalversion) Involving Young Volunteers - (www.do-it.org.uk/product-support/resources/involving-young) Managing Volunteers - A Good Practice Guide - Citizens Information – (www.citizensinformationboard.ie/.../Managing_Volunteers_08.pdf) National Volunteering Strategy – Australia volunteers inspiring the volunteer in you - (www.volunteeringaustralia.org/News-and-Events/-General-News/Minister-launches-National-Volunteering-Strategy-at-the-National-Conference-on-Volunteering-2011.asp) No Limits – Volunteering as a model of youth development – (www.youthscotland.org.uk/projects/volunteer-action-plan/youth-development-.htm) Passions, People and Appreciation: Making volunteering work for young people - (www.fahcsia.gov.au/our-responsibilities/communities-and-vulnerable-people/publications-articles/passions-people-and-appreciation-making-volunteering-work-for-young-people) Points of Light Foundation & Volunteer Centre National Network – Tips for Recruitment of Youth Volunteers – (www.nationalserviceresources.org)

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Report - National volunteering Strategy Consultation – (http://www.dpmc.gov.au/publications/national_volunteering/) Snowball Sample – (http://sociology.about.com/od/Types-of-Samples/a/Snowball-Sample.htm) State of the World’s Volunteerism Report - (http://www.unv.org/swvr2011.html) The volunteer life circle: a marketing model for volunteering – (www.ivr.org.uk/component/ivr/the-volunteer-life-cycle) United Nations Volunteers Report, prepared for the UN General Assembly Special Session on Social development, Geneva, February 2001 - (Ref: eyv2011.europak-online.net/wp.../UN-definition-volunteering.pdf) Volunteering across the generations – (www.softball.org.nz/site/softballnz/files/images/Development/Club_tool_box/volunteers/Ideas_for__increasing__volunteers.pdf) Volunteering and social development - (www.ivr.org.uk/component/ivr/volunteering-and-social-development) Writing a Volunteer Policy - (www.bh-impetus.org/volunteeringgoodpractice) www.worldvolunteerweb.org

Speeches H.E. Sean Borath, Adviser to Samdech Akka Motha Sena Padei Techo HUN SEN, Prime Minister of the

Kingdom of Cambodia and Secretary of the Ministry of Education, 2nd National Forum on

volunteerism in Cambodia 4th December 2012

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Appendix 1: Methodology The focus of this research was to get an understanding of existing volunteer programmes’ experience and ways of working with youth volunteers in Cambodia, to be able to develop the good practice guidelines. In my research I aimed to explore the structure of the volunteer programmes and the thoughts and ideas behind it when interviewing participants. I also sought to get an understanding about young people’s thoughts on volunteering and what drives them to volunteer or not volunteer in Cambodia, in order to develop guidelines that could help recruit and retain volunteers, taking into account young volunteers’ own perspective. Developing the good practice guidelines is based on qualitative research, using two different methods; one to one interviews and group work sessions. The data material consists of eight interviews with Cambodian NGOs, Associations and a National Youth Centre working with Cambodian youth volunteers and two interviews with representatives from the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports. The qualitative research also included five interviews with VSO volunteers working with youth groups in three provinces in Cambodia. Two sessions of group work with Cambodian youth volunteers, where the young people in groups of 7-10 people answered four questions about volunteering. One group session was conducted with 280 volunteers at the 2nd National Forum on Volunteering, held on 4th December 2012, with Cambodian youth volunteers between the ages of 15 and 35 years old. The other group work session was carried out in Ban Lung in Ratanakiri with 28 members of a youth council in a secondary school.

Semi-structured interviews and group work sessions I used a semi-structured interview as an interview method, because it gave participants the space to express themselves and describe how they manage and support their volunteers and the values behind it. This interview method also enabled me to probe and ask follow up questions, allowing the participants to elaborate on what they had said (Kvale, 1996). The interview questions were developed based on the outlined purpose of the guidelines as well as my desk top research. The four research questions for the group work sessions were developed based on my desk top research, and from questions that emerged from my one to one interviews which I wanted to follow up and ask young volunteers. The group work session enabled the groups to discuss their different experiences, reflect and also share knowledge. Not only did the young people really engage in the group work session, the group work also raised awareness about the importance of volunteering and created networks between the young people.

Data collection Some of the participants for my interview were identified by his Excellency Mr. Tauch Choeun General Director of Youth from the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports during my first interview with him on 3rd October 2012. Some were identified by Mr. Heng Chantha from the General Department of Youth, Department of Youth Centres in the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports in my meeting with him on 15th November 2012. Other participants were chosen through the snow ball method where volunteer youth programmes or people working with volunteers nominated other relevant programmes to contact. This method was beneficial as, being a foreigner in Cambodia with no pre-existing knowledge about relevant youth volunteering programmes, I could use the knowledge of others to approach relevant programmes for my research. Some of the organisations suggested were useful for my research and others were not structured around volunteering, but still gave me an insight into youth work in Cambodia which was useful for my overall understanding. The 2nd National Volunteer Forum was

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also an arena where new contacts and respondents were found (http://sociology.about.com/od/Types-of-Samples/a/Snowball-Sample.htm). In February 2013 I conducted a validation workshop presenting my key findings, attended by my interview participants and nine youth volunteers. At the workshop, feedback was given on my research findings and the outline of the guidelines. This feedback has been included in the final guidelines.

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Appendix 2: Respondents 1. Tauch Choeun, General Director, Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports

2. Heng Chantha, Director, General Department of Youth, Department of Youth Clubs

3. SmallWorld – Thul Rithy, Co-founder

4. Youth Star – Sor Lynny, Program Officer and Sin Sokhomony, Program Officer

5. KAWP - Veasna Pot, Community Development Worker

6. CIYA – Mr. Chantha, assistant to CIYA’s president and Yun Lorang Program Officer, Education

Support and Youth Networking

7. YRDP- Cheang Sokha, Executive Director and Seap Sinet, Youth Empowerment Officer

8. KYA – Mak Chamroeun, President

9. Cambodian Scouts – Piseth Em, Deputy International Commissioner

10. National Youth Centre – Sothea Ouk, Director

11. Amos Kephas (VSO), Development Adviser, KAWP Akphiwat Phum , Battambang province

12. Anna Mukudi (VSO), Management Adviser, Pichreada District Council, Mondulkiri province

13. Daniel Nsubuga(VSO), National Volunteering and Community Participation Adviser,

Provincial Office of Education, Youth and Sports, Mondulkiri province

14. Gemma Bangcal (VSO), Management Adviser, Oreang District Council, Mondulkiri province

15. Lucita Narag (VSO), Local Administrative Council Adviser, Provincial Association of

Communes and Municipal Councils, Ratanakiri province

16. Patricia T. Sibarani (VSO), Community Development Adviser for Yeaklom Community,

Ratanakiri province

17. Yves Bureau (VSO), Organisational Development Adviser, IPHIA, Mondulkiri province