One of the questions we hear most frequently is, “What do you look for in a volunteer?” The truth is, we aren’t necessarily looking for a certain type of education or specific number of years of experience. In fact, our volunteers come to us with a variety of skills, experience levels, and interests, and it’s this diversity that allows us to meet the range of challenges facing our client organizations. As one our volunteers puts it:
I can’t fix cleft palates, design clean water systems or develop innovative agricultural techniques, but I’ve found that my banking and financial experience is much appreciated in the developing world.
However, our volunteers do share one important trait: they all want to use their skills to help fight global poverty and empower the poor. And that, more than anything, is what we look for in our volunteers.
Today, December 5th, is International Volunteer Day, and we want to thank each one of our 16,461 registered volunteers who are using their own unique set of skills to fight poverty. Collectively, our volunteers have given more than 124,000 hours of their time to 126 organizations around the world. That’s nearly $7 million dollars in in-kind services donated to social entrepreneurs dedicated to connecting the poor to their potential!
We’re also taking this day to recognize the contributions of a few of our most inspiring volunteers from past five years. You can find even more volunteer stories here and on our blog, or you can share your own experiences on our Facebook page.
If you’re ready to get involved, whether it’s your first time or your fourth, please visit our Opportunities Page to see all of our current openings, and apply for one today.
From all of us at Bankers without Borders to to all 16,461 of you, THANK YOU for volunteering and for using your skills to support our mission to end abject poverty.