International Volunteer Day for Economic and Social Development

Globally, around 2.1 billion individuals, engage in volunteer work each month . Despite this significant evidence, volunteer data remains incomplete and inconsistent, especially in low- and middle-income countries. Different definitions of volunteering make comparisons difficult. Numerical measurement based on time and money does not capture the full value of volunteering . How can we use a more holistic and practical metric to move the conversation about measurement beyond numbers, and what would it take to implement it at scale? This session introduces the Global Index of Volunteer Engagement (GIVE) , a new way of understanding what volunteering contributes to people, communities and economies. GIVE is built around four dimensions: individual value, societal value, economic value and an environment that promotes volunteerism. Drawing on Chapter 7 of the 2026 State of the World's Volunteerism Report, panellists in this webinar will discuss how the GIVE offers an innovative appr...