Volunteering: Companies and Websites Can Help

The internet represented a massive boon for socially responsible organization and activists in general, particularly after the advent of the so-called Web 2.0. With access to more sophisticated publishing and networking tools, the potential to collaborate on and draw support to any given cause is huge. Finding volunteers and volunteer work also has become easier as websites link volunteers to organizations and causes in a much more agile and precise way.

One website that does so VolunteerMatch. It makes available application programming interfaces (APIs) that allow for the incorporation of its listings into a website or application. VolunteerMatch's search engine can be customized according to the user's specific needs. This way, anyone can search for volunteer opportunities and organizations without having to visit a third-party website. For instance, a major healthcare corporation can display nationwide volunteer opportunities in hospitals or hospices. A municipal website could show local opportunities within their city. A blogger can show volunteer projects related to families or any other
causes they write about.

VolunteerMatch has two API versions available. One of them is the Public-Use API that is available for free for non-commercial purposes. It allows web developers to pull information on volunteer listings and nonprofit organizations from the VolunteerMatch database. It also offers a commercial use API which requires a fee but features more capabilities, including completing the referral loop, hours tracking, and access to data points from the VolunteerMatch Network. Those looking for volunteer work throughout the globe may turn to
Volunteer Global for help.

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Sangeeta Haindl is a staff writer for Justmeans on Social Enterprise. When not writing for Justmeans, Sangeeta wears her other hat as a PR professional. Over the years, she has worked with high-profile organizations within the public, not-for-profit and corporate sectors; and won awards from her industry. She now runs her own UK consultancy: Serendipity PR & Media.