Volunteering Virtually

If you are unable to volunteer in person, there are still opportunities to give back! It is important that you do personal research to make sure that the tasks you do or items you make are needed and will be used. Learning about the program you are volunteering with is crucial to making sure your time is spent doing things that the community will benefit from; do not assume a community’s needs.

Below is a list of general ideas of volunteering while at home along with links to programs that connect volunteers with virtual opportunities.

• Make care cards – Many organizations are accepting cards to send to healthcare workers, seniors, and individuals in isolation. Be sure to find an organization before making cards, some have recommendations and sensitivity guidelines.
• Assemble educational resource kits – With students learning remotely, some do not have the resources they need at home to complete their homework and projects. Talk with local school districts to see if there are specific needs that you can fill.
• Tutor or conduct mock interviews – With less services available for students through school programs, there is a need for folks to provide academic and job preparedness support.
• Provide services to blind and low-vision people – Apps connect sighted volunteers with blind and low-vision individuals through video calls to provide help for quick tasks and errands. One organization is Be My Eyes.
• Help with local to international research projects – Researchers, spanning the humanities and the sciences, need people power. You could help with historical transcripts, climate change, space exploration, and more. One helpful platform is Zooniverse.

There are also resources to look up virtual volunteer opportunities:

• VolunteerMatch - extensive list of volunteering, option to specify “virtual” in search filters
• ​Catchafire – matches volunteers to nonprofits based off skill sets and needs 
• Do Something – geared towards young people to get involved in making positive social change
• United Nations Volunteers– international efforts toward sustainable human development 
• Bookshare- make print materials accessible to children and adults with disabilities