• By Olumide Adewuyi - CREP4Campus Intern
• Posted On 2019/07/17

Youth Participation In Volunteerism; Increasing Skills aimed at achieving the SDGs

The 21st century youths are ignorant about the massive benefits of volunteerism and of how it can increase their experience, skill-set and knowledge. What comes to mind most of the time is the question of what gratification service is bundled with.

Considering this analogy; a 22-year-old graduate that needs a job which prerequisite requires 3 years of
experience, how would such individual go about the condition of hiring?
Volunteerism is not time wastage neither is it a waste of energy, but a personal growth inducement and an opportunity for service to humanity aimed at a social cause.

More than 45% of the Nigerian youth focus more on how the Planet can be beneficiary to them but have failed to understand how impactful it will be if time and other resources are spent on community service. Volunteers do not necessarily have the time, they just have the heart by making a living with what they get. Volunteers reflect their nation’s compassion and resilience.

The history of Volunteerism started way back in the 18th century when individuals from around the world came to Ithaca, Queensland to address an influenza epidemic through the Women Emergency Corps which was later called the Women’s Volunteer Reserve. It wasn’t idleness that brought those women together to stand for a cause but they founded the need to impact the environment. Volunteerism is quite exciting, considering your ability as a youth to use your ideas and strategies to fetch lifetime opportunities.

Taking the United Nations sustainable development goals for example many individuals from
around the world have developed the zeal to see the seventeen (17) goals as an avenue to make an impact on the environment and the Planet. Day-by- Day different individuals rise to be volunteers in other to make sure these goals are achieved. The united nations have also seen the need for its framework to support young volunteers through attending fully funded conferences that could expose them and enable them to strategies on how they can be a solution provider. Volunteerism calls for putting your needs aside and addressing the needs of others while focusing on a common value and benefit.

Volunteerism also help to build networks, establish footprints and make it an avenue to cross-reference with what has been done and achieved. Youths that wants to engage in volunteerism can walk up to organizations that need volunteers, or can also take a stand for a social cause in their immediate communities.

Success stories of entrepreneurs that did commendably well
have been told and have brought them thus far which makes them traceable to their good works. Youth that can volunteer to oversee issues can also make a success story and leave a footprint behind for upcoming generations.

One success story is about the Founder of Vicfold Recyclers - an incentive motivating waste recycling social enterprise in Nigeria -Mr Amusa Temitope Victor is an adherent believer in innovative volunteerism. He daily focuses on saving the planet from climate change effects and other nemeses of the climate crisis.
He has also widely supported young people in his environment to further develop passion for volunteerism. Individuals that engage in volunteerism under Vicfold Recyclers end up becoming visionaries, Green Job enthusiasts and highly resourceful people doing great exploits in Eco-sustainability.

It is simply not possible to attain the Sustainable Developmental goals without having individuals that will engage themselves at all levels.

Through volunteerism, we can achieve the
kind of future we want. It is time for youth to rise to volunteer to make this planet a better place to live in.

"Considering this analogy; a 22-year-old graduate that needs a job which prerequisite requires 3 years of experience, how would such individual go about the condition of hiring?"

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