Celebrating volunteerism

The government should acknowledge and recognize all societal achievements that occurred because of thousands of volunteers in action throughout Nepal

Today (December 5) is the International Volunteer Day, a special day celebrated worldwide, including in Nepal, to acknowledge and recognize the efforts of citizens of all age groups and economic status that put time and energies to solve local problems. Volunteers should be celebrated locally and nationally because without them it will be nearly impossible to materialize the vision of ‘Prosperous Nepal and Happy Nepali.’

It is impossible to estimate the precise number of volunteers active in the country but surely there are hundreds and thousands of them, active and engaged in a myriad of activities, following their interests and passions and all focused on solving local problems. With the local governments getting more organized day by day, local citizens are the indispensible allies to all the elected leaders striving to promote good governance and policies promoting the wellbeing of the people.

Bottom up ideas can be the most innovative and effective tools to solve local issues and volunteerism, doing something for others freely and unpaid, together with active citizenship participating in the local problem solving, are two indispensible ingredients to achieve a sense of belonging at local levels, energizing living community “labs” where common citizens and politicians from the majority and opposition alike, are able to set aside their interests and work together for the common good.

Unfortunately politicians need a jolt to fully acknowledge the power of volunteerism and all the achievements being carried out day in and day out by thousands of invisible citizens.

It is a pity and we need to reverse the current trends because there is no better way than volunteering to learn new skills and new capabilities. And this is what a state should do: Invest in people.

Leadership for change

Let’s call this approach “Leadership for Social Change”. Many individuals are attracted by the word “leadership” and they are easily induced at throwing money to learn the magic skills to become, out of blue, a great leader. Leadership is often associated with power, prestige and money and it is a big industry worldwide.

What if we pause for a while and instead think of leadership through the lens of a transformational personal effort that can help the self and the society at the same time? Can we improve ourselves while also contributing to the society?

Before leading others, we should all be able to lead engaging and committed lives, discovering our inner “selves”. What are our interests, what are our passions and how can we work hard to achieve meaningful life experiences?

Certainly if you belong to a historically discriminated group, if you are a transgender or a citizen with disabilities or you belong to a historically disadvantaged group, it is not so easy to think about pursuing meaningful lives. What you have to do is to survive every single day in the best way possible.

Yet also for those citizens whose lives have been aggravated by discrimination, vulnerability and poverty, there is a chance that tomorrow can be better than today. Volunteering can help here. Such chance and the hope can be pursued by developing a personal quest for self-improvement.

Working on your personal leadership means working hard to become a better person, professionally and personally.

Volunteerism can offer a variety of options in process of self-development and can bring different people, individuals whose paths would otherwise never meet, together. By helping out, you can learn new skills and you can increase your level of self-confidence and you can move forward, step after step, toward personal and professional excellence.

‘Leadership for Social Change’ is about doing your best to learn a set of skills, exploring new interests by achieving doable goals while also contributing and doing your bit to improve your community.

That’s why volunteerism is at the center of the quest for leadership. By helping others or by helping solve a problematic issue, we come to know ourselves better and we become better persons.

There is no magic wand in the personal quest of self-development and only hard work and striving to understand and live your key values will help you moving ahead in life.

It is not that going to Australia or going to USA to study will automatically lead you toward unparalleled success. Having access to good universities will definitely help you but you can also start your quest for self-leadership by doing the best in Nepal. Volunteerism is a great vehicle for social change and it is a great platform for personal development.

We should all embrace it no matter how busy we are. It should be seen as a habit, a way of living. Politicians have an important role here: they can invest in local volunteers, helping all those citizens informally engaged in social work to upgrade their skills and their capacities.

The government at central and local levels should acknowledge and recognize all the societal achievements that occurred because of thousands of volunteers in action throughout Nepal.

Investing in volunteers means investing in the leadership of people. It lays the foundation for a more prosperous nation where every single citizen, including, those lagging behind, has hope that tomorrow will be better. It is no surprise that theme of International Volunteer Day this year is “Volunteer for an Inclusive Future”.

Every single citizen, no matter her background or physical or mental abilities, must have a chance to become better and, at the same time, also contribute to the development of the nation.

The author is Co-Founder of ENGAGE, an NGO partnering with youths to promote social inclusion in Nepal

Simone Galimberti

Email: simone_engage@yahoo.com