About Volunteer Canada

Volunteer Canada is the national voice for volunteerism in Canada. Since 1977, Volunteer Canada has been committed to supporting volunteerism and civic participation through ongoing programs and special projects.

National in scope, Volunteer Canada's board members, partners and members represent hundreds of different communities across Canada. Our membership includes over 86 volunteer centres established throughout the country in all provinces and the Yukon Territory. We also work in close collaboration with the federation of over 110 volunteer centres in Quebec. Managers and directors of volunteers represent a vital aspect of volunteerism in Canada and make up an important aspect of our organization's community.

Volunteer Canada is a national organization engaged in the promotion of volunteerism across Canada. As a national leader, we strive to ensure that volunteer efforts are promoted, recognized, supported and safeguarded. By developing resources and national initiatives, Volunteer Canada actively engages in research, training and promotional campaigns to increase community participation and provide leadership on issues and trends in the Canadian volunteer movement.

HISTORY OF VOLUNTEER CANADA

Volunteer Canada was established in 1977 as the Canadian Association of Volunteer Bureaux and Centres (CAVBC). Like many national organizations of that time its primary mandate was to convene and keep connected to each other a network of approximately 200 local volunteer centres in Canada.

The Association had many ups and downs during the eighties and early nineties but rarely had staff or project work underway existing mostly 'on paper'. In 1993 volunteer centres, under the auspices of CAVBC, held a conference in Toronto called Focus '93. Representatives from the J.W. McConnell Foundation attended the conference and later approached representatives from CAVBC to discuss the possibility of a McConnell Foundation grant. The purpose of the funding ultimately provided by the Foundation was to invest strategically in the growth and development of volunteer centres, the establishment of a viable national organization and through these actions enhance volunteering in Canada.

In 1995 the national office of CAVBC was moved to Ottawa and the first full time Executive Director, was hired to lead the organization. Moving quickly to consider a broader mandate than pure volunteer centre representation and identified as the lead organization on an issue that shortly exploded into the media and throughout the voluntary sector [i.e. screening] Volunteer Canada was quickly positioned as a important player at the national level.

In 2000 the association was able to successfully negotiate shared leadership with the federal government on the International Year of Volunteers (IYV). The IYV legacy announcement of ongoing and permanent funding for the Canada Volunteerism Initiative is considered to be the "crowning glory" of Volunteer Canada's achievements over the past ten years.

The organization has grown exponentially since 1995 moving from a two person office in a corner of the Ottawa YMCA to a remarkable heritage site in 2002 hosting 25 staff and more than 50 regular volunteers.

GOVERNANCE OF VOLUNTEER CANADA

Volunteer Canada is led by a Board of Directors comprised of three volunteer centre representatives and six members selected for broader voluntary sector expertise. The Board of Volunteer Canada operates generally under a governance model and as such delegates the majority of operational work to the President of the association.