Board

June 15, 2009, Tech Crunch — A coalition of non-profit organizations, technology developers, designers, marketers and others has unveiled the alpha version of a new Web service dubbed All for Good in an effort to build some sort of ‘Craigslist for volunteer services’. The metaphor stands, and not only because Craig Newmark from the popular free classifieds service is one of the backers of the project (Arianna Huffington of the Huffington Post is also said to be on board).

June 9, 2009, The Wall Street Journal — A few months ago, Andrea Kornfeld was working on a computer program to shave milliseconds off of transactions at Merrill Lynch.

June 7, 2009, Redlands Daily Facts — California Steel Industries employees are putting aside their regular duties in exchange for to-do lists from local charities.

June 2, 2009, The New York Times — THERE was a time when holidays meant a break from working. Not so anymore, as seemingly every day of the year is National Something-or-Other Day. And a handful of nonprofits, with help from the White House, are working to rebrand occasions like Martin Luther King’s Birthday and Sept. 11 as national days of volunteering, to say nothing of César Chávez Day (March 31), Make a Difference Day (the fourth Saturday of October), National Volunteer Week (the third week of April) and Be the Change Day (this year, Oct. 3). Add one more to the calendar: Mandela Day, July 18, when people around the world will be urged to perform 67 minutes of community service to honor the 67 years (and counting) that Nelson Mandela has fought for racial and social equality. The holiday is the brainchild of the Nelson Mandela Foundation and 46664, the advocate group that bears Mr. Mandela’s prisoner number.

SAN FRANCISCO, CA, June 1, 2009 — Craigslist Foundation announces its 6th annual Boot Camp for nonprofit organizations and individuals interested in making a difference in their communities nationwide. It will be held on Saturday, June 20th, 2009, on the University of California, Berkeley campus. This year, the all-day program focuses on skills for connecting, motivating and inspiring greater community involvement and impact. Boot Camp '09 will place a special emphasis on community-building and the opportunities for collaboration among individuals, businesses, government, philanthropists, and nonprofits. Boot Camp precedes the 2009 National Conference on Volunteering & Service, in San Francisco.

Redondo Beach, CA, May 3, 2009 — A study conducted by Tufts University’s Center for Information & Research on Civic Learning & Engagement (CIRCLE) found an increasingly declining trend in teen volunteer activity for the years 2005 through 2007. In an effort to assist volunteer coordinators and nonprofits dependent upon volunteers, Jesse Torres, bank executive, lifelong volunteer and recipient of the President’s Volunteer Service Award, today provided to nonprofit organizations the five rules to maintaining long-lasting volunteer participation.

April 26, 2009, The New York Times — Here's the job description: You spend a few hours a day, up to 20 a week, at your computer, supplying answers online to customer questions about technical matters like how to set up an Internet home network or how to program a new high-definition television.

CHICAGO, Associated Press, April 23, 2009 — Volunteering has helped define a generation of young Americans who are known for their do-gooder ways. Many high schools require community service before graduation. And these days, donating time to a charitable organization is all but expected on a young person's college or job application.

Washington, April 21, 2009, The Chronicle of Philanthropy — President Obama today signed a landmark bill to greatly expand government national-service and volunteer programs, and asked Americans to “stand up and play your part.”

April 20, 2009, The Chronicle of Philanthropy — The average value of donated time by volunteers was $20.25 per hour in 2008, according to a new study by Independent Sector, in Washington, a coalition of major charities and foundations.