KEY POINTS:
- There are calls for more people to get involved in volunteering to break a post-pandemic slump.
- Many people volunteer as a way to give back, according to a new report.
- And active volunteers say it's a rewarding thing to do.
Arham Zaidi has been volunteering with the NSW State Emergency Service (SES) for two years.
"I come from a culturally diverse background and it's something that's sort of instilled in me always," Mr Zaidi said.
"SES came in when I really was looking for something that's different, that's got some exciting stuff for you all going on, and responding on different jobs."
Volunteering can come in many different forms, and organisations are encouraging people to get back into it ahead of , which runs from 15 - 21 May.
Volunteering Australia's National Strategy, released in February, found there was a decline in volunteering numbers as communities locked down, and access to the most vulnerable people was restricted.
And only 56.4 per cent of those who stopped volunteering in 2020 resumed in the following 12 months, despite the easing of lockdowns and social distancing restrictions.
In 2022, 26.7 per cent of the population participated in formal volunteering — a 9.3 per cent decline from pre-pandemic levels.
Volunteering Australia chief executive Mark Pearce said volunteers were essential to communities, especially at .
"They're what we would term the often-invisible part of the national workforce," he said.
"As need increases, the need for volunteers becomes all the more important."
Volunteering Australia's National Strategy revealed people from are more likely to volunteer informally in their community rather than formally through an organisation.
In 2020, more people whose main language is one other than English volunteered informally than people whose main language is English.
A report by the Cultural and Indigenous Research Centre found First Nations communities are deeply involved in volunteering for cultural maintenance and community well-being.
Mr Zaidi, a full-time case worker, said he donates his spare time to the SES because it's rewarding.
"I really appreciate all those SES volunteers that go out day in and day out, and make sure that people are cared for," he said.
"Because in those devastating moments like floods, people have lost a lot and emotions are really, really high. And I think the most rewarding feeling is if you can really help them."
A Volunteering Australia report released on Sunday found 61 per cent of Australian volunteers say they do it to help others, while 72 per cent volunteer for personal satisfaction.
Adrian 'AJ' Baillie fell into homelessness as a teenager after fleeing a difficult family situation.
Adrian 'AJ' Baillie, second from left, volunteers with homelessness service Orange Sky Australia. Source: AAP / Supplied
It was in Fremantle where he first encountered Orange Sky Australia, a homelessness service that provides free laundry and shower facilities.
Mr Baillie now has stable accommodation but he never misses an opportunity to volunteer, even rising up the ranks to be a team leader with Orange Sky.
"I've seen both sides of the fence and I just love giving back to the community," he told the Australian Associated Press.
"Seeing the smiles on (people's) faces once they put nice, clean clothes on - they're nice and fresh and they feel like different people."
With additional reporting by AAP.
