Fast read
- This working paper takes stock of practices on youth volunteering and civic service programmes in OECD countries and the European Union across some key dimensions of comparison.
- Although programmes differ in their objectives and features, this paper maps national and international youth volunteering and civic service programmes, providing comparative insights and highlighting good practices from a public governance perspective.
Summary
The publications shows that there is a positive and precise relationship between having a national youth volunteering or civic service programme in place and the extent to which young people volunteer more broadly.
Youth volunteering can foster young people’s further civic engagement, skills development, and association with democratic institutions, while also promoting solidarity, social inclusion and resilience.
In this context, governments can continue investing in national youth volunteering and civic service programmes and adapt them to evolving challenges as tools for creating better opportunities for young people and achieving stronger societal outcomes.
While youth volunteering and civic service programmes vary widely in their features, this working paper highlights common challenges and key lessons learnt to support further work in this area, promote peer-learning and inform countries’ policy options and reform efforts.
