Former US President Bill Clinton and First Lady Laura Bush write about the power of individuals to make great contributions.  Read article

Philadelphia, USA: Even if individual volunteer projects are not very visible, it still matters to that one person, that family, that neighbourhood where the volunteers made a difference writes Alba Martinez, president and chief executive officer of the United Way of Southeastern Pennsylvania, USA.  Read article

India is the largest democracy in the world. But without its lively civil society scene, many ills in society would continue unchallenged. Civil society derives its strength from the Gandhian tradition of volunteerism, but today, it expresses itself in many different forms of activism.  Read article

The world of volunteering needs help--but not the kind you think. The problem is that too many nonprofits cling to their old ways, asking volunteers to do little more than stuff envelopes and make fund-raising calls.  Read article

They're the students who go abroad to boost their CVs, have a laugh - and help out in the developing world at the same time. But this week a charity claimed that young people volunteering during gap-year risk doing more harm than good. The Guardian's Patrick Bartham asks 10 volunteers what they think.  Read article