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ANGOA has an interesting roundup of international news at www.angoa.org.nz/roundtable.php?submenu=roundtable:
In 2004, CIVICUS launched an affinity group for national associations of non-governmental / non-profit organisations (NGOs / NPOs). ANGOA is the New Zealand affiliate. Currently 43 organisations from 43 countries have confirmed their interest in AGNA whose first official meeting will be held during the CIVICUS World Assembly, June 21 2006. ANGOA Committee member David Robinson who is on the CIVICUS Board will attend the meeting on behalf of ANGOA.The aim of the CIVICUS AGNA is to engage national associations as well as CIVICUS members in fostering greater co-operation across national and regional boundaries and increase their ability to pursue mutual interests. For more information, visit www.civicus.org/new/content/AffinityGroupofNationalAssociations.htm.
The World Values Survey is a worldwide investigation of sociocultural and political change. It is conducted by a network of social scientists at leading universities all around the world. The World Values Survey's database makes it possible to examine cross-level linkages, such as that between public values and economic growth; or between environmental pollution and mass attitudes toward environmental protection; or that between political culture and democratic institutions. For further details, visit www.worldvaluessurvey.org. Meanwhile preliminary results of the New Zealand Values Survey conducted in late2004 — early 2005 are being reviewed by a working group, including an ANGOA representative. When the results are finalised they will be published widely, as they are a very interesting indicator of changes taking place in values held by New Zealanders.
James McGann and Mary Johnstone, International Centre for Not-for-Profit Law.
World politics has undergone a radical and often-overlooked transformation in the last fifteen years, resulting neither from the collapse of the Soviet Union nor the rising tide of fundamentalism, but from the unprecedented growth of non-governmental organisations around the globe. NGOs have been a positive force in domestic and international affairs, working to alleviate poverty, protect human rights, preserve the environment, and provide relief worldwide. Few, therefore, have felt the need to take a critical look at the effectiveness and accountability of these organisations. For further details, see www.icnl.org/JOURNAL/vol8iss2/art_4.htm.
'Individual social enterprises are not getting the right kinds of capital at the right time. We must learn from, and collaborate with, the for-profit capital market,' says Jed Emerson, Senior Fellow with Generation Foundation, of Generation Investment Management, in an interview with Alliance Magazine. However, he argues it is not just a question of persuading mainstream investors to come to the table. Foundation money could take some of the risk and support the development of new financing streams. To read the full interview, please visit www.allavida.org/alliance/axmar06b.html.
Finnish NGOs have compared the country's development cooperation policy with other Nordic countries and have concluded that on the policy level, Finland's aid is heading in the right direction but that there is room for improvement regarding implementation. The key recommendation is for Finland to increase aid from the current 0.42% to 0.7% of the country's GDP by 2010, as previously promised by the government, but which seems unlikely according to the report. For more information, see www.millenniumcampaign.org/site/apps/nl/content3.asp?c=grKVL2NLE&b=190470&ct=1987947.
Centre for the study of Global Governance, London School of Economics and the Centre for Civil Society, University of California Los Angeles. The Global Civil Society Yearbook has become the standard work on the topic and is unique in combining critical analysis of conceptual debates, explorations of pertinent issues and a significant amount of statistical data in a single annual volume. Currently a survey is being conducted in order to improve the yearbook. To find out more, visit www.lse.ac.uk/depts/global/majorquestionnaire.htm.
The UK government on 09 March unveiled a 3 million two-year strategy which aims to demolish any barriers to volunteering. The UK Home Office is to spearhead the "Volunteering For All" programme which will reach across government to identify and break down obstacles to volunteering and promote new opportunities to potential volunteers.
The programme is specifically targeted at three groups who have been identified as less likely to volunteer — people with disabilities or limiting long-term illness, people with no formal qualifications and people from the Asian community.
The Home Office Minister Paul Goggins said: "Volunteers really are the heart and soul of our communities, but many potential volunteers think that opportunities to become involved are not open to them or that red tape is standing in their way. This strategy is all about removing barriers, so that anyone who wants to volunteer can feel empowered to take part. This is is a cross-Government programme to really tackle the obstacles preventing those who want to make a difference from volunteering.
Working with partners in the voluntary sector 'Volunteering For All' will be able to reach out to these groups, ensuring that everyone can play their part in society. It will run from April 2006 to April 2008 and data from the 2001 census shows there are 15.5 million people in the groups being targeted by the campaign. Statistics show only 16% of people with no formal qualifications participated in formal volunteering once a month compared with 31% of people with formal qualifications. Only 23% of people with disabilities or limiting long-term illnesses (LLTI) participated in formal volunteering once a month compared to 30% of those without disabilities or LLTI and only 20% of Asian people participated in formal volunteering at least once a month, compared with 34% of mixed race people, 30% of black people and 29% of white people.
UK Chancellor Gordon Brown recently chaired the first meeting of a cross-departmental group on volunteering, announcing the involvement of 1,000 volunteer organizations and 20 of Britain's largest companies in the new volunteering scheme.
"One thousand voluntary organizations, 20 of Britain's largest companies and thousands of young volunteers will come together to launch the new service — and I have already made 100 million available to get it off the ground. Over coming weeks young people from across Britain will be given new opportunities get involved in thousands of new projects as the first truly national youth volunteering service in Britain becomes a reality."
Writing in the Daily Mail, Brown said his ideas had been inspired by John F Kennedy's 1960s Peace Corps in America and developed over several years.
"Every day across Britain thousands of young people are silently and selfishly making an enormous contribution to their families, schools and communities…over 40 per cent do some form of voluntary work to help their communities. But we can and must do better to make volunteering opportunities available not just for some young people, but all young people."
The new volunteering scheme was a result of the Russell Commission's report on youth volunteering. The commission was set-up by the Chancellor in May 2004 to develop a new national framework for youth action and engagement. The projects will range from environmental clean-up task forces to young people compiling a national veterans' archive, recording the memoirs of local servicemen and women and their patriotic effort during the wars.
Meanwhile, international research shows one in five people believe giving up time for a good cause has boosted their love lives. Volunteering is what speed-dating promises but never actually fulfils; a way of seeing a lot of truth about someone you have just met in as short a time as possible, reported Mukta Bas of Community Service Volunteers in the UK.
Reproduced, with our thanks, from the ANGOA newsletter.