IVCO 2023 Conference Report: ‘A New Generation of Volunteers as Changemakers’ Published
We are delighted to announce that IVCO 2023 ‘A New Generation of Volunteers as Changemakers’ Conference Report has just been published.
In the landscape of global development, volunteering plays a vital role in encouraging positive change and addressing critical societal issues. The involvement of young people in volunteering only furthers this impact. In October 2023, Yayasan Sukarelawan Siswa (YSS) Student Volunteers Foundation hosted the International Volunteer Cooperation Organisations (IVCO) conference in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, in collaboration with the International Forum for Volunteering in Development (Forum) and with support from the Malaysian government.
It had been more than a decade since the last IVCO conference in South East Asia and the first time it focused explicitly on the position and experiences of young people. IVCO’s 2023 theme — A New Generation of Volunteers as Changemakers — brought together volunteer involving organisations, policymakers, volunteers, youth leaders and the private sector.
More than 180 participants from 51 countries took part in conversations examining how to best create an enabling environment for new generations of volunteers to flourish and continuously create impact. The conference provided a space for attendees to learn, exchange ideas and practice innovation, build supportive peer networks, and shape sectoral policy and advocacy initiatives.
While the conference explored multiple aspects of volunteering, this report prioritises the topics and key messages raised by and for young people during the conference, including insights from a youth only adjunct event on the third day. Facilitated during the conference, this session gathered all of the youth delegates to help identify key messages and learnings they would like documented in the report. While youth representatives participated in plenaries, panels and workshops across the conference, it was important to create a dedicated space to capture youth perspectives and deepen the exchange.
Instead of providing a summary of each session, the IVCO 2023 Conference Report draws out key themes from across the three days, including the youth-only session, identifying patterns and commonalities in the conversations. It is structured around five key themes: the role and place of young people within organisations; power, voice and change; youths’ aspirations, motivations and desires; youths as the leaders of today; and intergenerational solidarity.
The IVCO 2023 Conference Report is available in English, Spanish and French and you can read it below.
ENG: IVCO 2023 Conference Report: ‘A NEW GENERATION OF VOLUNTEERS AS CHANGEMAKERS’
ESP: Informe de la conferencia: ‘UNA NUEVA GENERACIÓN DE VOLUNTARIOS COMO AGENTES DE CAMBIO’
FR: Rapport de la conférence: UNE NOUVELLE GENERATION DE VOLONTAIRES EN TANT QU’ACTEURS DE CHANGEMENT
