External Resource: 2026 State of the World’s Volunteerism Report

The 2026 State of the World’s Volunteerism Report (SWVR) Volunteerism and its Measurements (December 2025) lays the foundations for the 2026 International Year of Volunteers for Sustainable Development.

The SWVR brings together the latest research and thinking on volunteer measurement. The report provides insights into the power and impact of volunteerism in shaping our world and its role in advancing global development outcomes in a rapidly changing world.

Volunteering plays a pivotal role in strengthening communities, supporting public services and advancing the agenda for sustainable development. The SWVR provides a new perspective to how volunteer action strengthens social cohesion, trust and collective problem solving which are the critical elements for achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

The Global Index of Volunteer Engagement (GIVE) is introduced as a tool for measuring the multidimensional impact of volunteering providing a new way to understand the power of volunteering and offers a path to improving how data on volunteering is produced, understood and used.

The GIVE is built on four core, equally weighted key dimensions that promote and support volunteerism – individual benefits value, societal benefits value, economic benefits value and an enabling strong environment to strengthen the generation and use of data on volunteering. Refer to Figure 3. The Global Index of Volunteer Engagement Volunteerism and its Measurements Overview (2026 SWVR).

The first part of the SWVR (chapters 1, 2 and 3) sets the scene, reviewing why and how to measure volunteering and presenting the latest global estimates of volunteer work.

The second part of the SWVR (chapters 4, 5 and 6) examines how volunteering is measured in specific settings. It explores volunteering’s impact on individual skills and well-being, as well as its contribution to development outcomes. It also considers how today’s measurement frameworks need to adapt to an era of overlapping crises.

The final part (chapters 7 and 8) presents the Global Index of Volunteer Engagement (GIVE). It also includes a summary of the key policy recommendations and ends with thoughts on the future of volunteer measurement.

Key Insights

More accurate, consistent and systematic measurement is needed to gather better evidence about the full range of contributions and impact that volunteers make to drive change. Combining different measurement approaches provides a more representative understanding of the scale and depth of volunteering worldwide.

Numbers alone cannot capture the full story. Systematic measurement, approaches combined with mixed methods enable more meaningful and actionable evidence on volunteering’s contributions and impact to be gathered. Quantitative data shows participation levels, while qualitative insights reveal often-overlooked aspects of volunteering, such as personal growth, social connection, resilience and solidarity.

Measurement serves multiple needs and requires wide involvement which highlights the need to design measurement for specific purposes and needs, and balance global frameworks with locally grounded approaches.

The report recommendations provide a roadmap for advancing volunteering measurement practices that are inclusive, rigorous and responsive to diverse sectors and contexts. By improving how volunteering is measured we can better support the millions of volunteers worldwide whose contributions are essential to achieving sustainable development and building a more equitable future for all.

Read the full 2026 State of the World’s Volunteerism Report here