Taken for granted? Volunteering in the COVID-19 crisis and beyond

In this episode, we look at the impact of the COVID-19 crisis on perhaps one of Australia’s most underappreciated sectors, volunteering.

Despite often going under the radar, the volunteering sector makes a huge contribution to society. From our rural fire-fighting services, to our local sports organisations, and beyond, volunteers play a bigger part in Australian life than many probably realise. But what has been the impact of the current crisis on volunteers? And what can policymakers do to better support and value volunteering? On this episode of Policy Forum Pod, we speak to The Australian National University’s Professor Nicholas Biddle and CEO of Volunteering Australia Adrienne Picone about how COVID-19 has re-shaped volunteering in Australia.

Professor Nicholas Biddle is Associate Director of the ANU Centre for Social Research and Methods and Director of the newly created Policy Experiments Lab.

Adrienne Picone is the Chief Executive Officer of Volunteering Australia.

Martyn Pearce is a presenter for Policy Forum Pod and the Editor of Policy Forum.

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