FAQs
About the Virtual Volunteering Project
volunteers focusing primarily on
computer-related assistance
We no longer include in this list every agency that we know of involving online volunteers; rather, we now concentrate on agencies that involve volunteers in virtual situations with clients or other volunteers (direct service), agencies with whom the VV Project has collaborated, or agencies that involve or place large numbers of online volunteers. This means we exclude agencies from this list that have involved only one or two volunteers in web design.
- Austin Freenet
This organization in Austin, Texas was one of the VV Projects Affiliates, and our web site features a very detailed profile of this organization and how it has involved online volunteers.
Boulder Community Network (BCN)
This organization in Boulder, Colorado was one of the VV Projects Affiliates, and our web site features a very detailed profile of this organization and how it has involved online volunteers.
Chebucto Community Net
http://chebucto.ns.ca/
A community network serving the Metropolitan Halifax area in Nova Scotia, Canada. Much of the work of the CCN is done by online volunteers, one of whom has also been volunteering with the VV Project. CCN's Web site for current and potential volunteers is a good model for other organizations looking to recruit volunteers and honor their value via the Internet.
Community Linkages Program / Volunteer @ction.online
http://www.gov.on.ca/mczcr/english/citdiv/voluntar/pilots.htm
This ambitious Canadian program by the Ontario government addresses the voluntary sector's need to increase its use of technology networks to enhance volunteer recruitment and support, maximize organizational efficiency and share resources. Some of its pilot projects involve online volunteering.
Community Wire
This organization in Glendale, California was one of the VV Projects Affiliates, and our web site features a very detailed profile of this organization and how it has involved online volunteers.
CompuMentor
http://www.compumentor.org
This San Francisco-based agency provides excellent information to help technical-assistance volunteers work with agencies in face-to-face settings; we've followed many of their guidelines in creating our own suggestions for online volunteers, and you will find links to CompuMentor materials on our Web site. CompuMentor has a new Virtual Mentoring Program, which matches online volunteers with specialized computer and internet-related skills/expertise with not-for-profit organizations needing such assistance. In addition, several CompuMentor volunteers participated in our betatest program, and provided feedback about their online volunteering experiences.
Computer Professionals for Social Responsibility Web Volunteers
http://www.cpsr.org/cpsr/volunteers/volindex.html
An international public-interest alliance of computer scientists and others concerned about the impact of computer technology on society. According to its web site, 33 online volunteers have helped with system administration, editing and maintaining a part of the site focused on a particular issue (gender Issues, workplace issues, cyber-rights, social security numbers) or region, and archives, among many other tasks. CPSR gives each online volunteers (all of whom must be CPSR members) detailed guidelines for creating pages and a password to load pages onto the CPSR server.
Digital Clubhouse Network
http://www.digiclub.org
A not-for-profit organization, spun out from NASA, that is developing a 21st century learning center where people of all ages and socio-economic backgrounds can master networked multimedia technology tools. The Network maintains a Digital Clubhouses in Sunnyvale, California and at the New York Information Technology Center in Wall Street. One of the Clubhouse activities is the Digitally Abled Producers Project, http://dap.digiclub.org/, which pairs youth with disabilities ages 14-24 together with youth without disabilities, and teaches them multimedia, Universally Accessible webpage production, networking, and career skills. Participants use the Internet to communicate with each other through email and through chat rooms.
Distributed.Net
http://www.distributed.net/
A "loosely knit" group of thousands of computer users from all over the world who take up computing challenges that "no individual, corporation, or government" could tackle alone, such as encryption, cryptography or finding large prime numbers. Some of these challenges are formal, issued by a particular company; others are dreamed up by members themselves. Collectively, members solve these challenges by distributing the cpu power needed over the computers of its members, during their computers' "idle time." Distributed.Net was founded to serve as a gathering point for research and projects related to distributed processing, "proving that when you add up all the idle time, on all the computers all over the Internet, that enormous tasks may be accomplished."
Diversity University
http://www.du.org
A not-for-profit instructional organization meeting the on-line distance education learning needs of individuals and institutions. Thousands of students, teachers, and administrators worldwide use DU.
E-Corps
A project by the Beacon Project, http://www.beaconproject.org
Works to match volunteers with expertise in not-for-profit and business management with organizations that need their expertise. The volunteers provide most of their assistance via the Internet.
Flashcorps
http://www.flashlite.net/community/flashcorps.html
A new, growing group of online volunteers from around the world offering probono multimedia and web development experience, particularly "flash" technologies, to nonprofit organizations.
Globewide Network Academy
http://www.gnacademy.org
A not-for-profit organization with15,000 courses and programs, from kindergarten to doctoral programs, in its online distance learning catalog. Much of the site is maintained by volunteers.
Group One (GO)
http://www.sonoma.edu/virtcomm/
GO is organized under the aegis of the Hutchins Center at Sonoma State University in California, and is dedicated toward helping communities experience the positive attributes that local network applications have to offer, both for the individual and the community. GO involves online volunteers to build and maintain its web pages and resources. "Anatomy of a Virtual Community" is a course in electronic community offered at Sonoma State University and is affiliated with this program.
HerDomain.Org
http://www.herdomain.org
Austin, Texas
This nonprofit group works to encourage and support women in Austin, Texas who embrace the culture and technology of the Internet as a vehicle for creative and professional pursuits. Members meet online via their own private listserv and monthly in face-to-face meetings "to find jobs, find employees, compare notes on their respective trades, and learn from each other in an unintimidating environment." Members of HerDomain frequently volunteer online for various community-focused groups.
Internet Technical Group
http://www.sandia.gov/itg/index.html
ITG, based in Albuquerque, New Mexico, has created a community for professionals from industry, academia and government organizations who share a common interest in Internet technologies and related behavioral phenomena. "From the guys who put so much work into setting [the group] up, to those who run the listserv and those who created and run the ITG web site, the newsletter, the job section, and many more," ITG relies heavily on online volunteers, all "busy professionals in the industry who have given up some of their time to make it [ITG] work." ITG is affiliated with Sandia National Laboratories, operated for the U.S. Department of Energy by Sandia Corporation, a Lockheed Martin Company
Knowbility, Inc.
A new national nonprofit organization born out of the collaborative effort that was AIR-Austin 98, a web design contest that helped educate members of the high-tech community about making Web sites and other online technologies fully accessible to people with disabilities. The onsite volunteer efforts for AIR-Austin were coordinated primarily via the Internet, and the new nonprofit will promote virtual volunteering as a way to help youth with disabilities learn high-tech skills and other skills for the work place.
LibertyNet
http://www.hevanet.com/literacy
This organization serving Philadelphia, Pennsylvania was one of the VV Projects Affiliates, and our web site features a very detailed profile of this organization and how it has involved online volunteers.
Microsoft Site Builder Network - VolunteerKiosk
http://nonprofit.guidestar.org/classifieds/ms_sbn.cfm
This is a joint project with GuideStar to connect nonprofit organizations with Web developer and designer volunteers. The Microsoft Site Builder Network is a membership program and online resource that supports Web designers and developers with tools, information, and support.
No Wonder
http://www.nowonder.com/
Online volunteers help answer computer and software questions via email from users all over the world. "We have volunteers who have been with us for almost our 2 year existence," says founder Scott William. "Include volunteers, make them a part of the decision making process. Let them know they are valued and that their ideas and suggestions are taken seriously."
SeniorNet
http://www.seniornet.org/
A national nonprofit organization in San Francisco, California for computer-using adults, age 50 and older. SeniorNet involves dozens of volunteer CyberHosts and volunteer Discussion/Community leaders. In 1998, SeniorNet hosted the Olympic Cyber Volunteer program, where students in grades four through eight competed for "medals" by responding to academic challenges online.
Service Corps Of Retired Executives (SCORE)
http://www.score.org/
A resource partner with the U.S. Small Business Administration, dedicated to aiding in the formation, growth and success of small business nationwide. SCORE offers an email counseling at no cost (for U.S. citizens and resident aliens only); its huge searchable databank helps users find the SCORE member whose expertise best addresses their business needs. The expertise of members if highly varied and specialized -- users can get email counseling in everything from tropical agriculture to unemployment compensation to wholesale lighting equipment. The Web site also has a database for finding local SCORE affiliates.
YouthOrg UK
http://www.youth.org.uk
In Aldershot, Hants, United Kingdom, YouthOrg UK's virtual community and web site are entirely managed, developed and published by volunteers. Online volunteers also maintain a Web-based bulletin board, answer technical inquiries and design graphics. "Peer to peer education is probably the best way to describe this relationship between the volunteers," says Mark Harding, founder of the organization. Mark says the factors that contribute to the success of his online programs are "praising volunteers," "ensuring their volunteering work is seen by other potential volunteers," and "ensuring the content of the web site is written in a level the youth workers and young people can relate to." He says two of the biggest obstacles are that potential volunteers "fear they need to be an Internet genius to contribute" and potential volunteers giving inacurate email addresses when they sign up to help.
