International Marketing Portugal Comments On Cascais Volunteer Website

InternationalMarketing Portugal, a Lisbon-based sales and marketing company, are always impressed by people volunteering to help the local community. They heard recently of a website set up one year ago by Cascais Town Hall to encourage people to volunteer in local initiatives. The site has signed up 158 people, the majority of whom are aged between 26 and 35 and with university education. The new website, which according to the town hall “allows volunteers and initiatives to come together in Cascais municipality” completed its first anniversary in April.

According to the town hall, the main age group who have signed up to volunteer through the website are aged 26 to 35 and 65 percent of volunteers have university education, being either students or currently unemployed. Until the end of last year, 65 percent of volunteers were women, 71.2 percent of whom had higher education.

“Volunteering is really important in the local community,” said our source from International Marketing Portugal, “There are so many worthy causes that can’t afford to employ people, and a lot of people want to spend their spare time helping these causes.”

“A volunteer isn’t a freelancer or a paid professional. It is a citizen with training who is given tasks and responsibilities according to what they can do,” said the town hall.

Social action, education and health are the preferred areas for volunteers, which coincide with the needs of the 31 entities signed up to the local volunteer bank.

“More than registering volunteers, the portal is important as a meeting place between those who are looking for and those who are offering volunteer services. For this reason the number of volunteers registered is not anywhere near the total number of volunteers in Cascais. Many organisations and many volunteers continue to use informal networks that are identified but not registered on the website” said the town hall.

Our source from International Marketing Portugal said, “Volunteering can also be a really useful avenue for people who may have been out of work for a while, or want to get some valuable work experience. Employers really love to see a proactive approach in people, and a willingness to help others.”

Locals who want to volunteer can register via the website: www.cascaisvoluntario.org.

Once registered, potential volunteers will receive specific training, before being sent to help institutions.