UNIFEM

Volunteer Handbook

Working towards Women's Empowerment and Gender Equality.

Address: 2 Nassim Road, Singapore, 258370 tel. +65 6238 6763 fax. +65 6238 6762 Website: www.unifem.org.sg

National Committee for UNIFEM Singapore

Welcome!
Thank you for volunteering.
Many important activities at NC UNIFEM Singapore, simply could not go on without the assistance of volunteers. The quality of our programs reaching the public and the success of many behind-thescenes activities rely on volunteer efforts and commitments. We want your experience here to be productive, enjoyable and rewarding. This handbook is designed to help you get acquainted with our volunteer program and to serve as a reference for future use. It gives a brief overview of the United Nations Development Fund for Women in Singapore, describes the work we do on a practical level, lists some examples of areas where we need volunteer support and sets out the way we communicate with our volunteers. Please take the time to read it and refer to it whenever you feel the need. Pia Bruce General Manager National Committee UNIFEM Singapore

Who we are:
The National Committee for UNIFEM Singapore is a nonprofit organisation. We have two paid employees: a parttime General Manager and a full-time Office Manager. In addition, we usually have two interns at any one time working in the office. The direction, strategy, and management of UNIFEM Singapore is steered by the Executive Committee and supported by a patron and panel of advisors. Details of our staff and our Executive Committee can be found of our website at http://unifem.org.sg/Executive _Team.shtml. We encourage members of the public and our volunteers to pledge their support for UNIFEM and by joining as members. Annual membership costs $50 for adults and $10 for students. Membership in UNIFEM Singapore is open to everybody.
3

What UNIFEM Singapore does

There are two main components to the work we do in Singapore and the region: fundraising and public education.

Fundraising
How we raise the funds
Throughout the year, NC Singapore undertakes a wide variety of events in order to raise funds. Our two biggest fund raising events are the SNOW Gala Dinner and the Buy to Save sale. SNOW is an acronym for Say No to the Oppression of Women the gala dinner will be held on December 2nd of this year. The last time that the event was held in 2007, it raised in excess of $200,000! Buy to Save is a sale of quality, pre-loved designer clothing and accessories all of which are sold at a fraction of their original price tag. Understandably, this is very popular event here in Singapore! In 2009, we plan to hold the event on December 1213th at the Intercontinental Hotel. Another way that UNIFEM Singapore raises funds is through collaborations with local businesses. Charles and Keith have been long-time supporters of UNIFEM and have donated the profits from several limited edition products to UNIFEM Singapore! We have also recently teamed up with The Body Shop! They will donate profits from the sale of a new hand cream Soft Hands, Warm Heart to UNIFEM Singapore and HOME.

What we use the funds for

The funds raised by NC UNIFEM Singapore are distributed in three ways. Firstly, NC Singapore is required to send a certain quota of funds to the UNIFEM headquarters in NYC annually. UNIFEM HQ then sends a proportion of the funds raised by the National Offices around the world to our Regional Offices who then distribute the funds to worthy which projects and programs in their own region. Our regional office is in Bangkok, Thailand. Secondly, the executive committee for NC Singapore can choose to directly support particular projects in the region. For the year 2009, UNIFEM Singapore has chosen to help fund projects in Aceh, Indonesia, an area that was devastated by the Tsunami in 2004 and has also endured 30 years of civil conflict. If you would like to learn more about the situation in Aceh and what can be done to help, then please refer to our fact sheet entitled: Help Bring Peace and Security to Aceh. Finally, a portion of the funds raised is used to cover the administration costs of running the organisation.

What UNIFEM Singapore does.

Public Education Initiatives

School Talks
With the goal of speaking at every school in Singapore within the next 5 years, our School Talks Program is going from strength to strength. A recent overhaul of the materials used in the presentation means that the talks are more relevant and engaging than ever before. We hope that students will come away from one of our presentations with a better understanding of womens issues and be inspired to take action!

Movie Screenings
UNIFEM Singapore screens films that highlight important issues related to women. So far this year, we have held screenings of films related to human trafficking (Trade), a maids right to a day off (Day Off), the buying of foreign brides (Match Made), and about children born to prostitutes (Born Into Brothels). We endeavour to have one or more expert speakers present at each screening who can, following the film, provide the audience with more information about the topic and are on hand to answer any specific questions.

The UNIFEM in Conversation with Series

Another public education initiative is the UNIFEM in conversation with series of talks with inspiring individuals. Already this year, we have been privileged to hear child-sex-trafficking survivor, Somaly Mam, speak on this devastating problem. In August, Dato' Ambiga Sreenevasan, winner of the 2009 Women of Courage Award, spoke about her work advocating for good governance, democracy and human rights in Malaysia.

Other Events
In the past, we have held events to mark the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women, the International Day of Peace, and International Womens Day. We are currently running an Essay Competition in Singapore high schools, a local campaign to give Domestic Workers a Day Off and recently launched Stop Human Trafficking initiative in partnership with The Body Shop, H.O.M.E. and ECPAT which includes workshops, movie screenings and forums. While for next year, we are launching the White Ribbon Day Campaign in Singapore, highlighting the issue of violence towards women.

What you can do as a volunteer

Volunteers form the back-bone of the organisation. Without our team of volunteers, none of the work described above would be possible! We need dedicated and enthusiastic volunteers in order to expand our programmes and projects in Singapore and the region. Volunteer tasks and roles are varied but generally speaking we need volunteers who can support our two major initiatives: fund-raising and public education, and also those who can provide support to our administration staff. Examples of areas where we need volunteer support: ! ! ! ! ! ! 8 Memberships (new sign-ups and renewals) Co-ordinating of Events Securing sponsorships & grants Co-ordinating Volunteer Related Activities Holding presentations at local schools Providing IT Support

How we communicate with our volunteers

We advertise our specific volunteer opportunities on a monthly basis in our Volunteer Update, which is sent via email to all volunteers in our database. At times however, if a need is pressing, we may also email our volunteers at the last minute with requests for help with specific tasks/roles. We understand that you may not always be able to assist on such occasions but if you are available, then your help would be greatly appreciated! Once your name and details have been added to our volunteer database, you will begin to receive our Monthly Volunteer Updates and other calls for assistance when necessary. We hope that you will find something in our updates that interests you, and fits into your schedule! Less formally, we meet for Volunteer Drinks Night on the last Wednesday of each month at Bodega y Tapas (442 Orchard Rd) from 5.30pm. Drinks are at your expense but there is a Happy Hour promotion (Buy 1 Get 1 Free) until 9pm! Do come along and meet your fellow volunteers!

How we say Thank You

Many of our initiatives simply would not happen if it werent for our volunteers. So to show our appreciation, we hold an annual BBQ for our volunteers each January. We invite anyone who has contributed to the success of UNIFEM throughout 2009 to come along and join us. We want to show you just how much we value your contribution! For anyone who may want or need to keep a record of the volunteering hours, we are happy to provide you with a UNIFEM log book. This may be particularly relevant to students.