Understanding what makes environmental projects successful at engaging volunteers from the local community

This research, commissioned by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) assesses and summarises the evidence about the impact of environmental volunteering schemes as well as the attributes of those which have successfully engaged local participants, particularly groups that are under-represented in environmental volunteering projects.

Background

Defra is committed to working in partnership with local communities and civil society to protect biodiversity, the countryside and the marine environment and helping people take more responsibility for their environment. Environmental volunteering plays a critical role in this, thought there are gaps in our understanding of how volunteers are recruited, supported and the impact they are having.

Aims

The key objective of this rapid evidence assessment is to assess and summarise the evidence about the attributes of environmental volunteering schemes that have successfully engaged local participants, focussing on what makes a scheme more likely to engage groups that are under-represented in environmental volunteering projects. 

Methods

The project is a rapid evidence assessment adopting the toolkit cited by the Government Social Research unit. It involves systematic searching for relevant evidence, assembling it into an exhaustive evidence table, weighting the evidence and then synthesizing it into a report. The project is being undertaken in partnership with Greenstreet Berman.

For more details contact Joanna Stuart at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or Matthew Hill at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .