Scroll through the links below and choose from
a wide variety of Web sites that offer ideas
for volunteering and getting involved in philanthropy.
Here you'll find information on everything from
starting a club to help out in your community,
to instructions on how kids can start their
own nonprofit organizations!
America’s
Promise
The mission of America’s Promise is to mobilize
people from every sector of American life to
build the character and competence of our nation's
youth by fulfilling Five
Promises to the nation’s youth. This site
offers resources for career development, opportunities
to give back through community service, and
much more.
Ben's
Guide
A U.S. Government Web site for kids, Ben's Guide
provides a long list of links to government
sites for kids on topics that cover everything
from animals to transportation.
Childreach
Childreach helps children and families living
in 43 developing countries around the world
to develop long-term solutions to break out
of the cycle of poverty through community-based
programs revolving around five areas: growing
up healthy, learning, livelihood, habitat, and
building relationships.
Children
for Children Foundation 
Founded by a group of parents in New York City,
the Children for Children Foundation’s mission
is to endow the next generation with a sense
of responsibility for others and encourage them
to participate in the greater community.
Corporation
for National and Community Service
The Corporation for National and Community Service
connects Americans of all ages and backgrounds
with opportunities to give back to their communities
and their nation through voluntary service.
Do
Something
This is a national network of young people who
know they can make a difference in their communities
and take action to change the world around them.
Earth
Force
Earth Force helps provide youth with knowledge
and skills to discover and implement lasting
solutions to environmental issues in their community.
Earth Force Youth Advisory Boards, also known
as YAB, gives youth a chance to be leaders and
work to involve other youth on environmental
issues. In the process, they develop life-long
habits of active citizenship and environmental
stewardship.
Global
Youth Service Day
Global Youth Service Day works collaboratively
with organizations around the world to mobilize
young people in countries everywhere to carry
out community improvement projects.
Greenpeace
Volunteer Opportunities
Visit this site to lean about Greenpeace and
ways to help protect the planet.
Idealist
Kids and Teens
This site is a project of Action Without Borders
that offers resources and ideas for youth and
teachers for activism. Read about organizations
started by kids, find volunteering opportunities,
learn about how to get involved in the world
of important causes around you, and much more.
Kids
Can Make A Difference
Kids Can Make A Difference® (KIDS),
an educational program for middle- and high
school students, focuses on the root causes
of hunger and poverty, the people most affected,
solutions, and how students can help. Click
to find out what kids can do to make a difference.
Kids
for Community
Kids for Community is for children and teens
looking for volunteer opportunities in New York
City; parents
who want to get their kids involved in the community;
teachers
striving to develop their service learning programs;
and organizations
that value young volunteers.
Just
For Kids
Volunteer Houston has put together this great
site, filled with information on topics such
as: What’s Hot for Kids, 10 Good Reasons for
Kids to Volunteer, Ideas for Self Starters,
and Useful and Fun Links.
Kids
Care Clubs
Ten years ago, a group of children got together
to rake a lawn for an elderly neighbor. That
was the beginning of Kids Care Clubs. Visit
their site to learn how you can start your own
club and see what other kids are doing.
National
Wildlife Federation
The National Wildlife Federation is the nation's
largest member-supported conservation group,
uniting individuals, organizations, businesses
and government to protect wildlife, wild places,
and the environment. Learn how you can take
action and don’t miss the Kids zone.
Network
for Good
Network for Good is a nonprofit collaboration
to help nonprofit organizations increase capacity,
reach new audiences, and build Internet strategies.
Explore volunteering opportunities, learn how
to start a nonprofit, and see a list of resources
on working in the nonprofit sector.
SERVEnet.org
This site offers service and volunteering opportunities.
Through SERVEnet, users can enter their zip
code, city, state, skills, interests, and availability
and be matched with organizations needing help.
SERVEnet is also a place to search for calendar
events, job openings, service news, recommended
books, and best practices.
Student
Volunteer Network 
Student Volunteer Network is a student-led nonprofit
organization dedicated to connecting the high
school and nonprofit communities in Colorado.
United States Department of Agriculture For
Kids Page
Visit the Farmer’s Market, check out Nature
Watch, get artistic with the George Washington
Carver coloring book, and learn about Backyard
Conservation and a whole lot more.
The
Virtual Volunteering Project
This organization supports the growth and success
of volunteer activities that can be accomplished,
in part or entirely, through the Internet.
Youth
Activism
This site provides links to the stories of kids
and teens from around the world who are active
in their communities.
YouthNOISE
An initiative of Save
the Children, YouthNOISE works to inspire,
connect, and empower youth to help young people
everywhere by volunteering, fundraising and
speaking out.
Youth
Service California
Since 1990, Youth Service California has been
working to ensure that all young people in California
are empowered to make a positive difference
in their community via quality community service,
service learning, and youth organizing experiences.
Awards
The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards  The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards honor young people in middle level and high
school grades for outstanding volunteer service
to their communities.
Hitachi
Foundation: Yoshiyama Award for Exemplary Service
to the Community 
The Award recognizes exemplary service and community
involvement in ten high school seniors each
year from around the US
Educating Young Philanthropists and Volunteers
A
Handbook for Supporting Community Youth Researchers
Developed by the Gardner Center at Stanford
University for its Youth Engaged in Leadership
& Learning (Y.E.L.L.) project, the handbook
is designed help those training youth to become
active decision-makers in their communities.
Connect for Kids
Connect for Kids, an award-winning multimedia project of the Benton Foundation, helps adults make their communities better places for families and children. The Web site offers a place on
the Internet for adults-parents, grandparents,
educators, policymakers and others-who want
to become more active citizens, from volunteering
to voting with kids in mind.
Engaging
Youth In Philanthropy and Volunteerism: A Resource
List
This resource list contains citations to selected
works from the Foundation Center's bibliographic
database.
Giving New
England: Youth Philanthropy—Teaching and Giving
Giving New England’s site contains ideas to inspire
philanthropic giving, and also curricula for teaching
philanthropy in schools, at home, and in organizations.
Habits
of the Heart
Developed by the Indiana Humanities Council, Habits
of the Heart provides sample lesson plans and
other resources for teaching young people about the
value of philanthropy and voluntarism, all aimed at
middle and high school students and their teachers.
Learning
in Deed
Launched by the W.K. Kellogg Foundation in 1998,
Learning in Deed targets the K-12 population
and features resources about service learning in general
for teachers, students, and policymakers. The site
also includes information about related demonstration
projects, youth leadership training, and research
findings.
Learning
to Give
The Council on Michigan Foundations developed
Learning to Give as a way to engage educators
and others in teaching philanthropy in the classroom.
The site includes syllabi and curricula aimed at integrating
a program of philanthropic instruction into the schools.
Maryland
Student Service Alliance
The Maryland Student Service Alliance is a public/private
partnership established in 1988. Its Web site includes
electronic presentations, project ideas, and curricula,
all related to service learning.
Minnesota
Toolkit for Giving
Produced by the Minnesota Council on Foundations
and their partners, the “Youth Philanthropy Resources”
section of their Toolkit for Giving includes
information about teaching philanthropy, in addition
to resources on community service, youth as funders,
and “giving stories,” written by Minnesota philanthropists.
Northland Foundation
Youth in Philanthropy Program
Minnesota’s Northland Foundation launched its
KIDS PLUS program to engage young people at a variety
of levels, from program planning in cooperation with
adults, to formal leadership training.
Sponsors for Educational Opportunity: Philanthropy This internship program gives undergraduate
students of color the opportunity to discover
future career paths and develop knowledge and
skills at the side of today's philanthropic
leaders, while gaining exposure to the grantmaking
process at the Edwin Gould Foundation, Carnegie
Corporation of New York, Wallace -Reader's Digest
Funds, and several others.
Youth Grantmakers

Youthgrantmakers.org, a communication of the Michigan Community Foundation Youth
Project of the Council of
Michigan Foundations, presents resources for youth grantmakers
including best practices, lessons learned, and sample documents.
Youth
Philanthropy and Service
Youth Philanthropy and Service is a project of
Case Western Reserve University’s Mandel Center for
Nonprofit Organizations. Its Web site includes curricula
for teaching service learning in the classroom, running
a youth grantmaking program, and more.
©2008 Foundation Center
All Rights Reserved.
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