The Economic, Social, and Cultural Value of Volunteering to Tasmania

In 2014, Paul C. Muller and his team of researchers published a report called "The Economic, Social and Cultural Value of Volunteering to Tasmania," the first such study in that Australian state. The report agrees with the authors of previous e-Volunteerism articles that traditional monetary or wage-replacement cost formulas are woefully inadequate to reflect the challenge of calculating the “value” of volunteer services. This feature article excerpts a portion of Muller's report, providing a very interesting review of how Tasmania, its charitable organizations, and volunteers themselves derive “benefits” of many sorts from volunteering – beyond cost-effectiveness or return-on-investment. Journal readers will be able to link to the entire report for more in-depth reading.