Increasing the number of volunteers that contribute to the community is a challenge for the whole of society, Goulburn senator Ursula Stephens has declared.
In a speech to a Volunteering NSW forum at the Orion Centre in Campsie on Friday, the parliamentary secretary for social inclusion said a golden age of volunteering was entirely possible.
"Increasing participation, not only through work, but through civic, cultural and voluntary effort is of great significance to build inclusive communities," she told the gathering.
"To achieve the golden age of volunteering... is possible. The opportunity it presents to tackle disadvantage and exclusion is exciting and challenging."
"But it, like a true social inclusion agenda, cannot be delivered in isolation by one entity, department or sector. It is a society-wide challenge."
She said active volunteers underpinned community wellbeing and fostered strong, inclusive communities.
"Volunteers are important actors in our social inclusion agenda which is about recognising that the whole nation benefits when everyone has equal opportunity to participate in social, cultural, civil and economic life," Senator Stephens said.
"It is not acceptable for people to be excluded from it."
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