Boomers and Civic Engagement: Opportunities & Challenges

Graham Center
 Florida International University

Miami, Florida

April 27, 2007

View the Program Agenda

The Harvard School of Public Health—MetLife Foundation Initiative on Retirement and Civic Engagement presented a forum highlighting a major opportunity to tap the time, energy, skills, and experience of baby boomers as volunteers in nonprofit organizations.  The forum was sponsored by the Initiative in collaboration with four local partners: Center on Nonprofit Effectiveness (C-One), Hands On Miami, The Center on Aging at Florida International University, and United Way of Miami-Dade.  It was designed to help local organizations capitalize on the wealth of skills and expertise represented by the boomer generation.

The Initiative released a report, Reinventing Aging: Baby Boomers and Civic Engagement, which found that boomers have the potential to become a social resource of unprecedented proportion as some of the demands that commanded their attention in mid-life recede.  However, the Report also concluded that much work lies ahead to realize this potential. 

At the forum, a panel of experts in survey research, marketing, and volunteer management addressed the following key questions:

• What types of volunteer opportunities are likely to appeal to boomers?
• What are winning strategies for recruiting and retaining boomer volunteers?
• What changes will nonprofits need to make to work effectively with boomer volunteers?
• Outside of traditional volunteer projects, how can nonprofits utilize executive-level and skilled boomer volunteers to address management and operational challenges?

View available panelist slideshows:
(PowerPoint Files)

Related reports:

Sponsored by:

Harvard School of Public Health—MetLife Foundation
Initiative on Retirement and Civic Engagement

In collaboration with: