Virtual volunteering has many benefits. If you don't usually have the time or transport to go somewhere and volunteer – getting involved from home is a great way to give something back. You can build key skills such as data analysis and research, by taking part in virtual projects and it's flexible so you can give as much or as little time as you want!
Local community, charities and organisations need the support of volunteers like you, and there are lots to choose from.
Participate in real research of all kinds, from classifying galaxies to counting penguins to transcribing manuscripts. Whatever your interest, there's a Zooniverse project for you!
A vibrant community with over 50 active online citizen science projects. Work with 1.6 million registered users around the world to contribute to research projects led by hundreds of researchers.
https://www.zooniverse.org/
Be My Eyes’ goal is to make the world more accessible to people who are blind or have a low level of vision.
https://www.bemyeyes.com/
Missing Maps is an open, collaborative project in which you can help to map areas where humanitarian organisations are trying to meet the needs of vulnerable people.
https://www.missingmaps.org/
Project Plumage - Mark up colourful Museum bird specimens
Type of activity: Online
Who can take part? Everyone
When? Any time
How long will it take? Two minutes per bird
https://www.nhm.ac.uk/take-part/citizen-science/project-plumage.html
ZSL Instant Wild gives you the chance to be part of some live conservation work.
https://instantwild.zsl.org/intro
Volunteer with Smithsonian Transcription Centre to help make historical documents and data more accessible. Make field notes and historical references available for everyone to share.
https://transcription.si.edu/
If you have a second language, Translators without Borders depends on volunteers to translate millions of words.
https://translatorswithoutborders.org/volunteer/
How about becoming a Mentor?
Virtual mentoring roles with Brightside are a great opportunity for you to use your skills and experience to help young people achieve their potential.
https://brightside.org.uk/volunteering/
TED Translators are a global community of volunteers who subtitle TED Talks - you use a free online subtitling tool to subtitle talks and collaborate with other volunteers.
https://www.ted.com/participate/translate
The Prince's Trust has an active online community of volunteers who use a flexible online platform to mentor young people. They are looking for online volunteers to support young people looking for work or starting their own business. You will get the necessary training to prepare you to take on a mentee, and an opportunity to make a real difference to a young person’s life.
https://www.princes-trust.org.uk/support-our-work/volunteer/become-an-online-mentor