IVCO
Cambodia 2025
Cambodia 2025
We’re putting the finishing touches on an inspiring line up for IVCO 2025! Stay tuned for the full schedule, including keynote sessions, panel discussions, workshops, and networking opportunities.
The high level programme outline includes:
Sunday 14th September: CEO Day (by invitation) – A space to strengthen relationships between CEOs of Forum members and collaboratively address sector challenges
Sunday 14th September (evening): Opening Ceremony and Welcome Reception – Welcome delegates and set the scene for IVCO 2025
Monday 15th September: Volunteering in Strengthening Civil Society – Exploring how volunteering strengthens civil society and how to enhance its impact
Tuesday 16th September: A Changing Landscape for Volunteering and Civil Society – Exploring the impact of changes to civil society space, conflict and instability.
Wednesday 17th September: Taking Action: Measurement and Takeaways – How do we know if volunteers are making a positive difference to civil society?
Thursday 18th September: Research Day – A day of participatory discussions bringing together practitioners, researchers and academics to focus on key trends.
Check back soon for updates, or subscribe to our newsletter to be the first to know when the full schedule is live!
A healthy civil society is characterised by a strong network of engaged citizens, independent organisations, and supportive institutions that work together to uphold democratic values, human rights, and community well-being. Volunteers play a crucial role in every one of these elements.
On Day 1 of IVCO we will explore how volunteering strengthens civil society, and learn about strategies to enhance its impact.
Get registered, grab a cup of coffee, meet your fellow conference delegates and get ready for the first conference day!
What is the current state of civil society worldwide? What does the short, medium, and long-term future hold for civil society? What global response is needed to change the current trajectory of civil society? Our keynote speakers will set the scene for IVCO 2025, exploring the evolution of civil society and how volunteering strengthens it.
A quick exercise for delegates to collectively share what they hope to gain from this year’s IVCO conference.
An interactive session to collectively explore and expand on themes surfaced in the keynote. Participants will share their diverse perspectives, with academics, practitioners, policymakers and others discussing discussing the state of civil society globally, the challenges we all face and the role of volunteering in addressing them.
Building on the opening sessions, this break-out explores global trends shaping civil society and how volunteering can help to turn the tide. What is the current direction of travel in civil society, what response is needed to change its direction, and where does volunteering fit in this response?
This session will explore how volunteer-involving organisations, civil society organisations and volunteers can benefit from exchange of personnel.
For many people, volunteering a pathway to engagement with civil society — offering a low-barrier, accessible route to active participation, leadership, and civic action. It plays a crucial role in promoting diversity, inclusion, and youth engagement, creating spaces where underrepresented and marginalised groups can contribute, lead, and shape collective action. Click on this post to see more details.
Food is the best conversation starter, so take this opportunity to meet fellow delegates and make new connections. If you were invited to the Intergovernmental Lunch Meeting (13.00 - 14.00) , please follow the signs to the private restaurant on the ground floor to join your counterparts from around the world (invitation only).
Volunteers are often at the forefront of campaigning, advocacy, and social change, working to tackle issues like discrimination, climate justice, and human rights. Yet in many contexts — especially where civic space is shrinking — volunteers face complex challenges when activism and advocacy put them at risk.
Volunteering can be a powerful catalyst for ongoing civic engagement, equipping individuals with the skills, networks, and motivation to take meaningful action in their communities. Beyond the immediate impact of a volunteer placement, volunteering can inspire participants to become long-term changemakers.
Volunteering is a powerful learning experience, equipping people with valuable skills that enhance their personal and professional growth. Beyond technical expertise, volunteers develop soft skills such as resilience, flexibility, communication and problem-solving, all of which contribute to their long-term personal and career development.
Let's reconvene in the plenary room and share learnings and key reflections from Day 1 through facilitated small group discussions before we close the day!
A plenary session to summarise key highlights of the day and share updates and final announcements.
Get registered, grab a cup of coffee, meet your fellow conference delegates, and get ready for the second conference day!
We will kickstart the day through an energising recap of Day 1 to get us geared up for Day 2.
A panel discussion featuring volunteers that have worked in challenging environments.
This session will give delegates the opportunity to explore the themes raised during the volunteer panel discussion and share their own experiences and perspectives.
In 2025, demanding environments take many forms — from political instability and conflict to social exclusion, natural disasters, and digital risks. Volunteers operating in these contexts need specific skills, mindsets, and robust support to navigate complexity safely and effectively.
Volunteers worldwide are facing increasing barriers that prevent them from accessing their roles. One of the most pressing challenges is restrictions on visas and work permits for international volunteers.
In challenging environments, volunteers face significant challenges in communication, advocacy, and safety. However, technology has become a crucial enabler, allowing volunteers to securely connect, share information, and continue their work despite barriers.
Food is the best conversation starter, so enjoy lunch and take the opportunity to chat with old friends and new acquaintances.
In recent months, in the face of shifting international development funding, once again organisations have relied on the resilience of volunteers to continue their work. In this session we will explore strategies for organisations to proactively integrate volunteering from the inception of their programmes, ensuring sustainability and adaptability.
ECPAT International will present key findings from their Global Study on Voluntourism, highlighting actionable models from both sending and destination countries to protect children and prevent harm. We will also explore the Duty of Care updates to the revised Global Volunteering Standard.
Civic space is essential to inclusive societies but is under threat worldwide. Volunteer-involving organisations play a vital role in defending and expanding this space by advocating for rights, inclusion, and community-driven change.
Grab a cup of coffee, meet your fellow conference delegates, and prepare for the final afternoon sessions!
Let's reconvene in the plenary room and share learning and reflections from Day 2 through facilitated small group discussions before we close the day!
A final plenary session to summarise key highlights of the day and share updates and final announcements.
Exploring the impact of changes to civil society space. How we can adapt to, and challenge, a rapidly evolving civil society landscape and overcome the risks and obstacles it poses to volunteers and the organisations that support them.
Takeaways for Delegates:
Strategies for supporting volunteers’ resilience, adaptation, and advocacy in challenging environments.
Exploring how we measure the impact of volunteering through the lens of the question – how do we know if volunteers are making a positive difference to civil society? Helping delegates to identify what they will take back to their organisations, and how they will share it with their colleagues.
Grab a cup of coffee, greet your fellow conference delegates and get ready for the third conference day!
We will kickstart the day through an energising recap of Day 2 to get us geared up for Day 3.
Volunteering plays a vital role in strengthening civil society, yet the value it brings—both to communities and to volunteers themselves—can be difficult to quantify and communicate. As organisations that work with volunteers, we must continuously reflect on and refine our case for support: What value do we bring to civic engagement? Why should individuals choose to volunteer with us? What motivates volunteers to contribute their time and energy? And why should donors invest in this work?
Food is the best conversation starter, so enjoy lunch with your fellow delegates, and get ready to think about what ideas you will be bringing home to your organisation.
This interactive plenary will create space for participants to share insights from IVCO 2025, connect around shared priorities, and explore opportunities for collaboration. It will also include an update from Forum on current initiatives and invite discussion on what further coordination is needed across the sector.
We will wrap-up IVCO 2025 with high level take-aways from the conference. We will announce the hosts and theme for IVCO 2026, and we will hear from Forum and UNV about plans for the International Year of Volunteering for Sustainable Development 2026.
That's it for IVCO 2025! For those joining the RPPL day tomorrow, check out all the details on the dedicated page. For those leaving today, see you next year for IVCO 2026!
Forum’s annual Research Day brings together practitioners, academics and researchers working in the field of volunteering and development to explore how we design, conduct and use research to strengthen our work.
Through a mix of interactive sessions, group discussions and visual storytelling, we’ll reflect on emerging questions, share learning across contexts, and deepen our understanding of what meaningful and impactful research looks like in practice. Whether you’re just starting out or have years of experience, the day is designed to support curiosity, collaboration and critical reflection.
A chance to get settled and meet people informally before the day begins.
A tour of posters showing participants' past, present and planned research work.
This presentation will set the scene for our break-out conversations, exploring the themes of research design, ethics, and impact.
Facilitated group work focused on identifying research needs, framing your question and designing a research project.
How can research can inform policy, practice, and learning? We'll explore who and what we are trying to influence through our research, how to share findings effectively, and ways to embed research into programmes and advocacy.
Let's close with a chance for some collective sharing to round off the Research Day - and IVCO 2025!
Forum is a global network of organisations working through volunteers to achieve sustainable development
International Forum for Volunteering in Development (Forum)
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