Volunteerism in disaster management: Opportunities, challenges and instruments for improvement

Collaborations of civic society and public administration play a key role for successful emergency and disaster management. However, factors including new technologies, large-scale disaster events, and a differently engaged population are combining to bring new, spontaneous or emergent forms of volunteerism to official disaster management activities. This report addresses the challenges and opportunities of integrating such volunteers in disaster management and civil protection. Further, it details (1) the relationships between state crisis management and the social environment in which these relationships take place; and (2) the instruments available to support volunteerism in the context of disaster management and civil protection.