History of the OV Service

The Online Volunteering service was originally a part of NetAid, a joint intiative by Cisco systems and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) to help end extreme poverty. The Online Volunteering service, which has been managed since its inception by the United Nations Volunteers programme, was one of many activities begun under the NetAid initiative.

The NetAid initiative was launched with concerts held simultaneously in October, 1999 in Geneva, London and New York. The concerts featured a variety of top performers and bands, including Billy Bragg, Bono, Boy George, Counting Crows, David Bowie, Sting, Texas, and many, many others. These concerts were broadcast over radio, television and the Internet, with major support from Cisco Systems. You can read archival information about the launch of NetAid in 1999 via both Cisco and UNESCO.

The Online Volunteering service was launched in 2000, and it quickly drew thousands of people, ready to volunteer online to help organizations working in and for the developing world. After more than three years of being hosted on the NetAid site, the OV service moved to its own URL, www.onlinevolunteering.org, on February 2004. The service remains under the management and direction of UN Volunteers programme. The staff that manages the service is based in Bonn, Germany.

Hundreds of organizations and the communities they serve benefit from online volunteers recruited and managed through the OV service. Read testimonials from both organizations and online volunteers who have benefitted from this free service.