Productive Volunteering: How to ensure it's a two way street
Volunteering can be a great way to learn new skills and network - but what does a successful volunteer experience look like, both for the volunteer and the organisation?
Join the Emerging Professionals network as we speak with Cate Purcell (Powerhouse Museum), Amy Dale (University of Adelaide), and Misty McPhail (Sydney Writer's Festival) about how to make volunteering experiences meaningful.
Panellists:
Cate Purcell has been with the Powerhouse Museum since 2002 and oversaw the development and implementation of a refreshed volunteer program, including the recruitment and training of volunteers from culturally diverse communities and optimising volunteer opportunities for cross-generations. Before the Museum, Cate was a workforce manager for the Sydney and Salt Lake City Olympic Games Organising Committees. Cate’s recent work has focussed on the implementation of the Five Ways to Wellbeing framework for Museum staff and volunteers, and the creation of a virtual volunteer program, which connects vulnerable communities with the collection.
Amy Dale is the Exhibitions Coordinator at the University of Adelaide. She started her career in Scotland, gaining a Masters in Museum and Curatorial Studies from the University of St Andrews, where she was later appointed as a curator. Here she gained a passion for roles working across a breadth of specialisms, including collections management, exhibitions and public engagement. She went on to hold positions at the Hampshire Museums Service and Museums Galleries Scotland, moving to Adelaide in 2014 and appointed curator at the History Trust of South Australia. She is the current President of the Australian Museums and Galleries Association SA Branch.
Misty McPhail is the Volunteers and Internships Manager at Sydney Writers’ Festival, overseeing a team of 300+ volunteers in various public facing and behind-the-scenes roles that contribute to the festival’s success each year. She also manages Made in the West Film Festival, a grassroots festival for Western Sydney filmmakers, which has a strong focus on designing practical engagement opportunities for local university students to get involved. In between, Misty works at Western Sydney University as a tutor in communication arts and creative industries, and is a PhD candidate researching digital writers’ festivals.
