[Report] Ready, Willing, and Needed: Renewing Older Adult Volunteering in Canada

This report was developed as part of Volunteer Canada’s broader efforts to strengthen participation and volunteering across Canada. Through the National Volunteer Action Strategy, Volunteer Canada is working with partners to build a more coordinated and enabling environment for volunteerism, including new participation frameworks and pathways, stronger volunteer infrastructure, and more inclusive approaches to community engagement. Volunteer Canada’s pathways-to-participation work focuses on making it easier for people at different life stages and from different backgrounds — including newcomers, youth, and older adults — to connect with meaningful opportunities to contribute. This report also aligns with Volunteer Canada’s intergenerational engagement work, including GenerationsCo, which supports research, tools, networks, and resources that help people of different generations connect, collaborate, challenge ageism, and build stronger communities.

This report examines the changing landscape of older adult volunteering in Canada and identifies practical opportunities to renew engagement. Drawing on national survey data, interviews with older adult volunteering and intergenerational engagement practitioners, and a review of promising programs and research, the report explores why formal volunteering among older adults has declined, who is most affected, and what can be done to rebuild meaningful pathways into participation. It focuses on three priorities: strengthening the volunteer ecosystem, connecting volunteering to health and social connection initiatives, and reducing the barriers that prevent older adults from contributing. Companion guides are also available to support organizations, communities, and partners in applying the report’s findings in practice.