Jane Slusser: Connecting nonprofits & volunteers from JD Lasica on Vimeo.

At the Craigslist Foundation Boot Camp held Aug. 21 in Berkeley, Calif., I met tons of cool people, but none were more interesting than Jane Slusser, chief service officer of Catchafire.

Catchafire is a new online marketplace that connects professionals who want to volunteer their skills with nonprofits and social enterprises that need their help. Nonprofits and social businesses register on the site and tell which projects they need help with.

“People expect a lot more of the volunteer experience now,” says Jane, who came to Catchafire by way of the Obama campaign, where she mobilized volunteers to travel to key states during the primaries.

Watch, download or embed the video on Vimeo

Catchafire helps professionals offer their talents for worthy organizations they find an affinity with. Social enterprises can register on the site through the same portal as nonprofits. To prevent against volunteers spinning their wheels, Catchafire makes sure that both nonprofits and social enterprises have skin in the game by having internal resources and staff members dedicated to work on the project.

The start-up held a big event in New York on June 28 for the 50 Project Kickoff with speakers from charity:water, Drop.io, Pepsi Refresh and other organizations.

While a number of promising Web 2.0 start-ups have launched in the social good space in the past year, Catchafire is one to watch.

• See Catchafire’s blog

• See Catchafire’s Facebook Page

• Follow Catchafire/founder Rachael Chong on Twitter

Update: Jane also points to these key pages:

• Professionals can sign up to volunteer on the volunteer page.

• Nonprofits & social enterprises can register on the nonprofit page.

The post Catchafire: Connecting nonprofits & professionals appeared first on Socialbrite.

This week is National Volunteer Week in the US. The week is a signature event created by the Points of Light Institute to celebrate “ordinary people doing extraordinary things to improve communities across the nation.”

Chances are if you work or volunteer for a nonprofit you already know that. After all, volunteers are the lifeblood of most nonprofits, and with 64 million Americans taking the time to give back in 2009, National Volunteer Week is as much about thanking volunteers as encouraging them to come back.

Maybe you even have a favorite volunteer and you’re planning a special recognition of his or her efforts this week. If that’s the case, stop reading right now, go to the Hands On Network page devoted to Celebrating People in Action and nominate that person who made the biggest difference for your organization this year.

Still here? OK, then, here are 10 sites you can use to find the volunteer opportunity that suit you best. Try ‘em out, pitch in for a good cause and who knows? Maybe you’ll get nominated for something next year:

Hands On Network

With 250 action centers around the country, it’s easy to connect and get started with a volunteer opportunity that fits your schedule and location. Plus, they’ll occasionally partner with corporations like Disney to offer special incentives for volunteering.

Do Something

Focused more on teen activism and engagement with causes, their site offers “Virtual Volunteer” opportunities so you can take action without leaving your couch!

AARP Volunteers

On the other end of the spectrum, the American Association of Retired Persons has a great site that identifies volunteer opportunities for the over 60 set. Many of these encourage folks to work with kids and teens and share their life experiences!

US Dept. of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)

Interested in volunteering in our National Parks? For the Smithsonian? Start here. You’ll find a host of ways to volunteer alongside existing government programs. The HUD site also lists opportunities to provide technology access and job training to those who need it on a volunteer basis.

The Extraordinaries

Got a minute? This micro-volunteering site offers an iPhone app that lets you work on projects while you’re in line at the bank, or waiting for the bus to pick you up. One recent project asked people to tag photos from Haiti in an effort to identify missing people. Many people, making a difference two minutes at a time – a powerful concept.

Catchafire

Self-described as “an eHarmony for volunteers” and probably the newest entrant on the list, this company helps match skilled professionals with volunteering gigs that take the best and most direct advantage of those skills. The team and advisory group assembled for this project are impressive, so expect big things.

VolunteerMatch

One of the largest online databases for volunteering, where over 71,000 nonprofits have listed local and regional events and projects.

Go Abroad

Want to volunteer on vacation? Fulfill your travel bug and your need to do good at the same time by applying for one of the nearly 6,000 “Volunteer Abroad” opportunities from more than 1,300 organizations around the world.

iParticipate

Follow the stars. Literally. The Entertainment Industry Foundation launched this project with Ashton Kutcher, Mayor Michael Bloomberg, Katie Couric (and many others) in a campaign designed to encourage Americans to consider volunteering as an integral part of our national identity.

Serve.gov

One year old this week, the site and associated initiatives were created by the Serve America Act. One of its’ purposes is to help Americans get back to work by building skills and connections through volunteer opportunities.

Your Company

The 10th place to look for volunteer opportunities is (surprise!) right where you work. Many corporations like Target or AMEX have well-established programs for engaging their employees with local nonprofits. Ask around and see if yours is one of them.

OK, no more excuses. If you can’t find the right opportunity on any of the sites above, you’re not trying hard enough. Celebrate National Volunteer Week and go do something good. Come back and tell us about it. Then, do it again.

Related

• How nonprofits can use passionate volunteers (Socialbrite)

The post 10 volunteering sites to help you do good appeared first on Socialbrite.