Pearson: Volunteering act of defiance against darkening age

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One way to describe our world since the pandemic might be “society in retreat.” The consequence of this new state of things is the remaking of Canada and its communities. We’re pulling back, and without strong connections we are consequently splitting into fragments.

Examples can be seen everywhere, in every part of the country. Many have abandoned the workplace, preferring to apply their talents in isolation while still connected online. We don’t join associations like we used to. We prefer hanging out with those who think like us and hold similar opinions instead of gathering in larger communities of greater diversity of thought and practice.

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Our politics reflects this. While the present provincial government enjoys a majority, the real majority is to be found in those who didn’t mark a ballot at all. The 2022 election turnout was the lowest in the province’s history, with only 43.5 per cent of citizens voting. London’s last civic election (2022) saw voter turnout around 25 per cent, the lowest in the city’s history. In 2018, it was 39 per cent, while 2014’s election was 43 per cent. The last federal election also saw a decline.

Clearly, our confidence in government at any level to solve our problems has eroded sharply for numerous reasons. Those Canadians struggling with the cost of living register declining confidence in the medical and legal systems, as well as harbouring suspicions of the Canadian media establishment.

None of this is good if it keeps us from combining our efforts to stave off our persistent challenges. Historically, Canadians have come together in hard times, filling in the gaps of care and quality of life. But there are signs we might be retreating from these responsibilities as well.

Volunteerism is at an all-time low in this country, especially since the pandemic. In late 2022, a Statistics Canada report revealed more than 65 per cent of non-profit organizations serving average Canadians were facing increasing shortages of volunteers and alarmingly high incidences of volunteer burnout. The Ontario Non-Profit Network revealed that 62 per cent of the 1,500 groups surveyed lost volunteers and face stiff challenges in recruiting a new generation of helpers.

My own experience working at the London Food Bank has confirmed this shift. As agencies and organizations realize governments increasingly are abandoning vulnerable sectors, they feel incapable of filling in the gaps due to the dwindling volunteer base and burnout loss.

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Canada is many things, but one of our greatest assets, in the eyes of the rest of the world, has been our compassion, acceptance, and care for our neighbours. It’s a hard-earned reputation, but what if we really don’t work together anymore? How can we retain a high level of care and neighbourliness when governments and their citizens incrementally leave the field of human compassion and merely sit in the stands to observe?

Regardless of the performance of our civic administrations during the decades, this city’s volunteers and the organizations they assist define, more than anything else, London’s endless search for fairness, opportunity, prosperity, and inclusion. Lose them and we lose our heart. Recapture them and we begin to build again. Either way, the fate of our community depends on every one of us recommitting ourselves to one another and our institutions in a way that provides our kids a chance at a meaningful way of life.

As one unknown author wrote: “Volunteering is the ultimate exercise in democracy. You vote in elections once every few years, but when you volunteer, you vote every day about the kind of community you want to live in.”

This is the democracy we must build. It will be found in our neighbourhoods, not our parliaments. Only by committing to one another anew can we build a future city capable of overcoming the challenges of a divided and darkening age.

Glen Pearson is co-director of the London Food Bank and a former Liberal MP for London North Centre. glen@glenpearson.ca

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