Meeting National Meeting on Good Practices in Volunteer Management

The National Meeting on Good Practices in Volunteer Management aims to promote reflection, knowledge production and the sharing of experiences among organisations, professionals, lecturers, researchers and students involved in or interested in the management of volunteering programmes.

The event will take an interdisciplinary approach, bringing together social intervention, management, leadership, human resources, communication, sustainability, entrepreneurship, innovation and digital transformation. Discussions will address volunteer recruitment, training, support, motivation and retention models; sustainability and funding strategies; impact assessment methodologies; and the potential of digital technologies and artificial intelligence in volunteer management.

The Meeting will include panels featuring leading organisations, thematic workshops and presentations of practices selected through the Good Practices in Volunteer Management Competition. It also aims to initiate discussions on the creation of a national model for the assessment and certification of good practices and to produce a final recommendations document.

It is intended for associations, foundations, private social solidarity institutions, non-governmental organisations, local authorities and other public bodies, educational institutions, companies with volunteering programmes, social economy organisations, professionals, volunteers, lecturers, researchers and students.

Participation in the Meeting is free of charge, but prior registration is required.
The form also allows participants to select their workshops, facilitating the management of places and each room's capacity.
Registration for the Meeting and workshops:

Register

As part of this initiative, the Good Practices in Volunteer Management Competition is currently underway. It aims to identify, recognise and showcase practices already implemented by organisations promoting volunteering in Portugal.

The selected practices will be presented during the Meeting, and the three highest-ranked entries will be awarded 1st, 2nd and 3rd place.

The respective projects will be publicly presented during the Meeting and included in the Good Practices in Volunteer Management Handbook, to be published following the event. This distinction aims to recognise participating organisations and promote the dissemination of the practices they have developed.

Submission deadline

4 November 2026, at 11:59 pm.

Competition application form:

Competition Entry

Entering the Competition does not replace registration for the Meeting. Representatives of the selected organisations must also register for the Meeting.

Programme

9:30 am – 10:00 am | Opening of the Meeting

• Diana Dias, Director of FCESE - Faculty of Economic, Social and Business Sciences and Pro-Rector for Science and Innovation at Lusófona University
• Alfredo Abreu, Secretary-General of the Portuguese Confederation of Volunteering
• Gabriela Queirós, Porto City Council Councillor responsible for Social Action

Chair: Ana Paula Caetano, Lusófona Voluntária

10:00 am – 11:00 am | Panel 1 – Volunteer Management Policies and Strategies: Data, Trends and Challenges. Volunteering in Portugal in Numbers.

• Joana Bailão, Director of Operations & People at Pista Mágica
• Vera Silva, representative of ENTRAJUDA
• Cláudia Costa, Head of the Municipal Social Network Management Division – Municipal Volunteering Programme

Chair: Cristiana Almeida, Director of the Bachelor's Degree in Social Work at Lusófona University - Porto University Centre

11:00 am – 11:30 am | Coffee break

11:30 am – 1:00 pm | Thematic Workshops

• Workshop 1 | Volunteer Leadership and Motivation – Chair: Catarina Gomes
• Workshop 2 | Sustainability and Funding – Chair: Teresa Candeias
• Workshop 3 | Entrepreneurship and Social Innovation – Chair: Gina Santos
• Workshop 4 | Marketing and Communication in Volunteering – Chair: Rui Rosa Dias
• Workshop 5 | Artificial Intelligence in Volunteering – Chair: Nuno Cruz

1:00 pm – 2:30 pm | Lunch break

2:30 pm – 3:30 pm | Panel 2 – Volunteer Management in Contexts of Social Complexity

• Daniela Esteves, representative of the Portuguese Red Cross – Porto Branch
• Monick Leal, Coordinator of the Portuguese League Against Cancer – Volunteering and Patient Support Department
• Hugo Cerqueira, representative of the AMI Foundation
• Gonçalo Sequeira dos Santos, Coordinator of the Street Football Project and Technical Director of the Community Integration Unit at the Lisbon Homeless Support Centre

Chair: Jorge Barbosa, lecturer at Lusófona University - Porto University Centre

3:30 pm – 4:45 pm | Panel 3 – Good Practices in Volunteer Management

• Presentation of five volunteering projects.

Chair: Mónica Teixeira, lecturer at Lusófona University - Porto University Centre

4:45 pm – 5:15 pm | Coffee break

5:15 pm – 5:30 pm | Closing Session – Lusófona University Good Practice Recognition and Award