Growing up in a time where nearly everything has been readily available at one’s fingertips hasn’t caused Generation Y to be any less appreciative. The feeling of civic responsibility is estimated to be the highest it has been in over 25 years.
According to the Washington Times, 75 percent of this generation is making charitable contributions, and Ball State is no exception.
Rather than students having to seek out opportunities to make a difference, volunteering has become a part of normal extracurricular choices, with Ball State organizations and classes requiring philanthropies.
Now that Gen Y is entering college and the workforce, when someone is in need they are capable of making the change they wish to see.
“We are young and feel that this is our time to make sure that things are positively bustling and thriving,” said Angelina Zulas, Student Voluntary Services president and program coordinator. “We are very energetic souls with a passion to build up from where our forefathers left off.”
According to online business news media site fastcompany.com, Generation Y has caused volunteering to increase by 25 percent since 2002. Along with doing physical labor, such as the efforts of the latest Alternative Spring Break trip to Caretta, W.Va., this generation is also able to be philanthropists through consumerism. Companies whose sole purpose for existence is to make a difference in the world has generation Y quickly jumping aboard, such as the booming ethical fashionableness of TOMS shoes. TOMS uses profits to supply impoverished areas with clothing, hygiene products and other resources.
“I wear them because I get to put my money towards something worthwhile,” sophomore graphic arts management major Olivia Schuman said. “When I wear them, people ask me about them. It starts important conversations to spread the word.”
Once a year on April 16, One Day Without Shoes have people taking a walk in someone else’s absence of shoes for a day. These events are held in cities and on college campuses, including Ball State. Last year, people went without shoes at more than 1,000 events in more than 25 countries, according to TOMS.
Whether a monetary donation or a few hours spent with the organization of choice, generation Y is making strides in bettering the world.
“I see a strong desire within people of our generation to please others and desire for reassurance of being needed,” Courtney Winter, a junior social work major and SVS program coordinator, said. “What I learn while volunteering simply can’t be learned within a classroom.”
Zulas does not see this as a blip on the generational radar, but a transformation that has begun to change the future.
“Our generation is inspired by those who went above and beyond their expectations, overcame destitution and oppression, passed the animosity and the lack of support in order to make the world a better place,” Zulas said. “We hope to become just a fragment of a civil revolution.”
