ON THE ISSUE OF THE IMPACT OF VOLUNTARY ACTIVITY ON SOCIAL COHESION: CHALLENGES TODAY

Abstract

The article examines the peculiarities of the formation of the volunteer movement during the years of Ukraine's independence, namely the significant historical moments of its formation. Modern scientific approaches to the interpretation of the concepts of "volunteer movement" and "community cohesion" are analyzed. It was found that the basis of the development of the volunteer movement is the cohesion of the people, community, and society. The war in Ukraine in 2014 was the birth of the volunteer movement, and the second wave of the full-scale invasion of 2022 was the development and increase in the number of volunteers, volunteer initiatives and volunteer organizations. The article presents the results of the annual report of the "World Philanthropy Index". It was determined that volunteering became a manifestation of social cohesion of the community, society and is considered not only as a manifestation of charity, voluntary activity, but as a tool of influence on the people in modern conditions, and volunteering itself is a tool of influence: on the development of youth; for the activation of society; on the social cohesion of the community; on the identity of citizens; on the development of moral and spiritual values; on the emotional stability and indomitability of people. In this context, volunteering is a tool to influence all horizontal and vertical aspects of our society, using all possible methods of influence and methods that would motivate the public to action. The purpose of the article: actualization of volunteer activities in society, community, state on the basis of activation, identity, cohesion and moral norms. The task: to reveal the main aspects of volunteering in society, as tools of influence on the community.