the buzz log

A citizen brigade, released from presidential campaigning, seeks to funnel its energy elsewhere.

Workers, who used to occupy their days with a (paid) occupation, want something to do between jobs... and maybe get some cross-training in while they're at it.

These two different (but not mutually exclusive) forces could be at work—or not at work, as the case may be—for the renewed Search uptick in "volunteer work." January lookups for volunteer organizations mark an all-time high over the past three years.

The absolute numbers don't indicate a giant upswell by any means—the term "volunteer," for instance, ranks within the top 120,000 searches on Yahoo!. But the lookups show a slow, steady increase with few signs of letting up. 

Volunteering actually has been rising over the past 30 years, although the numbers dropped off a bit between years 2005 and 2006. Some already have credited President Barack Obama's call to civic duty for the latest increase in service. The Sun Sentinel wondered about an "Obama effect" in the local Peace Corps' 35% enrollment jump among Floridians. Down in Houston, the nonprofit Big Brothers, Big Sisters directly credited its 300 percent increase in possible mentors to Obama's call-to-service theme. 

Perhaps just as important is who's interested in volunteer possibilities: In looking at the age spread, people 17 and under conducted 19% of online research into volunteerism, while 20-somethings accounted for 25% of lookups. Ages 20-24 have the lowest volunteer rate.

Whatever the impetus, there's no lack of opportunities to help others. And for those unfamiliar to that "working for nothing" experience (except for maybe pulling weeds from your parents' lawn), a Huffington Post article gives kinesthetic encouragement on why to jump right in. Take a look at the ways Searchers have been considering to help out.

1. Volunteer Match (+670%)
2. Volunteer Work (+58%)
3. Volunteering (+48%)
4. Volunteers of America (+25%)
5. Volunteer Opportunities (+12%)

1. Donating Plasma (off the charts)
2. Plasma Donation Centers (off the charts)
3. Organ Donation (off the charts)
4. Salvation Army Donation Pick Up (+17%)
5. Locks of Love Donation (+15%)