Sure, I know you all serve because service helps others, feels good, and is a way of giving something back to this great nation of ours. But just in case you ever waver, or need an added incentive to go to our ServiceNation Volunteer Now! page to find opportunities, I am pleased to report that science indicates that helping others makes you, well, hot. As in sexy. As in attractive to others. How’s that for good news? Check it out:

Displays of altruism or selflessness towards others can be sexually attractive in a mate. This is one of the findings of a study carried out by biologists and a psychologist at The University of Nottingham. In three studies of more than 1,000 people, Dr Tim Phillips and his fellow researchers discovered that women place significantly greater importance on altruistic traits than anything else. Their findings have been published in the British Journal of Psychology. [From Science Daily - Being Altruistic May Make You Attractive.]

Now, while this effect is more pronounced in women, would-be-female volunteers should not dismiss it. Apparently, this is a two-way street, which is just not as intense in men who are assessing the suitability of a potential mate (I will refrain from speculating on what other factors men might be considering).

Now, for anyone who is lighting up the Zippo to flame me for undermining the purity of service with lurid and sex-related commentary, I have this to say: It is science. And my tongue is in cheek (sort of). At least I am not posting one of many potential pictures which might complement this post.

If the Day of Action wasn’t enough for you, or if you didn’t get a chance to attend, here’s another chance to kick off some service! This Saturday, October 25, is the 18th annual Make a Difference Day, sponsored by USA TODAY and Newman’s Own. Newman’s Own will donate $10,000 to 10 different projects, who are also eligible for sustaining grants from another foundation.

Last year, the foundation awarded Capt. Candace Hurley, who organized a trash clean-up in Baghdad. That may sound pretty simple - until you realize that soldiers are instructed not to pick up any trash they didn’t drop because the trash could hide an explosive. But Capt Hurley brought bomb-sniffing dogs, and with 50 volunteers, removed five truckloads of trash!

But you don’t have to be abroad to make a difference, or even leave your own home. Another honoree used MySpace to reach out to and coordinate 629 bloggers, who created 4,000 good deeds in their communities (as far away as India).

That said - click here to see how you can get involved!

Raise the Mileage Deduction for Volunteers!

If you travel for business, you probably know that you can deduct mileage from your taxes. But you can do the same for moving, medical - and volunteer mileage. That’s great - but the volunteer mileage deduction is pitiful, and hasn’t been increased to reflect, well, anything:
While the IRS has recently increased the deduction for business travel from 50.5 to 58.5 cents per mile, and for medical or moving expense from 19 to 27 cents per mile, the volunteer deduction amount is set in law at 14 cents per mile and requires congressional action for any change.

Contact your congresspeople through the link to let them know! It’s a small thing, but pennies add up.

NYT has a short article on the numbers involved in volunteering. More than 60 million Americans volunteer some part of their time every year. However, this number, although large, does represent a downturn - the percentage of Americans who volunteer dropped from 28.8% to 26.2%. The article doesn’t really speculate much about the change, and neither will we - except to say that no matter how much or little you have to offer, you can help someone by volunteering.

The numbers in the article come from a Bureau of Labor Statistics report. There’s a lot of interesting data there on how people volunteer and why. Read it if you’re interesting in numbers (or volunteering)!

Nearly everyone I know has at least one looming student loan. The ugly debt hangs over lives for years and years, and people are forced to make choices about life and career that they wouldn’t otherwise make.

The Boston Globe has a very smart op-ed proposing a “Service Pays” program, which would allow people to pay off their debt through a few years of national service. Here’s a key excerpt:

The time spent paying back loans through public service would help rebuild the country. With increased competition from China and India, more and better trained math and science teachers are needed, particularly in lower-income areas. Critical infrastructure needs to be repaired. Some areas of public service face shortages as baby boomers retire.

In state public health agencies, for example, 24 percent of the workforce was eligible for retirement as of 2004, and in some agencies, that number is as high as 45 percent. And loan forgiveness for serving in the military could help replenish the services with well-educated young people.

The transformative potential of Service Pays cannot be underestimated. In an era of community fragmentation and increased mobility, time spent in public service can help forge a shared identity as young people work together to fulfill the promise of America. And some who participate may find themselves drawn into public service as a life’s calling. A service-for-debt program has the potential to transform a generation excited about community service into a generation dedicated to public service.

There’s not much else to say other than we absolutely agree.  Great piece. Forward it around.

Ad Hoc Activism: The Daily Vanguard, newspaper of Portland State University, has an interesting article on trends in volunteering. Basically, lots of volunteers are helping out on special occasions, but not necessaily joining organizations or volunteering regularly.  

“Volunteers might pull an all-nighter for an issue close to their hearts, but don’t ask them to join a subcommittee,” Laura Oppenheimer wrote. “It’s about the experience, not the institution.” “Episodic volunteering,” as the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS) calls it, is on the rise.

The article also notes that the rate of volunteering jumped by 20% between 2002 and 2005, and the general growth in volunteering (starting in 1989) is driven in large part by college students.

Clickworthy: TED (Technology, Entertainment, Design) started as a conference in 1984 of people with great ideas. Now, they’ve got a cool website (which would be expected, from the first word!) showcasing the talks from the conference and a lot more. Check out the Global issues and the Culture tags; you’ll find a ton of interesting - and inspiring - videos and articles.

Blogging From the Front Lines: Peace Corps Journals has a ton of Peace Corps blogs. You can find them by region and check out what projects folks are working on, what it’s like in the area, and what the Peace Corps is doing. I’m entranced. If you’re interested in or already accepted to the Peace Corps, I also recommend the Peace Corps Wiki, which has a ton of country-specific information. It also has info about Retired PCV associations, if you’ve already been!  There is also an excellent Yahoo group of and about the Peace Corps.

Dodd’s Up: Last week, Senator Chris Dodd (D-CT, former presidential candidate AND former Peace Corps volunteer) announced the AmeriCorps Act of 2008. He’s always shown a particular commitment to service, so we’re already fans! Our friends from ServeNext were there to film Dodd’s announcement.