The goal of Do Something is to make it possible for teens to change the world! Visit the site for the latest information on important teen issues, ways to get involved, and a directory of volunteer opportunities by entering your zip code. Check out the Brick Awards, scholarships and community grants for teens and young adults to age 25 who are outstanding “world-changers.”

CharityFocus is an all-volunteer nonprofit organization that provides online support to other nonprofits and promotes everyday ways to make a positive difference for others, near and far. Visit the site to find out about the variety of volunteer programs.

If your community is one of the 400 around the country where Volunteers of America operates programs for those in need, then you can find many ways to get involved to help. Volunteers of America is a nonprofit, faith-based organization that serves more than 2 million people nationwide. Volunteers of America also partners with the Major League Baseball Players Trust on the Action Team national youth volunteer program. Visit the Volunteers of America national site to investigate volunteer opportunities in your area.

The motto of Cool People Care is “Saving the World, Five Minutes at a Time.” Check the Partners link for a U.S. map showing cities with Cool People Care events, including volunteer opportunities. There are also ideas on the home page for making a difference in five minutes – and what else you can do if you have longer to give.

This national nonprofit works to encourage young people to engage in community service and activism. Currently, there are chapters in five major cities: Boston, Los Angeles, New York, Philadelphia, and San Francisco. Check out the Boston home page (www.oyfp.org/BOS) for a listening preview of “Rock On Your Feet,” OYFP’s first-annual charity concert, on April 10.

This serving-learning site offers information on special events for volunteering. A newly launched initiative for this election year is ServiceVote 2008. Visit www.servicevote.org/ to learn about the ServiceVote Challenge. It asks young people to choose an issue you care about and then develop an action plan to address and solve it through community service, civic participation, and political engagement.

Did you make a resolution to volunteer more this year? VolunteerMatch promises to be your “resolution solution.” This easy-to-use site connects volunteers with volunteer opportunities. You can select an area of interest – such as volunteering with children, animals, environmental causes and many more – and specify the distance from your area. Then type in your zip code for a list of local groups requesting volunteers. Or find online volunteering opportunities by choosing “Virtual” for your search.

Best Buddies works to help people with intellectual disabilities by promoting friendships between disabled and non-disabled peers. This nonprofit organization was founded by Anthony Kennedy Shriver in 1989. (His mother, Eunice Kennedy Shriver, is the founder of the Special Olympics.) There are programs for high schools as well as middle schools and colleges. Buddies can be matched locally for one-on-one activities. There is also an e-Buddies program that connects students for online sharing. Visit the home page and access the “High Schools” information to find out more about the program, including how to start a Best Buddies chapter in your school.

Little Brothers – Friends of the Elderly (LBFE) welcomes volunteers who want to help and befriend the elderly. Its motto is “flowers before bread” – which emphasizes the group’s focus on being friends to the elderly as well as helping with basic needs. Among the Little Brothers’ activities are special parties for elderly members and volunteers, to bring seniors together for social activities. There are currently Little Brothers chapters in the following locations: Boston; Chicago; Cincinnati; Houghton County, Michigan; Miami; Omaha; Philadelphia; San Francisco; Twin Cities (Minneapolis/St. Paul). Visit the national site to find out more and to get contact information for the city chapters.

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Organized by Youth Service America

Pitch in and be part of this global weekend activity – the largest service event in the world! The goal of Global Youth Service Day is for kids and teens around the world to get involved to solve local problems by organizing service activities that address needs in their own communities. So team up with other teens in your area to plan a project or make April 25-27 the time to volunteer with a group in your community that’s doing good work you admire. Visit http://ysa.org to learn more.

Presented by Points of Light and Hands on Network

This is the official week in April for thanking volunteers and committing to increase your own volunteerism in the year ahead. The 2008 theme is “Volunteer to Change the World.” (Take part in Global Youth Service Day as a great way to kick off the week and join with teens around the world in changing it through service!) Get resources and ideas at www.pointsoflight.org/programs/seasons/nvw/ for observing National Volunteer Week. And to expand your service activities, check out Go-to Sites for Getting Involved here in the Volunteer Center for groups that welcome teen volunteers.

Presented by Keep America Beautiful

This annual three-month event is called the nation’s largest community improvement program. The kickoff was March 1 – but there’s still plenty of time to get involved to help clean up and spruce up parks and recreation areas, seashores and waterways, plant trees, pick up litter – whatever is needed where you live. Last year, volunteers donated 7.7 million hours to the Great American Cleanup. Be part of surpassing that number in 2008. Go to www.kab.org/site/PageServer?/pagename=gac_organizeyourown for tips on organizing a Great American Cleanup event in your area. (While you’re there, check out the list of “unusual items” found during previous cleanups – including, literally, a message in a bottle!)

Sponsored by the American Library Association

National Library Week turns 50 this month, so join this annual celebration of books, reading, and the importance of libraries in schools and communities. National Library Week is the perfect time to stop by your local library to find out how you can help out as a volunteer, either now or with a summer reading program. Or borrow an idea from the Oakland Action Team and set up a small lending library in a housing complex or community center. (See Service in Action to learn more about the Oakland project.) Visit www.ala.org/ala/pio/natlibraryweek/nlw.cfm for National Library Week 2008 resources.

Coordinated by The Earth Day Network

Make the 38th annual Earth Day a time to raise awareness in your family, school, and community about environmental issues and pitch in to help with “green causes” that you care about. The Earth Day Network site at www.earthday.net/earthday2008.aspx includes an Action Center with resources and an interactive map of world events. The Green Apple Festival, April 18 to 20, is a pre-Earth Day event in the U.S., with a weekend of music and environmental events. Free concerts and other public events are planned in eight major cities around the country (New York, Washington, DC, Chicago, Miami, Denver, Dallas, San Francisco, and Los Angeles). Visit www.greenapplefestival.com to learn more.

Sponsored by Reading is Fundamental

Remember that this reading challenge (which started last month) continues in April. So take a minute to read with children and be part of a nationwide effort to log in one million minutes of reading time by May 31, 2008. Check the minutes read so far on the Million Minute Meter at www.readwithkidschallenge.com. (To register, you must be 18 years or older, so enlist a parent or teacher to complete the official sign-up form. Registering makes participants eligible to win prizes, including a trip to DisneyWorld.) For activities to do with children as a literacy volunteer, check the April Reading Activity Calendar (available to download in English or Spanish) at www.rif.org.

Learn about opportunities for volunteering in a Reading Is Fundamental program at www.rif.org/get-involved/volunteer/default.mspx

Sponsored by Easter Seals Disability Service

Spring walks continue, with April and early May walks planned for South Florida (April 26), Daytona Beach, FL (April 29), Melbourne, FL and the Hudson Valley, NY (May 3), Mystic, CT (May 4), and Rochester, NY (May 10). Check the event locator at www.easterseals.com/site/PageServer?s_event_state=1881&pagename=WWM_04_homepage for updated dates and locations, and information on walking to help children and adults with disabilities.