About
Connected Canadians is a national non-profit organization with a mandate to provide technology training and support freely to all Canadian seniors, fostering digital literacy skills and reducing isolation and loneliness. By 2030, Our goal is for all Canadian seniors to have access to free technology training and support.
Through partnerships with retirement residences and senior serving organizations, we support older adults by providing tailored remote workshops and 1-on-1 training sessions, device donations and lending, as well as many other custom programs centered around entertainment and art. Working side-by-side with older adults, our skilled technology mentors tackle clients’ various technology challenges. Our clients learn to use digital platforms (like Zoom) to connect with their families and loved ones, access medical professionals (telehealth), government services and more. These services play a critical role in seniors’ lives by providing them with the skills to feel empowered and less isolated.
Volunteer Opportunities
Are you a calm and patient person who loves helping people? Are you also “good with computers”, experienced with teaching/coaching, or someone with a background in technology?
Connected Canadians is continuing to build a team of supportive people to help empower seniors by providing them with free technology training and support. Volunteers will be onboarded through Connected Canadians’ unique training program where they will learn the skills to become Remote Technology Mentors. Training includes the Steps of Service during a typical client session, tips and support on how to work with seniors with varying impairments and needs, online security best practices and more!
Once trained, volunteers are assessed in a client role-play with a Connected Canadians Senior Evaluator before they are paired with our clients. The practical exercise evaluates participants ability to problem solve and teach as well as create a comfortable virtual environment for our clients.
Volunteers are also added to our Connected Canadians Slack community where requests from seniors for support with their technology are posted. Based on your availability and knowledge of a request, volunteers are then paired with clients for an (approximately) 1 hour, 1:1, remote client session. These sessions occur via telephone, Zoom or other video conferencing tools taught during training. Volunteers also have the option to participate in shadow sessions with other more experienced Connected Canadians volunteers to gain further experience and have access to ongoing support through Slack channels and other team members.
Some of the most common client requests include:
- How to set up/use Zoom/Skype/Facetime
- How to organize/locate my files/downloads
- How to use iCloud/Google Drive
- How to download applications from the app store
- How to create a Gmail account
- and more!
Volunteers will also facilitate workshops for groups seniors over Zoom on a number of topics including Phishing Scams, Google Maps & Google Places, Accessing Government Services Online, Recognizing Fake News, and More.
Experience the reward of providing invaluable digital literacy tools to the community that needs it the most in these times of anxiety and isolation!
Connected Canadians is also looking for volunteers who are skilled with Graphic Design and Social Media. If either of these activities are for you, please sign up and we will get back to you!
