Filipinos volunteer after calls on social media

It’s the new bayanihan: when disaster strikes, civic duty kicks in, and Filipinos volunteer for action – whether it’s in the virtual world or the real world.  In the case of the Department of Social Welfare and Development, it’s both.  An online appeal through social network sites Facebook, YouTube and Twitter bring in the volunteers the DSWD needs to help with relief operations.  “I am overwhelmed by the enthusaistic response of FIlipinos from all walks of life to my call for volunteers through the social networking sites YouTube, Facebook and Twitter,” said Social Welfare Secretary Dinky Soliman.  More than 3,000 volunteers responded by Monday, most of them students.  

Read more about the DSWD’s relief operations on the Inquirer and about other online efforts during the floods on Rappler.