New Amsterdam Level

In primary school, I learned about the NAP, Normaal Amsterdams Peil? More than half of our country is below sea level! Fortunately, Amsterdam is built on stilts so we don’t flood. To check if the dunes and dikes are still high enough, the height of the land and water is regularly measured. And this measurement starts from zero: the Normaal Amsterdams Peil! It is the only true fixed point, the actual “anchor” of the Netherlands. This NAP forms the basis for everything built or constructed here in the Netherlands.

Usually, volunteering is not about literal building and construction. Yet, volunteers are building a social foundation in Amsterdam’s society. Volunteer organizations and initiatives are the fixed point in neighborhoods where many Amsterdammers can turn to for help, educational and social activities, sports, a listening ear, and socializing. The foundation of a cheerful, educational, artistic, sustainable, circular, loving society. The foundation of much!

During the pandemic, this foundation has been a great support for many Amsterdammers. All certainty disappeared. Saying “just come over” became a big deal. With face masks, sanitizing gels, and plexiglass screens through which we shout. But we did it. We walk with our buddy at a 1.5-meter distance and take a rest, each on a corner of the park bench. Doing groceries for a neighbor, giving someone a ride to the hospital, digital lessons, phone calls. In recent months, volunteer organizations have shown new resilience, flexibility, and creativity to keep activities going for Amsterdammers.

The news on TV and social media tells us that Covid19 is still present in the world. Corona stops us and forces us to think. This time calls for new ways of working. What will we do online, what will we do physically, and how? Many organizations are looking back and forward to the future in these times. How will we work in the new normal? Will we let ourselves flood? Time for a New Amsterdams Peil!

Thinking about the future together? That’s possible. The organizational consultants of VCA are here for you.

Nettie Sterrenburg, Vrijwilligers Centrale Amsterdam.