Campaign ‘South needs you’ highlights volunteering in Amsterdam Zuid

Volunteer Center Amsterdam (VCA) is launching the campaign ‘Zuid needs you’ today. With this campaign, we want to highlight volunteers in Zuid and emphasize the importance of their work. At the same time, we are curious about what volunteers and volunteer organizations need to continue their good work. Our goal? To gain more insight into the wishes and needs of volunteers and organizations in the South district. And of course, to get Amsterdammers excited about volunteering, in the hope that it becomes a regular part of their lives!

The importance of volunteering

Central to the campaign is a series of videos in which volunteers from various organizations in the South share their stories. The videos showcase the diversity of volunteer work. The volunteers not only talk about what they do and how they contribute to the city but also about what volunteering means to them, the personal satisfaction they derive from it such as building new friendships and gaining valuable work experience. The videos are shared on our website and those of volunteer organizations in the South, as well as on social media. Additionally, posters featuring portraits of these volunteers are distributed among the volunteer organizations to make the campaign visible offline as well. Organizations can display the posters in their spaces.

Insight into the wishes of volunteer organizations and volunteers

Through a separate study, we ask organizations in Amsterdam Zuid about their work with volunteers, the successes and challenges they encounter. Additionally, we investigate what additional support they need. We offer volunteers the opportunity to share their wishes and any concerns with us by sending a card to our VCA office in Zuid. All the information we gather this year will lead to the panel discussion in January 2024 to determine the focal points for the upcoming year. District administrators, volunteers, and experts from the volunteer field will participate in this discussion.

Inspire and connect

During the campaign, we will also organize three events for volunteers and organizations. On November 15, the Knowledge Day will take place with workshops and an inspiring presentation by Lammert Kamphuis. Volunteers can enjoy the traditional musical Thank You Day at the Concertgebouw on November 11, and on December 7, we will host a volunteer café where organizations and Amsterdammers looking for volunteer work can meet in person.

In summary, the campaign ‘Zuid needs you’ raises awareness about volunteering and invites everyone in the Zuid district to participate. Additionally, VCA, as an expertise center for volunteering in Amsterdam, sees it as its duty to identify challenges and issues related to volunteering in Amsterdam and provide the best possible support to both volunteers and organizations. The campaign contributes to this goal.This campaign has been made possible by a grant from the South district. The implementation is carried out by Volunteer Center Amsterdam. The campaign was developed by the advertising agency Hollands Lof.