On Wednesday 7 December 2016, I had the pleasure of speaking at Volunteer The Hague. Held at the unique location of The Hague Public Transport Museum, around 100 people attended this event where I spoke about “Create your own Curriculum: Understanding the effect of the Elearning Explosion for Volunteers”.
Tetyana did an amazing job of co-ordinating this event, and her friendly, cheerful personality and warmth was appreciated by those she connected with! I was particularly impressed with how very organised she was with clipboards for the various representatives from volunteers organisations and the enthusiasm she spoke with for the important work she does.
Volunteer The Hague connects internationals with meaningful volunteer opportunities at local non-profit organisations. Their website offers an English-language platform and their networking events such as this one, held around five times a year, bring organisations and potential volunteers together. At each event, there is a guest speaker for around 15 minutes and several volunteer organisations who also have a few minutes to share a little about their not-for-profit and the types of roles they have to fill.
I’m personally a big believer in the benefits of volunteering. I’ve written an earlier article over on my Dutch Australian website about Volunteering in The Netherlands and throughout my working life, aim to always dedicate at least several hours per month to volunteering, if not more. I’m a long term volunteer for Delft MaMa and currently write a monthly blog for them. Though my time is limited while I focus on obtaining my Masters right now, I also like to volunteer to share my experience and knowledge as a speaker at events such as this, and earlier in the year for the Code to Change and SPARK conferences in Amsterdam.
I’ve found that volunteering is not only a “feel good” experience but contributes to your career and overall personal development and highly recommend it! If you are in The Hague, then certainly take a look at the Volunteer The Hague website or come to a networking event. No matter where you are in the world, you can also find local organisations who would love to welcome you as a volunteer.
Photos by Roy Strik and more photos available on the Facebook Page.
In terms of elearning, you can view my presentation on Slideshare as well as read earlier elearning blog posts here. It’s a topic I’ll continue to write and speak about, not only as it’s a personal passion but also as it’s becoming the focus on my Master’s thesis!
Zestee 