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When it comes to doing better by student volunteers and getting students involved in your volunteering programme is to listen directly to the views of students. What do we know from working with student and younger volunteers?

1. Students want to see the difference they’ve made

"I love how the time I’ve put aside to work with young people has made a tangible difference in their lives and I’ve been able to see them grow", says student Lara, who has volunteered with Brownies for several years. When volunteering, students want to be able to visualise how their time and effort has resulted in a positive change in the long term. So, it’s a good idea to have students working on a project where they are making a tangible difference and can see the change they are making.

2. Show students what they can gain

"Through volunteering I’ve learnt how to help people out – I’ve never really helped before", says student Ryan, who helps disabled children in his community. Talk to any student and they’ll tell you how busy they are with university, work and a social life. So, it’s useful to show students what they can gain through volunteering. This can be through showing them the new skills that can be gained, or through recognition, for example on university transcripts or during award ceremonies.

3. Students love that volunteering can enhance employment opportunities

For many students, the future is a mystery – who knows whether the job they end up in will be linked to their university studies? According to Jane Fletcher, the Assistant Manager of Careers and Employment at Victoria University of Wellington, volunteering helps students to "connect the dots between their experiences and their employability skills". So, when attracting volunteer recruits, demonstrate to students how they can enhance their employment opportunities by linking volunteering activities to the knowledge or skills required in the workplace.

4. Make it easy for students to love volunteering by engaging in best practice

To ensure that students enjoy volunteering, make the experience as straightforward as possible. Particularly for those volunteers that are highly motivated and interested in the culture of the organisation, make sure that you:

• suggest new ways your organisation can acknowledge the contribution of younger volunteers.
• be prepared to train the volunteer when aspects of the role are new. No one wants to be in a position where they are setup to fail.
• make it easy for people to volunteer by being creative and flexible when designing volunteering opportunities.

5. Communicate, communicate, communicate

Make sure that you communicate regularly with volunteers so they stay in touch and engaged with your organisation and the work that you do. Consider using a range of communication mediums, particularly those that students actively use, such as text message, Skype or social media. Designate a person within your organisation who is responsible for engaging with volunteers and ensure they are frequently releasing fresh information. Finally, encourage feedback from previous volunteers and consider how this can be used to improve current practices.

By Alice ManderYoung volunteers can bring a lot to an organisation, but we know that some organisations aren’t sure how to engage with youth. After speaking with four awesome youth volunteers, I’ve used their experiences to create some top tips for working with young people in volunteering organisations.AuthenticityYoung New Zealanders are skilled, passionate, and insightful. We have a lot to bring to the table, beyond just being a youth voice. We don’t want to feel like we’re valued just for our age but, rather, as a whole person. If possible, having young people as staff or on your boards is one way to show that you are serious about youth engagement. It also has a trickle down effect - if we can see ourselves in your organisation, we are more likely to want to join in.“There’s so many things that young people can give, and it’s not just because they are a number, or you need us to be the ‘youth voice’. There’s so many skills that we have, apart from our age.” - Mardiya Abdulaziz“More young people, or a balance of young people, is a good way to start. Like attracts like.”- Neo Kenny.DiversityRecognising and respecting the diversity of young people is critical, we are not a monolith. Be welcoming to all young people, regardless of their background, or your assumptions about their abilities. Young people will feel more comfortable in your organisation if we know that we can show up as our full selves. The beneficiaries of your organisation’s work will also benefit from the diversity of your volunteers.“I think it’s just simple things - not asking for people’s legal names unless you have to, having space for preferred names, having space for pronouns but not making it mandatory, giving space to share pronouns if you’re meeting new people. It’s not hard to make things rainbow friendly! Be open, take a couple extra steps.” - Neo Kenny, InsideOUT Kōaro.“I definitely have had to be careful what roles I put myself into because attitudes of some people can be hurtful, and it can be challenging if someone brings their own experiences or beliefs in but it’s misinformed, or they haven’t spoken to me.” - Lauren Dewhirst, disabled volunteer.FlexibilityMost young people have multiple obligations, on top of volunteering. Being pulled in too many directions can lead to burnout. We are more likely to join organisations which allow flexibility and recognise competing interests. Meet youth where we are - avoid minimum hour expectations, allow us to volunteer in ways which align with our skills and passions, and encourage your volunteers to prioritise their own wellbeing.AppreciationYoung people, like all people, want to feel appreciated. Many are also embarking on new careers, or trying to find paid employment. Appreciating and valuing their volunteering is one way you can give back to them. This may look like offering to be a referee for job applications, giving koha after milestones, or celebrating them on social media. All of this contributes to young people’s growth and development.“For me, with Youthline, I am learning quite valuable life skills. The way I sold it is that it is a benefit to not only the people I talk to on the Helpline but it is also sharpening my tools and skill sets which will only benefit my employer,” - Ethan Tauevihi-Kahika on how he balances employment and volunteering.Read the stories of these youth volunteers

Developing a youth board member role

This blog considers why Volunteering New Zealand sought youth participation on its Board and how it has evolved its youth board member role.Targeted engagement of young people into board roles has been growing over the last decade. Volunteering Marlborough delivered a youth on boards programme in 2018."One simple trick to achieve the ‘youth engagement’ so many organisations strive for? Actually offering young people a seat at the table."Examining the Youth Ladder of participation is a great task for organisations to assess where they are at in terms of their youth engagement. The ideal is for young people to be participating at the decision making table.

This is an aspiration that Volunteering New Zealand has worked on over the last few years. Volunteering New Zealand appointed its first elected Youth Board member in 2022. In the lead up to launching this role, Volunteering New Zealand's board did a lot of work to introduce and implement a role that greater enabled a youth voice at board level. In 2020, Volunteering New Zealand specifically co-opted its first youth board member Ryan Hooper Smith. Ryan, the wider board and a Youth Working Group collectively worked to deliver and design a targeted Youth Board Member role for Volunteering New Zealand.At our 2021 Annual General Meeting, Volunteering New Zealand board proposed a change to our constitution to include a mandated Youth Board Member role. This was affective from our 2022 AGM. In the interim, Volunteering New Zealand then co-opted an additional youth member, Matthew Goldsworthy until our first formally elected youth member was elected."If you’re a leader, an executive, a board member – anyone who has any form of responsibility – I encourage you to invite young people into your conversations. Whether it’s in governance or in operations, ask their opinions and listen with an open mind. Embrace the curiosity and creativity that comes from working with youth." Goldsworthy.In 2022, we had our first Youth Board Member formally nominated onto our board. Donald McIntosh. Donald is a strong proponent for having more young people in the board room."It’s generally accepted that a diverse board, bringing together a range background and skills, does better governance. However, so far at least, young people have been largely left out of the picture." McIntosh

How does our Youth Board Member role actually work?

Currently, our Youth Board Member is elected for a two-year term, with the ability to be re-elected for another two-year term. There is no minimum or maximum age for this position, however there is the expectation that this person is young and has experience as a young volunteer. Experience working on a board or in governance is not necessary - we care more about your willingness to learn about governance. And the role of the Youth Board Member has identical voting rights and responsibilities as other Board Members at Volunteering New Zealand.Our board members can expect to give approximately 10-20 hours per month of volunteer time, but this can vary depending on workload.Our quarterly board meetings are usually face-to-face, so some travel is required. Although this is a voluntary position, your travel expenses will be covered by Volunteering New Zealand.An election process in accordance with our constitution will be conducted before our AGM in November. Our new youth board member role is for up to two two-year terms.

This June we are wanting to give a #BigShoutOut to the volunteers in our community! They are our companions, firefighters, sports team coaches, fierce advocates, environmental stewards, and so much more. It is their time to shine, and we need your help to say thank you!

Get all campaign resources for the Big Shout Out.

Create a video to share

Share your thanks to the volunteers who have contributed to your organisation or community.

Create a short video saying “Thank you” to a volunteer, or a group of volunteers who have made a difference in your life or the lives of others in your community. Ask a volunteer to say why they love volunteering!

Here are some prompts/ questions to answer in your video.

How to film the video

1. Use an I-Phone or other device with a high quality camera to film your video.
2. Try to film in a space where there is minimal background noise (indoors is best, and avoid busy areas).
3. If possible, film your video against a clear and uncluttered background.
4. IMPORTANT: Please record your video in the right format. Portrait works best for Instagram, Landscape may work best for Facebook.
5. In your video, please say your name and what organisation you are from or represent (if applicable).

Share your video on your socials and tag #thebigshoutout

We would love to share them too! Email: margaret@volunteeringnz.org.nz

Volunteering New Zealand is running a mentoring programme for volunteer co-ordinators/ leaders. The next programme runs from May to November 2024. We've already had applications from wonderfully deserving mentees - could you be a mentor to one of them?For a small amount of time (an hour a month) you could make an incredible difference. The volunteer co-ordinators we've spoken to for the programme get no paid training for their roles, yet they are responsible for many volunteers and significant work.We're running a proven mentoring programme, with support from the Mentoring Foundation. As a mentor, you will find you get as much from the programme as the mentee!Here are some comments from participants in our previous programme:

“I am so enjoying this and as I know I am getting as much from it as I hope the mentee is, it has led me to think of maybe looking to do it more in future. It’s a fantastic initiative and so well organised. THANKYOU!” (mentor)"“I’m really enjoying my mentor. She has been very helpful for me in regard to 'what next' for my volunteer project and beyond. A big thanks to VNZ for that programme, it is very valuable particularly as I have limited support in my current role.” (mentee)

If you are an experienced volunteer manager and would like to help others in their leadership development, we would love to hear from you. Find out more and apply.

Tell us your volunteer story for a chance to win a place at a special National Volunteer Week event!

To celebrate National Volunteer Week 2024 in June, Volunteering New Zealand is gathering stories of volunteering from across Aotearoa.We want to hear from:

• Individuals
• Organisations/ teams

The purpose of this story collection is to:

1. Recognise volunteers: New Zealand is a nation of volunteers and we want the nation to recognise you! By sharing your stories, you can help us elevate and recognise the power of volunteering.
2. Connect and Unify: The theme of National Volunteer Week 2024 is “Whiria te Tangata” weaving the people together. Volunteering connects people, communities, and society. What connections have you made through volunteering? What benefits have your communities seen?
3. Celebrate: We will be holding a month-long celebration of volunteers and volunteering during June. Called ‘The Big Shout Out’ there will be local and national events and media promotion. We will select several volunteers/ organisation representatives to attend a National Volunteer Week event. In 2023, this was hosted by the Governor General.

How to participate

Use these forms to tell your story:

• Individuals
• Organisations/ teams

Or email your story to: margaret@volunteeringnz.org.nzQuestions

1. What is your name?
2. What is the main organisation you volunteer for?
3. How did you get started in volunteering? What has your volunteering journey been like?
4. What is the outcome/ impact of volunteering for you personally and for your organisation?
5. The theme of National Volunteer Week is Whiria te tangata - weaving the people together. Have you made many new connections through your volunteer role? Has your volunteer work helped you meet people you may not otherwise meet?
6. Is there anything else you’d like to add to your volunteering story?

By 30 April 2024.

Those participants selected to participate in the National Volunteer Week event will be notified by 14 May.※ Personal Information Collection Notice Volunteering New Zealand will collect your name and your e-mail address to communicate with you about your story submission. You have the option to agree to us sharing your stories.

Volunteering New Zealand is on the hunt for an Operations and Administration Coordinator.Links to job ad:SeekDo Good JobsVolunteering is a huge part of who Aotearoa New Zealand is as a nation. At Volunteering New Zealand | Tūao Aotearoa, we are kaitiaki of Mahi Aroha, and our vision is to empower our incredible team of 2.5 million volunteers to continue to enrich the lives of communities around Aotearoa New Zealand. The values | uara that drive us are:

• To care, nurture and grow | manaakitanga
• To build connections and enduring relationships | whanaungatanga
• To inspire by example | tūao
• To hold ourselves to the highest standard | whaiwhakaaro

Kōrero mō te tūranga - About the role This is a permanent part time role (24- 32 hours) where you will have a wide range of responsibilities and will be a key enabler for our small but mighty team. Highly organised with a keen eye for detail, you will contribute to the processes, resources, events and campaigns that we develop. You will get the opportunity to work across different and interesting projects throughout the year. From organising our national conference, to campaigns such as national volunteer week and supporting us to develop training resources - you'll play a key supporting role in enabling our team to turn ideas into action. You’ll also provide support across marketing and social media activities. Key responsibilities:

• Providing administrative support – organise travel, diary management, set up meetings, answer email queries
• Minute taking and preparing board papers
• Contribute to project planning and event organisation
• Database and internal systems management
• Help keep our website updated and current
• Posting on social media
• Keeping Mailchimp distribution lists and stakeholder network lists up to date
• Coordinate digital marketing campaigns

Kōrero mōu - About you This role is the heart of our office, and we are seeking a self-starter who thrives in a varied role where everyone pitches in. You will ideally bring experience in a similar role, along with a genuine desire to have a positive impact on others through your work. You love anything tech and if there is a glitch – we can count on you to resolve it! You will bring:

• A natural ability with technology and systems
• Experience in administration, operations, or office management
• Proficiency with Microsoft Office, especially Word and Excel
• Experience using Dropbox, MailChimp, Xero (ideal)
• Some experience with marketing coordination
• A+ written and verbal communication skills (proof-reading)
• Strong attention to detail and an organised approach to your work
• A commitment to te Tiriti
• An understanding of, and affinity with, other cultures
• A proactive approach with the ability to identify potential problems and find solutions
• A thirst for learning and continual improvement
• A self-starter, self-managing and proven organisational skills
• Experience with volunteering and commitment within the not-for-profit sector
• Project management experience (desirable).

Me pēhea te tuku tono - How to apply If you’ve been searching for a fantastic part time role with real purpose, look no further. Please apply now with your CV and a cover letter letting us know a bit about you and what you’d bring to the role. Applications close as soon as we find the right person– apply now, we’d love to hear from you!We've partnered with Kin to help fill this position. For any questions, please reach out to Jamie on jamie.edmundson@kin.co.nz

Staff and volunteer wellbeing in the community and voluntary sector has taken a hit in recent years due to increased demand for services, lack of funding, and difficult issues facing communities. We are pleased to bring you a series of Wellbeing Webinars to boost your immunity and resilience. Facilitated by a registered psychologist from Umbrella, each session will help you identify issues and make positive behaviour changes.

Shifting the frantic2 May, 10-11am, onlineIn our modern, hyper-connected, “always on” world, many people describe feeling constantly frantic, overwhelmed and as if they are constantly playing catch-up. This mental overdrive often means it can be hard to utilise well-known time management strategies, manage stress, or work productively, and it can feel impossible to ever fully wind down.This session will:Look at the common factors behind the frantic ANDReview practical strategies proven to increase your experience of calm and control.Facilitated by Lisa Cheung of Umbrella. Learn more about Umbrella here.Cost: $10 for VNZ member organisations. $20 for non VNZ member organisations.Register here.

Media release: 13 November 2023More people volunteer in rural New Zealand compared to the national average, a new report from Tūao Aotearoa Volunteering New Zealand shows.“We know volunteering across Aotearoa is generally strong but we wanted to understand how experiences might differ depending where you live,” says Volunteering New Zealand Chief Executive Michelle Kitney.State of Volunteering Regional Report – volunteering in New Zealand’s regions analyses data from Volunteering New Zealand’s research and from Statistics New Zealand.58.6% of people in rural areas volunteer, compared to the national average of 50.7% and 47.5% for the major urban centres (Auckland, Wellington, and Christchurch).“When it comes to the type of volunteering, people in rural areas have higher rates of informal/direct volunteering (at 43.8%) compared to the national average of 36.0%. Yet this doesn’t come at the expense of formal/organisational volunteering which is above the national average,” Michelle says.The turnover rates of volunteering are lower in the smaller towns and cities, compared to main centres. The report suggests volunteers in main centres have more choice of roles and might ‘shop around’ to find volunteering they enjoy. Smaller towns and cities are likely to have fewer options for formal volunteer roles.“All volunteer-involving organisations, no matter where they are, should value volunteers. We encourage them to tap into resources, such as our Best Practice Guidelines, to ensure volunteers have a great experience.“The report has highlighted challenges and opportunities to ensure the sector can support volunteering across all of New Zealand. We advocate for better data about volunteering and unpaid work for all communities.”Volunteering New Zealand will be repeating its bi-annual State of Volunteering surveys of volunteers and community organisations in early 2024.EndsAbout Volunteering New ZealandTūao Aotearoa Volunteering New Zealand is the peak body for volunteering and volunteers in New Zealand. Our vision is for volunteering to be valued and celebrated as a vital part of society. Volunteering New Zealand works in a national advisory and sector leadership role.More informationMargaret McLachlanCommunications Manager, Volunteering New ZealandMargaret@volunteeringnz.org.nz027 247 8047

Flexibility and understanding were the two key words that came out of the youth leadership panel at Volunteering New Zealand’s Leadership Hui. Nick Abel (UN Youth New Zealand), Tobias Kenny (InsideOut Kōaro), and Nate Whitfield and Amelia Noyes (Hato Hone St John) gave some great tips for working with young volunteers. The panel was facilitated by Alice Mander. Bearing the brunt of decisions made by governments long before their time, young people are entering the workforce with much higher levels of debt, and greater financial insecurity than past generations. As Professor Paul Spoonley told us in his talk on the changing demographics of Aotearoa, volunteer-involving organisations are going to have to consider these challenges when seeking to recruit and obtain young volunteers. It is also important for organisations to recognise that many young people are already supporting their community and whanau. For instance, the Pacific Economy Report found that 95.7% of the youth they surveyed had taken part in at least one hour of unpaid work or volunteering during the last four months, and 70% of their time spent on unpaid work was in the household, with cultural activities being the next largest portion.

Volunteer organisations and young volunteers

So, how can volunteer organisations meet the needs of their young volunteers? If they can, our youth panellists said, be flexible with volunteer expectations. Some young people may not be able to contribute as many hours as older volunteers, so having minimum hourly requirements may be a barrier. There are also times in the year that some young people may not be able to volunteer at all - such as during University or school exams. Understanding and making allowances for these periods may be important in showing young people that your organisation is committed to supporting them to volunteer in ways that meet their needs as well as your own. You may also like to think of other ways young people can volunteer with your organisation, if the time commitment needed for the regular volunteer role is too great. For instance, the young person may have a skill or expertise that your organisation is lacking - such as social media or marketing, photography or art, or writing skills. Not only can these tasks be completed in the young person’s own time, but they can also be done remotely. With the increasing pressures facing young people today, the positive effects of volunteering for both the young person and the community are more important than ever. While there are unique challenges, the young leaders on the panel told us that these can be overcome, and the unique energies and skills of young people are invaluable. Ultimately, as Nate said, “We’re changing our young people’s lives and, in turn, our community.”

By Alice Mander, Volunteering New Zealand Community Engagement AdvisorWhere are all the young people? It seems to be the question on the minds of many volunteer coordinators. However, as a recent paper published by the International Association for Volunteer Effort notes, ideas about youth disengagement in civil society presents an incomplete story. The paper argues that if we push ourselves to think beyond the “traditional forms of political engagement”, we will notice an emergence of different norms of participation, especially among young people. Volunteering and activism have historically been considered two different types of activities. However, most activists are themselves volunteers, and many volunteer activities have social and political outcomes. The ways in which young people are engaging with their communities is progressively broadening, and the historic distinction between the two activities is becoming less relevant. For instance, as the paper highlights, many young people enter traditional volunteer spaces (such as school boards or university councils) with aspirations of amplifying their voices and enacting change. Where young people are left out of formal decision making processes, they create alternative spaces to make their concerns and opinions known. New Zealand is home to many incredible volunteer-based youth activist groups, such as MakeIt16 and the SchoolStrike4Climate. The paper also highlights that many youth led activities and volunteer efforts are deliberately politicised and resisted by the people and institutions in power. Young people are often negatively framed as disengaged and lazy. However, it has been observed around the world that young people are one of the most “intensely regulated groups”, and their activism is often disregarded “as a distraction”. These narratives work to silence and repress youth activism and volunteering efforts. It is time to move away from the deficit model that frames youth as disengaged. Perhaps, as volunteer-involving organisations, instead of waiting for youth to approach us we need to be asking for invitations into the spaces and communities where youth are already active. With young people frequently turning to volunteering and activism as a tool for social change, let's reconsider our own definitions and distinctions between the two activities, and reimagine how we can engage young people’s hearts as well as their minds.

Nonprofit leaders need to become savvier about what they are asking funders to fund, according to new research.The research[1]Activating the power of Strategic Volunteer Engagement for a Better World found a gap between what funders and nonprofit leaders thought about volunteer engagement. While nonprofit leaders cite recruiting sufficient volunteers and finding skilled volunteers as two main challenges, funders believe the biggest challenge to strategic volunteer engagement is financial resources.Strategic volunteer engagementWe argue that volunteer-involving organisations need to get more strategic about volunteer management and how that is funded. We know that while volunteers give their time and skills freely, managing volunteers takes resources and planning. As the recent Australian National Strategy for Volunteering 2023-33 states (p63):“Proper investment in volunteer management has the potential to profoundly transform volunteering in Australia. This investment must be both internal — from within volunteer involving organisations — and external — through funding, grants, and other mechanisms. Volunteer Managers are exceptionally passionate and talented professionals and elevating this critical role and function is long overdue.”Funders investmentWe believe this is also an important mindset change for funders – the perspective of another research document, The Funders’ Guide to investing in Volunteer Engagement[2]. This paper notes that investing in volunteer management will make a greater impact of grant-making dollars. It will strengthen the ability of the volunteer-involving organisation to deliver on its goals. What can be done to bring these two perspectives from community organisations and funders closer together? We advocate for the community and voluntary sector to practice strategic volunteer engagement. That includes:

• Supported and resourced volunteer managers
• Nonprofit Managers and Boards that value volunteering as a key strategic asset
• Investment in training e.g. Volunteer Best Practice Guidelines
• Strengthen ways to assess and report the impact of volunteer service
• Budget lines that detail volunteer management investment
• Funding requests and conversations that prioritise volunteer engagement

Find out more about Strategic Volunteer Engagement and watch webinars on this topic here.[1]Activating the power of Strategic Volunteer Engagement for a Better World (Initiative for Strategic Volunteer Engagement, May 2023)[2]The Funders’ Guide to investing in Volunteer Engagement (The Leighty Foundation, 2017)

Every winter season volunteers help to run the Cardrona Adaptive Snow Sports Programme at Cardrona and Treble Cone Alpine Resorts by supporting guests and sharing a passion for snow sports. The programme caters for people with various physical, cognitive and sensory abilities. The goal is to make snow sports accessible for everyone. Volunteers support guests, facilitate and provide a safe environment, so everyone can enjoy the snow and the mountain. This could mean assisting in a lesson or just skiing or riding with someone who needs a second pair of hands to be able to access the mountain. "Without volunteers, we would not be able to run the programme," says Kat Mueller. With more than 350 sessions being delivered by volunteers in winter 2022, the programme has seen one of its busiest seasons ever. This was a great team effort, however, we’d like to highlight and recognise a few of our volunteers who have gone above and beyond with their commitment to help": Tomas Cervenka is one of our longstanding volunteers who has volunteered with the Adaptive Programme since 2019. His calm manner and excellence in bucketing and tethering are highly appreciated by his guests. Last season, he volunteered 31 times. Julian Warren loves sharing his passion for snowboarding with our adaptive guests. He volunteered 30 days last season, which included a lot of guiding visual impaired skiers. Since Lois Martin has retired from being a physiotherapist she has dedicated her time to volunteer for the Adaptive Programme. Lois spent 27 days assisting especially guests with cognitive impairments enjoy the snow and the mountain. Murray Walker is new to volunteering with the Adaptive Programme, but in no way new to skiing. He is an avid skier who helps out in any way he can, on snow and off snow. He helped 18 days last season. Local Alison Jarvis has been a huge help volunteering for 18 days. Her caring and kind personality are well regarded by our adaptive guests and Ali’s ability to help across all disciplines have made her an integral part of the team. For enquiries contact Kat at adaptive@cardrona.com

Brian has blown us away with his commitment to inspire tamariki through Inspiring the Future Aotearoa. He signed up to be a volunteer role model to tamariki to share his experiences as an Electronics Engineer and tell his story to help broaden career horizons for young people, and to show them that they can follow their dreams. Inspiring the Future is a programme where young people hear from volunteer role models in their communities, learn about different jobs and why people love doing them, as well as their pathway and challenges they faced along the way. This is done through fun events at schools.Brian has accepted invites to every event he is available for. He has inspired students from multiple schools, answering questions about his job and showing them that it’s really fun to design technology that helps us all. Here’s his story in his own words:Tēnā koutou katoaI'm Brian. When you meet me you'll hear that I have a strange accent. That's because I was not born here. I was born in Cape Town, South Africa. I moved to New Zealand six years ago, and I'm now settled here. I have a house, a car, and a great job. I play badminton at two different clubs and sometimes privately with friends too. I love travelling, and have visited most of New Zealand already with a group of friends who do things together.I work as an electronics engineer, and my current role is to design technology for farmers to help them to produce our food. The most exciting part of my job is seeing the funky things I design being made in the factory and sold to the farmers! I enjoy studying how to use some of those tiny little electronics things, and designing those green PCBs (printed circuit boards) that use them, and then testing my design to check that it really does what it should.Sometimes my design is naughty, and it does some unexpected things, and then we all make jokes about the naughty design, and then I figure out what went wrong, and I fix that. It's great fun! I already knew that I wanted to be either an electronics engineer (or maybe a pilot) when I was in year 5. But most children have no idea what they want to do. I volunteered at an orphanage for many years, and some of the students I looked after there didn't know what they wanted to do even at the end of high school.I joined Inspiring the Future for two reasons. One is that I love working with children, and the other is that I can help you think of other jobs that you may not have thought of, and show you that it's really fun to design technology that helps us all. The best part of the Inspiring the Future events for me is seeing the students' eyes light up when I show them the physical PCBs that I have designed. They are genuinely very curious, and they listen intently when I describe my job, and they ask many questions. It is truly wonderful to see such a huge awakening when they realise that this sort of job appears in the most unlikely of industries such as health care, pet care, agriculture, transport, appliances, and so on.Of course, there are always challenges in life. I struggled a lot with my school and uni studies, because I thought that I was not clever enough. School was hard for me, but I worked hard because I really wanted to design technology, and I discovered that actually I am clever enough to do that! And look, now that's what I do, and what I enjoy doing! Cool, hey!

Volunteers are the lifeblood of One Mother to Another. In the past year, 123 people have generously donated their time, skills and expertise to help us provide thousands of care packages for parents and whānau (primarily mothers) in hospital with their sick child/ baby.Whether it be writing handwritten notes of encouragement, flexing muscles at a packing day, skilfully crocheting hearts, knitting blankets or donating their business nous and big picture thinking around the board table, our volunteers have gifted more than 2500 hours to the organisation in the past year alone.There are so many skills reflected in our volunteer community and we need and appreciate every one of them.We also know that our volunteers love being part of One Mother to Another’s story too. Many are past recipients of our care packages, or know someone who received one and now want to help others who are in that same vulnerable position. For many of our volunteers, being able to pay-it-forward allows them to write a second chapter to their hospital journey and turn a difficult experience into a positive one.One volunteer Sally knows what it’s like to have a newborn in hospital and now as a grandmother, that empathy spurred her on to become an essential part of our note-writing and packing teams.She says, “The terror of adjusting to parenthood with a sick baby is never forgotten. It’s about lots of people doing a little bit to make a huge difference to families with sick babies and children in hospital.”Another volunteer, Catherine, says she is involved with One Mother to Another because “even though I can’t be there to hold their hand, I can help by giving them something truly special to show those parents that they are loved and supported.”Our volunteers are so selfless and make a tangible difference to the life of a stranger in one of the most difficult seasons of their life.A big shout-out to our following teams:Our note writersWe are so incredibly thankful to have dozens of people write handwritten notes of encouragement each month. So often we hear from care pack recipients how much the handwritten note inspired them and how it helped them not to feel alone. An extra big thanks to Fiona who coordinates the team of superstar note writers. She and her team are incredible.Our packersEvery month a truly amazing team come together to pack hundreds of care packages, in the last year the team have packed an incredible 5,000 care packs!!Our crochet and knitting teamThese needle-masters put so much love into making crochet hearts for the parents in hospital and creating beautiful blankets to be given out to children needing some warmth. Every stitch is made with so much love!Our boardOne Mother to Another is lucky to have leaders in their respective fields serve as board members in a volunteer capacity. Their collective wisdom and passion is helping propel us forward so we can have the best impact in a moment of need.To every One Mother to Another volunteer, we want to say thank you! Every hour is greatly appreciated and we just want to say, “we see your efforts and greatly applaud them. You are helping to make a difference in someone’s darkest hours!”

Southern Youth Development is a passionate supporter of empowering youngpeople, especially with mahi hapori that encourages sustainability and bettersystems for our environment. Our youth workers and volunteers support rakatahi tocollect bicycles from the landfill to restore, recycle and give them back out to peoplewho need them.Our volunteers are mentors who facilitate rakatahi to gain lifelong skills by learninghow to maintain and care for a bicycle. They teach everything through learning howto use tools, maintaining and understanding the mechanisms of a bicycle and thenencourage rakatahi to make connections with the community by gifting the bicyclesto people who need them. Our volunteers are often rakatahi who have gone throughthe programme themselves and want to share their knowledge.The Bikes@syd programme has been running since 2018 and our team of youthworkers and volunteers have supported rakatahi to recycle over 2000 bicycles in thistime. Recycled bicycles go to whānau in need, or those who need to use bicycles forcommuting, but anyone from the public can receive the bicycles and the sydvolunteers often have their own strong links in the community. Since the beginning ofthe programme, syd has been gifting bicycles to newly arrived former refugeewhānau in their first few weeks in Ōtepoti Dunedin. Both volunteers and rakatahigenerally maintain strong relationships with many of those who receive theirbicycles.Southern Youth Development is extremely grateful to all the volunteers who supportbikes@syd and all their youth programmes. Their expertise, so freely given, is animportant part of all the mahi we do for both our rakatahi and our hapori.