Volunteers’ Week 2022
In celebration of Volunteers’ Week 2022, we asked, Helen Stedman, a few questions about her time as a Communications Volunteer at ITF.
At ITF, we are extremely grateful for the support we get from our volunteers. And this week, we join thousands of organisations across the UK to celebrate the fantastic and honourable work that volunteers do within our communities.
But firstly,
What is Volunteers’ Week?
Every year, between 1st and 7th June, organisations across the UK celebrate and recognise the important contribution volunteers make.
The value of volunteering
Besides gaining professional skills that are useful for our career progressions, volunteering also builds our interpersonal skills and allows us to connect with people within our communities and to engage in opportunities that we would not normally be involved in our day-to-day lives.
Meet Helen
Hi, I’m Helen, a retired copy editor and environmental consultant living in a village near Oxford.
Why did you choose to volunteer with ITF?
I volunteered so that I could use my skills to do something positive, and also to keep my brain stimulated and meet new people.
I have always been passionate about the need to protect and restore the environment, so working with a charity that planted trees and cared about the effect of trees and their absence on people and the planet was a good fit for me.
What do you think of your time volunteering with ITF so far?
I have enjoyed working with ITF and learning about its work.
Working with teams in Africa is a new experience for me, and has been fascinating to learn about African culture and how it interacts with and poses challenges for the work of planting trees.