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International Volunteer Day: Total Employees Pitch In

Every December 5, International Volunteer Day highlights the contribution of volunteers all over the world. Total Foundation’s Action! program is now up and running in 60 countries, giving employees the opportunity to spend three days each year volunteering for public-interest initiatives near their workplace. Here, two employee volunteers share their experiences.

More than 6,000 initiatives have been carried out alongside nonprofits since the program was launched in 2018. Read what Diego and Julien have to say about their involvement.

Published on 03/12/2020
1 min reading time

"Last September, I had the opportunity to carry out an Action! mission in the field of youth education with the Colombian association Somos CaPAZes. For two hours, I helped a 7-year-old girl do her maths homework, remotely. It was natural for me to devote time to Action!: I like to think that I can contribute to the development of young people in my country by passing on my knowledge to them. I am convinced that change can come from this kind of individual commitment. You should not hesitate to take the plunge, especially as in my case, I was supported by the association before my mission, thanks to several training sessions and preparatory meetings.”

“Stepping onto the job market is a huge milestone! In today’s environment, young people need even more help finding work. So I wanted to make myself useful by taking part in an Action! initiative with nonprofit Jeunes@Work, which is specialized in helping students and young graduates enter the workforce. I spent a morning meeting with five people from a variety of backgrounds to give them advice on how to present their work and educational history, highlight their strengths and connect their experiences with what companies are looking for. It was a good way to combine my field of work, Human Resources, and my drive to contribute outside the office. I had to convince myself first that I’d be able to find the time and actually be of use, but once I got started, everything went swimmingly. I even stayed in contact with some of the young people. Now I’m hoping they’ll find a job quickly – that would really be a great success!”