On Tuesday 30th November LSE took part in Giving Tuesday and LSE Volunteer Centre and LSESU RAG Committee ran a number of events in the marquee for staff and students to get involved in. Giving Tuesday is an international day of giving, following Black Friday and Cyber Monday, where everyone, everywhere can do something to support the good causes that mean so much to them.
Students gave their time to make Christmas Cards that will be donated to Great Ormond Street Hospital for children, to decorate the wards for in-patients over the Christmas period. Whilst the Christmas tunes were playing, we had around 50 students joining in to make cards that will be delivered to the local hospital.
We also explored the causes that students are passionate about giving their time, money, and skills to as well as their favourite charities. Students brought up issues such as the environment, human rights and equal education. We also had a large map which students could pin flags into, pinpointing the places in the world that they have volunteered.
LSESU RAG Committee also ran a number of fundraising activities which were hugely popular with students. The events included students pieing one another, a competitive rowing competition to win a gym membership for the rest of the academic year and a balloon darts competition. There was also a bake sale, hosted by Amnesty Society, Indian treats made by Indian Society and Bubble Tea made by TeaSoc. Music Society also hosted several different musicians which kept everyone entertained throughout the day, as well as showcasing the incredible talents of LSE Students.
On Tuesday 23rd November students also discussed the way in which we think about the charity sector, in a TED Talk screening and discussion session hosted by LSE Volunteer Centre manager David Coles. After watching Dan Pollata’s TED Talk (The way we think about charity is dead wrong) students discussed questions such as ‘Do charities need to be treated more like for-profit organisations?’ and ‘What do we think about charities investing money?‘.
So what now?
Keeping Giving: Whilst #GivingTuesday is one day of the year where we celebrate giving back to others, we also want to encourage and inspire everyone to give back all year round. Giving back doesn’t always equate to donating money, you can give your time or skills too. Here at the LSE Volunteer Centre, we’re passionate about students volunteering their time and you can find all of our current volunteering vacancies here on CareerHub.
Get ready for Student Volunteering Week: Yes, it’s back! During Lent Term (7th-13th February) we’ll be celebrating all of the amazing student volunteering that goes on at LSE and providing lots of opportunities for students to get involved. Get in contact if you want to be involved this year, by emailing volunteer@lse.ac.uk, or sit tight for more information.
If we’ve inspired you to volunteer, check out one of our other 200+ ongoing opportunities or book a one-to-one with David Coles, the Volunteer Centre Manager if you have more questions. If you are short on time, then take a look at the one-off opportunities that will return for Lent Term 2022, organised by the LSE Volunteer Centre. And why not follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram to stay up-to-date with our events and opportunities and read our blog for more volunteering tips and stories.
