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Post | November 2023 | 2 min read

Internationals as Young Skills-Based Volunteers for your Organization

As a Dutch nonprofit organization, you may sometimes wonder what kind of volunteer opportunities the volunteers registered with Volunteer The Hague are looking for and how best to approach them. In order to pin that down, we should realize that there are two types of volunteers: There is the volunteer with a focus on contributing to a specific good cause by helping others - the place-based volunteer - and there is the volunteer who tends to focus on gaining experience, networking, and building professional skills – the skills-based volunteer. Volunteer The Hague’s main target group consists of international millennials (those between 20 and 35 years old) that are the perfect candidates for skill-based volunteering. Just as most volunteers, they wish to give back to the community and feel good about their impact on a good cause. But they also see volunteering as a stepping stone to a successful career. Volunteering helps them polish up their CV and the networking could open up doors to future paid jobs. Why not use this knowledge to tie them to your nonprofit? Some tips on how to recruit international millennials for your organization: • remember that they are looking for skill-based volunteering rather than place-based volunteering; • provide them with opportunities in which they can grow their network and at the same time make an impact; • once recruited, show them your appreciation by offering them support, training and/or a reference letter. Volunteering offers internationals an opportunity to improve their Dutch and a way to get a taste of Dutch culture. Recent research has shown that even though we live in a multi-cultural community using many words originating from the English language, Dutch is still the dominant language (source: nrc.nl). All the more reason for internationals to learn more Dutch by volunteering! If you would like to take on board international volunteers, you can post your volunteer needs on our platform, source them in our volunteer pool with over 500 candidates, and join one of our upcoming Mix & Match volunteer job fairs.

As a Dutch nonprofit organization, you may sometimes wonder what kind of volunteer opportunities the volunteers registered with Volunteer The Hague are looking for and how best to approach them.


In order to pin that down, we should realize that there are two types of volunteers: There is the volunteer with a focus on contributing to a specific good cause by helping others - the place-based volunteer - and there is the volunteer who tends to focus on gaining experience, networking, and building professional skills – the skills-based volunteer. Volunteer The Hague’s main target group consists of international millennials (those between 20 and 35 years old) that are the perfect candidates for skill-based volunteering. Just as most volunteers, they wish to give back to the community and feel good about their impact on a good cause. But they also see volunteering as a stepping stone to a successful career. Volunteering helps them polish up their CV and the networking could open up doors to future paid jobs. Why not use this knowledge to tie them to your nonprofit? 


Some tips on how to recruit international millennials for your organization: 

• remember that they are looking for skill-based volunteering rather than place-based volunteering;

• provide them with opportunities in which they can grow their network and at the same time make an impact;

• once recruited, show them your appreciation by offering them support, training and/or a reference letter.


Volunteering offers internationals an opportunity to improve their Dutch and a way to get a taste of Dutch culture. Recent research has shown that even though we live in a multi-cultural community using many words originating from the English language, Dutch is still the dominant language (source: nrc.nl). All the more reason for internationals to learn more Dutch by volunteering! 


If you would like to take on board international volunteers, you can post your volunteer needs on our platform, source them in our volunteer pool with over 500 candidates, and join one of our upcoming Mix & Match volunteer job fairs.



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For those of us in the volunteer promotion community, this week is very special: Monday, 5 December is International Volunteer Day and Wednesday 7 December is National Volunteer Day in the Netherlands! These are days of recognition for all of the important work done by thousands of volunteers here and worldwide - and in every imaginable field. Volunteering isn't just an activity that makes a difference in the community and in the lives of others - this act of kindness can also help the one volunteering, whether it be by gaining new skills, a sense of purpose, or simply the satisfaction of having helped others. According to Time Bank, 84% of HR and recruiting professionals agree that volunteering is a great way to help people find work, with an astounding 80% of employers saying that they regard volunteering positively on a potential employee's CV. Whether it's helping to combat depression, learning to engage with new communities, or improving health and fitness, volunteering can also benefit one's physical and mental health and wellbeing. We at Volunteer The Hague understand the important benefits of volunteering - especially for internationals just moving to a new country. No matter the stage in your moving process, volunteering can be a great asset to help you get settled. This is why Volunteer the Hague connects internationals with meaningful volunteer opportunities at local non-profit organizations, free of charge. The Hague is a place where all nationalities come together, forming a multicultural society. Our mission has always been to bridge the gap between internationals who may not know where to start on their volunteering journey in a new country, and nonprofits who are searching for internationals to help aid in their inspiring missions. Together, we can empower people to change the world from the grassroots up, especially when enabled by partnerships between local internationals and local nonprofit organizations. To all of the fantastic volunteers in our community, we want to send a big THANK YOU and hope you continue your volunteer journeys in 2023!

Celebrating National AND International Volunteer Days in December!

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