Recap: Global Week of Good Volunteer Fair

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Last week marked Atlassian’s Week of Good! For several years, the company has been engaging in this initiative internally, where Atlassians volunteer for charities and nonprofits around the globe. This year, they’re excited to broaden the scope and inspire others to join in the volunteering spirit.

So, how can you inspire others to volunteer? It’s all about inviting those who not only work for nonprofit organizations but also genuinely care about their missions. Kayla from UPchieve, Marisa from CareerVillage, and Kim from Braven all shared their passion for helping young people navigate their lives, studies, and careers in the Global Week of Good Volunteer Fair.

Do you share a passion for education, knowledge sharing, and supporting young people? If so, take a moment to check out what they discussed.

Braven

Braven’s mission is to empower promising, underrepresented young people—including first-generation college students, those from low-income backgrounds, and/or students of color—with the skills, confidence, experiences, and networks necessary to transition from college to strong first jobs, leading to meaningful careers and impactful lives.

Kim mentioned that they are always on the lookout for coaches or mentors who can build relationships with their students and support them throughout their academic journey. Here’s a quick summary of the volunteer opportunities they offer:

For more information, feel free to visit their website, book an information session, or apply to volunteer directly.

CareerVillage

CareerVillage.org aims to democratize access to career information and advice for underrepresented individuals. They simplify the process for anyone to ask questions about various career-related topics, such as What is a good law-related first job to gain experience that will increase my chances of becoming a lawyer? or How can a Software Engineer re-enter the industry after a career break?. Whether you have a career question or want to lend a hand by sharing your experience, this is a great opportunity to get involved. You can choose to answer a single question or embark on a mentorship journey with many individuals seeking guidance.

Help as an individual

Marisa shared some practical steps for getting involved as an individual.

Help as a team

What I found particularly exciting was Marisa’s suggestion to organize a volunteering event at any gathering. This could be a perfect fit for an ACE event. Feel free to draw inspiration from her slide or reach out to her for more ideas.

UPchieve

UPchieve’s mission is to democratize access to academic support so that all students have an equal opportunity to finish high school, attend college, and achieve upward mobility. They provide 1-on-1 support for students in need, particularly those from low-income families.
Tutors can sign up for the subjects they wish to teach and will be matched with students seeking help in those areas. There’s a brief registration test to ensure that tutors are well-prepared, but Kayla assured us that UPchieve aims to make this process as smooth as possible. It’s all about empowering tutors to be effective mentors.

Interested in getting involved? Here’s a straightforward to-do list:

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What’s your takeaway?

• Did you attend the webinar? What’s your next step in volunteering?

• Missed the webinar? No worries! If you’ve read this far, it seems you’re intrigued. What caught your attention?

I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments.

[Matthias Gaiser _K15t_]

It always touches my heart if people care for other people and want to share some of the wealth they have - may it be money to donate or time and knowledge to share as we've heard in this webinar.

As a concrete takeaway, I'm considering to run one of the CareerVillage team activities at K15t where I work. This week we're having a barcamp session where everyone can bring a topic they'd like to talk about - so why not helping some young people in that time?

[Emma Schnee]

Thanks to those who have already signed up to volunteer. This was a great event!