Everybody volunteer, as long as you are 16 years or older. Having the Belgian nationality is not mandatory. All E.E.A. nationals and persons with a valid residence permit can volunteer.
How to find a Volunteering Opportunity
There are many different ways in which you can find somewhere to volunteer. So the first step would be to determine what type of project you would like to help with. You can ask yourself the following questions to figure that out:
- What are my goals and expectations?
- How much time do I have and when can I make myself available?
- What kind of tasks would I like to undertake?
- Which skills can I offer?
What do I find interesting?
Volunteering opportunities are interwoven in Belgian society. There are big organizations like the Red Cross, WWF, as well as small local associations like the local youth association, the local hospital, the local museum, etc. You can contact them directly or you can search on the internet to find an interesting volunteering opportunity. Here are some helpful sites to find an opportunity:
- Database of opportunities in Flanders: www.vrijwilligerswerk.be
- Database of opportunities in Leuven: www.leuven.be/vrijwilligerswerk-leuven. The database is in Dutch only, but scroll down and select "Nederlands niet vereist" to filter out volunteering options that do not require knowledge of Dutch.
- Leuven Helps, originally released during the corona crisis, today remains active as a platform matching requests for all types of help (grocery shopping, walking the dog, ...) with volunteers.
- Opportunities at stad Leuven (Dutch only): www.leuven.be/vrijwilliger
- Leuven chapter of international volunteering organisation Serve the City: www.servethecityleuven.be/
- Opportunities in Brussels: www.servethecity.brussels/ or www.idealist.org
You will find a lot of different opportunities on the Internet, as there are many organizations that would welcome your help. It is advisable to find out what the organization is trying to accomplish and how their volunteering program works. Every organization that works with volunteers has to provide information to its volunteers before they start for example about insurance cover and which expenses are (potentially) reimbursed. Ask!
Important to note: To protect you as a volunteer, there is a legal framework of volunteering. More information about your rights and obligations as a volunteer can be found here (Dutch only).
Can I volunteer with the International House Leuven?
At the International House we have a few different ways to get involved.
You can become a welcome ambassador in our Welcome Ambassador Program. As a welcome ambassador you are paired with a newcomer to Leuven in order to help them get acquainted with the city and have a social contact upon arrival! More info here.
There is also the possibility to start your own group! For example, we have a lot of different types of social groups with the IHL, such as After-work Drinks or Dutch conversation groups. Maybe there is a group you would like to start! The rules are simply that it's a free event and open to everyone! Contact the International House if you want to chat more about the possibilities.
Would you like to contribute some content to our social media channels or website? Let us know your ideas and we can continue from there! All ideas welcome, we are a small team so we appreciate all the help we can get.
Helpful links
Need more information or help finding an appropriate volunteering organization?
