Volunteering in Tyrol: Awards given for outstanding commitment!

Volunteering in Tyrol: Awards given for outstanding commitment!

Outstanding volunteer achievements in Austria were honored in an impressive ceremony on Wednesday evening in the Sofiensäle in Vienna. A special prize, an award from the Federal Chancellery and the Ministry of Social Affairs, was awarded to the Association for the Promotion of Voluntary Social Services. Particularly noteworthy is the first place in the “Young Commitment” category, which went to the Tirol Mitte Volunteer Center for its “Be the change” initiative. The Tyrolean Disabled Sports Association's “Move more together” project also won second place in the inclusion category, as tirol.ORF.at reports.

Appreciation for volunteer work

An expert jury carefully examined around 200 submissions and rewarded the best three projects in the respective categories with prize money of up to 5,000 euros. Social Minister Johannes Rauch (Greens) emphasized that this state prize was a sign of appreciation for the extraordinary commitment of the volunteers. “Almost half of all people in Austria do voluntary work and help make our coexistence work,” added State Secretary Claudia Plakolm (ÖVP). Tyrol's Governor Anton Mattle also highlighted the volunteers' achievements and called for more volunteers to be recruited.

Eleven volunteer centers have already been established in Tyrol that support potential helpers and respond to their individual needs. These centers offer flexible volunteer options and allow volunteers to work both as a team and individually. Finally, attention was also drawn to the accident and liability insurance that has been in place since 2016 and which protects volunteers during their work. This special occasion fell on International Volunteer Day, which further underlined the importance of volunteering.