Corporate Volunteering

During their volunteering activities, our employees dedicate themselves to their fellow human beings and the environment.

Helsana is committed to society, the environment and nature through its corporate volunteering activities. Employees help out at retirement homes, foundations and environmental organisations. They play an active role in living the “Committed to life” motto through their personal volunteering activities.

Past activities

A week-long Day of Good Deeds

The first week of May 2023 was devoted to Erich Kästner’s saying, “Actions speak louder than words”. Helsana heeded Coop’s call for a Day of Good Deeds. We then decided to support different organisations over six consecutive days instead of just one. Around 70 employees signed up to volunteer with the likes of Caritas, the Swiss Red Cross, Hof Narr, Pro Infirmis and WWF around the country.

The highlights included the Volunteering Day at Velafrica. Together, we repaired donated bikes that would then be sent to Africa to provide the local population with an eco-friendly, healthy mobility solution. “Swapping places” with the Züriwerk foundation that employs people with cognitive disorders was another highlight. Helsana employees swapped their office role for a job in Züriwerk’s production department for a day. They were extremely impressed by the cheerful, open and direct approach of the Züriwerk staff. We thoroughly enjoyed sharing these Days of Good Deeds and would like to thank everyone involved for these fantastic experiences, along with the organisations.

Our employees learned a great deal: about Velafrica and about repairing bikes.

After a hard day’s work: the team repaired around 12 bikes.

People can donate their old bikes at around 400 collection points.

Meeting people and making lasting memories in the Züriwerk bakery.

Components are punched, shaped, polished and assembled in the Züriwerk production facility.

Our employees are already looking forward to the next “swapping places” event.

Experiencing farmyard life at the Narr Farm

Pigs, goats, chickens, horses and many other creatures find their second home and get to live out the rest of their lives on the Narr Farm in the village of Egg (Canton of Zurich). The farm is open to visitors of all ages and offers exciting insights into the ethics of animal husbandry, sustainability and vegan nutrition. Visitors can also get close to the animals – for example, by snuggling up to fully grown pigs in the straw or petting a chicken.

There is, however, always plenty of work to do on such a large farm, with over 170 animals, adjacent farmland and its own market garden. On two occasions, in May and September 2022, 30 Helsana employees had the opportunity to make a small but very enthusiastic contribution to those daily activities on the Narr Farm. In return, they were able to take home memories of fascinating encounters with the animals and plenty of newly acquired knowledge about animals and agriculture.

Working together also gives people the chance to get to know employees from other departments.

Spring is a particularly busy time on the farm.

The work is physically demanding, but makes a nice change from sitting all day in the office.

Organic veg is grown on the farm and sold to people with a vegetable subscription.

The highlight of the day: petting the pigs, who are able to lead a good, satisfying life on the farm.

Cleaning up Lake Zurich

Rubbish continues to pile up on the banks of Lake Zurich, and the majority of it is plastic. According to a study conducted by Empa, around 115 tonnes of plastic end up in Swiss lakes and rivers every year. The beautiful swimming spot, which is an important habitat for animals and plants, is turning into a rubbish dump. In the worst case scenario, the microplastics from the lake end up in the world’s oceans via the rivers. In September 2021, twelve motivated Helsana employees from different departments spent an afternoon volunteering and collected 10 kgs of rubbish – either directly from the banks or on a standup paddleboard in order to reach the areas of the banks that are not accessible from land.

Empa study on plastic pollution in Switzerland

A standup paddleboard can also be used to collect rubbish that has become tangled in the reeds.

Christoph Spiegel: “While collecting rubbish, we spoke to lots of passers-by who were very excited about our work and even took selfies with us.”

Cigarette butts and small bits of rubbish being fished from the lake.

Delighted after an afternoon’s work – the collected rubbish is off to where it belongs: in a rubbish bin or recycling centre.

Mountain volunteering activity with Caritas

There are a number of tasks involved in the upkeep of an Alpine farm, especially during the summer months. Among other things, these include taking care of the animals, harvesting hay and maintaining the pastures. In June 2020, ten employees visited the von Rickenbach family farm located in Heiterenboden on Mount Rigi.

Because of their age, the farmer’s parents could only help out to a limited extent, and one of his three sons has a disability that makes it difficult for him to walk. So the assistance provided by the volunteers was a huge relief for the family. They helped the farmers with pasture maintenance. Some collected stones, others removed thistles and others trimmed bushes and branches.

Jeanette von Rickenbach explains to the Helsana employees how an Alpine farm works.

The volunteers help keep the pasture in good condition.

Evelyne Dürr: “I got a fascinating look at the world of mountain farmers. It’s nice to be able to help others. And I also took a lot from this day personally as well.”

The hearty volunteers enjoy a well-deserved lunch.

Weeding at the Neeracherried BirdLife Nature Centre

The BirdLife Nature Reserve in Neerach in the Canton of Zurich provides space for a number of animals and plants. However, indigenous plants are increasingly being crowded out by non-native species, known as neophytes. Without protective measures, plants that are less adept at competition run the risk of disappearing completely over time.

That’s why sixteen Helsana employees volunteered in August 2020 to help weed out these neophytes. By doing so, they made a valuable contribution to maintaining native plant species.

More than 450 species of plants have been found at the Neeracherried BirdLife Nature Centre.

Raphael Lindenmann explains that the plants, including their roots, must be torn out. It’s not enough just to mow the meadows.

The volunteers search diligently for neophytes.

Evelyn Scarfi: “We need to take care of the environment – I became aware of how important this is again during the volunteering activity. The relationship between people and nature needs to be in greater balance.”

Visit to the Limmat retirement centre

In July 2019, more than two dozen employees met with the residents of the Limmat retirement centre in Zurich. Together, they walked to the barbecue area at the nearby Josefwiese park and spent several enjoyable hours together. Outings of this sort are very good for the seniors – but it takes a lot of effort to care for the residents on the trips and therefore they occur far too infrequently.

The excitement was palpable: how would the barbecue party turn out?

The seniors enjoyed going on a group trip. They rarely have such opportunities. In general, there are not enough people to help care for them.

Old and young talked, ate, laughed and played together, and told each other stories.

Carmen Schmidli: “The encounter was so enriching and a great life experience!”

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