Young commitment to mobility & climate protection - FÖJ place with us available now!

This year, the district's Climate Protection & Mobility Department is once again a placement centre for the Voluntary Ecological Year and is looking for a volunteer. Last year, FÖJ volunteer Johann actively supported us in the team.

In addition to actively supporting mobility-related projects and campaigns, one of his main tasks was to provide mobility advice in the pavilion at Lüchow bus station. Johann says:

"This job enabled me to learn a lot about people skills and conflict management and to acquire various new skills. I also completed typical office tasks and was finally able to get to know Word and Excel properly. What was really cool was that my mentor also adapted my tasks to me, so that I was given tasks in different difficulties and areas."

He was also given his very own task, for which he was allowed to take on a little responsibility: "I particularly enjoyed the pedelec rental project, which I was able to organise largely independently, as I gained a lot of experience here, which is important when organising such things."

In addition to their work at the placement centre, the volunteers regularly attend seminars at various locations. Johann emphasises these particularly positively: "All I can say about the face-to-face seminars is that they were really great. We quickly got together and all got on very well, so we've become really good friends. One important aspect that was emphasised from the start was that everyone was integrated and everyone was taken into consideration."

For mentor Meike Lünser, integration into the team and the preservation of sufficient freedom for the volunteer's development are particularly important"The young people can get a taste of a wide range of activities in the field of mobility and climate protection and try out what suits them and where they might want to go professionally. At the same time, they are making a valuable contribution to climate protection and to the development of tomorrow's mobility for Lüchow-Dannenberg, but there is always enough room for them to realise and develop their own ideas and projects."

Johann summarises the FÖJ:

"At the end of the year, I can draw a thoroughly positive conclusion. I was able to gain a good insight into the world of work, gain a lot of new extracurricular experience and learn a lot. I had a really good time at my placement and at the seminars and got to know lots of great people. I was also able to develop myself further and have a lot more fun experiencing new things. During my year, I also found out more about what I want to study now and I'm looking forward to the future. I can really only recommend the FÖJ to others."

The application process for the FÖJ 2024/25 started in January. There are 325 places available in Lower Saxony. Anyone who wants to get involved in the environment and nature, gain their first work experience or try something different between school and further training still has the chance. You can apply for free places until the start in August/September.

All important information about the FÖJ and how to apply can be found at https://www.nna.niedersachsen.de/bewerbungsportal/.