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About us

The Palacký University Olomouc Volunteering Centre was founded in 2016 as the first university-run volunteering centre in the Czech Republic. In cooperating with UP students and employees and other subjects, we support the concept of volunteering as an opportunity for self-development, to support civic engagement, and to fulfil the “third role” of the university – i.e. community outreach. It’s all about extending the relationship of the university into its surroundings and focussing on society-wide themes.

Due to our coordinating activities, we offer a space to connect volunteering opportunities and volunteers eager to get involved in such activities. We maintain lists for employees and students of volunteering opportunities at organisations, institutions, and for active citizens – primarily in the Olomouc region, but in others as well.

We also provide expert consultations for anyone who would like to start volunteering. Thanks to our experience, we can also advise on questions of law and volunteering, education and motivation of volunteers, or on fundraising for volunteer activities.

Under the umbrella of our activities, we enlist volunteers from the ranks of UP students and employees who will have the opportunity to choose from the most diverse volunteering opportunities. The entities in our lists satisfy the minimum standards of the UP Volunteering Centre, who consult us about their volunteering programmes and one-time events, and guarantee ethical cooperation with volunteers.

One of our goals is to contribute to the development of “formal” volunteering in the Czech Republic, which is about connecting UP students and employees with specific organisations. The organisations then take on the responsibility of work safety, training volunteers, offering them expert leadership, and running the entire process of the cooperation.
Our work is to arrange the enlistment of volunteers – we list offers from organisations who already have experience in engaging volunteers. Based on their offers, we find suitable people in our database who are interested in volunteer work, or we find new volunteers and connect them with said organisations. For various reasons (primarily connected with protecting the rights of clients and volunteers), we do not focus on “informal” volunteering – i.e. connecting volunteers with specific people who need help.


Main activities of the UP Volunteering Centre

  • we offer the possibility of listing volunteering opportunities at organisations and firms who are looking for volunteers
  • we offer expert consultations to those who are planning to start volunteering; we also provide necessary data and information to students who are writing theses on volunteering
  • we advise organisations on matters dealing with law and volunteering, education and motivation of volunteers, and fundraising for volunteer activities
  • we run workshops and lectures on civic society and volunteering – especially for middle schools and universities
  • we make an effort to promote volunteering activities and subsequent evaluation of volunteers

List of participating organisations

List of participating organisations offering volunteering opportunities though the UP Volunteering Centre:

Academia Film Olomouc
www.afo.cz
Volunteering opportunities: culture

Amelie, z. s. (Psychosocial support to oncology patients and their families)
www.amelie-zs.cz
Volunteering opportunities: social services

Bílý kruh bezpečí (Life Saver – support and counselling for victims of crimes)
www.bkb.cz
Volunteering opportunities: legal and psychological advice

Charitas Olomouc
www.olomouc.charita.cz
Volunteering opportunities: social services

Czechitas z. s. (NPO educating people in IT)
www.czechitas.cz
Volunteering opportunities: educational activities

DW7 (Na Cucky Theatre)
www.divadlonacucky.cz
Volunteering opportunities: culture

INEX – Sdružení dobrovolných aktivit (NGO running workcamps and overseeing other activities for volunteers)
www.inexsda.cz
Volunteering opportunities: children and youths, humanitarian aid and development cooperation

JAN – Jdeme autistům naproti, z. s. (Early Care – for families with children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder and communication deficiency)
www.jan-olomouc.cz
Volunteering opportunities: social services, children and youths

JITRO OLOMOUC, o. p. s. (Social services including clubs and workshops)
www.jitro-olomouc.cz
Volunteering opportunities: social services

KAPPA-HELP, z. s. (Centre for Social Prevention)
www.kappa-help.cz
Volunteering opportunities: social services, prevention activities

Malteser International Czech Republic
www.maltezskapomoc.cz
Volunteering opportunities: social services

Mary’s Meals Czech Republic (working to eliminate hunger through school meals)
www.marysmeals.cz
Volunteering opportunities: humanitarian aid and development cooperation

Nejste sami – mobilní hospic, z. ú. (You Are Not Alone Hospice)
www.nejstesami.eu
Volunteering opportunities: social services

Olomouc Archdiocese Charitas
www.acho.charita.cz
Volunteering opportunities: social services

Olomouc University Hospital
www.fnol.cz
Volunteering opportunities: hospital facilities

Palacký University Olomouc
www.upol.cz
Volunteering opportunities: university activities

People in Need
www.clovekvtisni.cz
Volunteering opportunities: tutoring children (online or in person) in the families we work withhumanitarian aid and development cooperation

Potravinová banka v Olomouckém kraji z. s. (Olomouc Region Food Bank)
www.pbolomouc.cz
Volunteering opportunities: humanitarian aid and development cooperation

RC Heřmánek (Chamomille Family Centre)
www.rc-hermanek.cz
Volunteering opportunities: children and youths

RC Provázek Family Centre
www.rcprovazek.cz
Volunteering opportunities: children and youths

Sdružení D, z. ú. (Citizen’s cooperative for education, including theatre)
www.sdruzenid.cz
Volunteering opportunities: social services, prevention activities

Sjednocená organizace nevidomých a slabozrakých České republiky,
zapsaný spolek – Oblastní odbočka Olomouc (SONS ČR, z. s. – OO Olomouc)
(Czech Blind United – Olomouc branch)
www.sons.cz/olomouc
Volunteering opportunities: social services

Sluňákov, centrum ekologických aktivit města Olomouce, o. p. s. (Centre for Ecological Activities)
www.slunakov.cz
Volunteering opportunities: environment / ecology

Středisko rané péče SPRP (Centre for Early Care – Olomouc branch, focussing on help for visually-impaired and multiply-impaired children)
www.ranapece.cz/olomouc1
Volunteering opportunities: social services

TyfloCentrum Olomouc, o.p.s. (Social services for the blind and visually-impaired)
www.tyflocentrum-ol.cz
Volunteering opportunities: social services

Zet-My (Aid to visually-impaired children)
www.zet-my.cz
Volunteering opportunities: homesharing, care for visually-impaired children

List updated on 20 August 2020


Rector’s Award for Volunteering

The Rector’s Award for service in the area of volunteering is given to the most active volunteers at UP for their work and for their contribution to the community. If you know a UP student or employee who deserves recognition, nominations are accepted via an online form; details can be found on the UP Facebook page and UP own’s webpages. The award is traditionally bestowed for these six categories:

  • volunteering for children and youths
  • volunteering in healthcare facilities
  • environment
  • social services
  • culture
  • university events

Workshops and lectures

For interested parties from secondary schools and universities, we run two- to four-hour workshops on civic society and volunteering. Via the participatory method, we help students to realise their roles in society and show them tools which can help them in their immediate community and beyond.

At UP, we also organise presentations by individual institutions who provide help to people in need.