WITH YOUR PHOTO FOR ALL OF US Magazin

Without volunteers, civil protection and disaster control in Germany would not be possible. Over 1.7 million volunteers spend their free time working as firefighters, in emergency medical services, in water rescue and in many other areas to ensure a safe coexistence in Germany. But the volunteers themselves also benefit from their commitment. After all, volunteering is always personally fulfilling. It brings a lot of joy and promotes personal development. The “With you for all of us” campaign by the Federal Office of Civil Protection and Disaster Assistance (BBK) aims to showcase the range of voluntary activities. By showing that each and every individual can get involved in a very individual way, the aim is to inspire more people to volunteer. Because:

“No matter what you can do, you can help”

In order to visualize the attractiveness and versatility of volunteering, the photo competition “With your photo for all of us – Volunteering in focus” will be launched on this website on 15 May 2023. Anyone interested can submit a photo on the topic of volunteering in civil protection and disaster control, even if they are not a member of an organization. In line with the campaign claim “No matter what you can do, you can help”, the competition is aimed at both professionals and amateurs.

The picture should focus on the volunteer helpers, their activities or successes: Exercises, missions, emotional moments in the team, people from the volunteer work, goals achieved together and other ideas – there should be no limits to creativity here. The photos can show the entire spectrum of volunteer work. You can submit your favorite until 12.06.2023, 23:59:59, so that the jury – consisting of BBK employees – can select the 20 best entries. The impact, realization of the theme and also the photographic, creative achievement play an important role.  The photos will then be placed on the website for a week for voting.

Here you are in charge again! – Mobilize your comrades, friends and family to vote for your photo. The four photos with the most votes will win. They will be presented on the BBK’s digital channels and shown at the BBK’s photo exhibition in the fall. In cooperation with volunteers and local art academies, the winning photos will be exhibited in public places in the cities of Chemnitz, Jena, Kiel and Koblenz – bringing the competition from the digital community to the analog world. Everyone can admire your work on the street and be inspired to help along the way.

Entries can be submitted using the entry form. Further information about the photo competition “With your photo for all of us” and the conditions of participation can be found here.

If you would like to find out more about the many different people and activities, you can find lots of videos about volunteering in civil protection and disaster relief here.