Charities urge more green volunteering in workplaces

The Royal Voluntary Service has issued a call for businesses to play a leading role in fighting the impacts of climate change across the UK, by opening up opportunities for employees to commit to green volunteer projects. Along with a group of charities, the service stated that in the fierce heat of the summer of 2026, it is more important than ever to think creatively about protecting green spaces, and boosting the UK’s climate resilience.

Summer is often the key time of year for CSR drives in the consulting industry – with firms using marathon cycling expeditions, sponsored walks, office art contests, and seven-a-side football tournaments, to raise money for a worthy cause. But amid the blistering heat of May, June, July and August in 2026, more attention is being given to activities which boost greenery and cooling shade in local communities.

To encourage this further, a collective of leading environmental charities, the Royal Voluntary Service, and digital volunteering platform GoVo for Business, has called for employers to back greater climate action in workplaces. The UK is sitting on the cusp of its fifth heatwave for the year – with temperatures expected to top 36C again in August. Wildfires have already torn across the Suffolk coast, close to a notable nuclear facility, while droughts have seen hosepipe bans brought in to preserve dwindling water reserves. But as the climate crisis brutally hits home, UK businesses can play a leading role in giving communities hope, by demonstrating ways people can mitigate some of those impacts.

Call to action

Catherine Johnstone, CEO of Royal Voluntary Service, commented, “Throughout history, communities across Britain have come together in response to society’s most urgent challenges. Climate change is one of the defining challenges of our time, and volunteering gives people and organisations a practical way to be part of the solution. Employers can play a vital role in inspiring action, with platforms such as GoVo for Business making it easier to find the right opportunities.”

As part of its ambition to unlock 100 million hours of employee volunteering by 2028 for all causes, Royal Voluntary Service is also encouraging workplaces to make it easier for staff to volunteer. This includes a suggestion to roll-out quarterly ‘green lunch breaks’, a dedicated time for teams to take part in bite-sized volunteering activities that benefit the environment.

Johnstone continued, “Amid one of the most extraordinary summers on British record, we’re urging workplaces to think creatively about how they can boost employee involvement, for example, through initiatives like a quarterly ‘green lunch break’ that will provide a set time for colleagues to volunteer for nature and environmental projects. Whether it is protecting green spaces, supporting wildlife or helping communities become more resilient, every contribution matters. Small actions, multiplied by millions of people, can create lasting change that will impact our generations to come.”

At the same time, the group of charities including The Conservation Volunteers (TCV), Keep Britain Tidy, Marine Conservation Society and Chester Zoo, is urging organisations across Britain to enable more employees to get involved with local projects that restore habitats, protect wildlife and strengthen the natural environments.

Wide-ranging opportunities

Chester Zoo is already working with nature volunteers across Cheshire through our Networks for Nature project, helping the county to reach its biodiversity targets. But there are hundreds more flexible opportunities available on GoVo for Business, with over 750 environment, conservation and animal welfare roles currently needing volunteers. Many can be completed in just a few hours or even during a lunch break. Roles include getting hands-on to preserve and enhance local forests; restoring wetlands and cleaning beaches and waterways; monitoring and caring for bats, seals, butterflies, hedgehogs, bees and birdsl; and joining one of TCV’s Green Gyms to combine practical outdoor activities with the benefits of exercise and nature.

Jo Morison, volunteer manager at Chester Zoo, said, “Climate change isn’t a distant threat to the species we work to save – it’s wildfires tearing through the Cairngorms, where Scottish wildcats are being released back into the wild, and moorland near Manchester, where we helped bring back a butterfly once lost from the region. Nature is resilient, but it needs help fighting back. That’s why volunteering matters more than ever.”

Allison Ogden-Newton, CEO of Keep Britain Tidy, added, “The job to take care of our environment is urgent, and it is everybody’s business to protect the places not only we - but wildlife and marine life - call home. I say to any person who thinks the challenge is insurmountable, or that their actions alone cannot make a dint in the problem, that together, person by person, day by day, we can make a huge difference to the environment on our doorstep.”

And Sandy Luk, CEO at the Marine Conservation Society, noted, “Volunteering for the ocean is one of the most powerful ways you can make a difference to the climate crisis. Our ocean is our greatest ally in tackling climate change, but it is under increasing pressure from human activity. Whether you’re reporting seaweed types and jellyfish sightings to help scientists understand how our seas are changing, or collecting and recording litter to drive action on the causes of pollution, every contribution helps to protect the ocean we all depend on.”

Force of Nature

As the charities call for more organisations to join nature’s fight for survival, their message coincides with ITV’s groundbreaking new natural history series, Force of Nature, which follows wildlife fighting back against the escalating impacts of climate change. ITV and Royal Voluntary Service hope the series will inspire people to take action to support climate resilience through volunteering.

Love Actually and The Walking Dead actor Andrew Lincoln, who narrates the Force of Nature series, concluded, “I feel privileged to be a part of Force of Nature, it is an extraordinary TV series about the impact of the climate crisis on animal survival. It gives an important message of hope that every one of us can play a part in making a difference. Across the country charities on the frontline of environmental and animal conservation need help. By stepping forward to volunteer you can become part of the urgent effort to protect our natural world.”