Volunteers connecting people and changing communities

Sydney City Farm: Our urban farm takes a lot of love and care

In the heart of Sydney Park in St Peters is Sydney City Farm. It’s a place to learn about urban agriculture and sustainable food production. Volunteers help grow fresh seasonal produce which is donated to local charities.

Volunteers can help in the nursery to raise seedlings, collect seeds, work in the orchard or get stuck into weeding and planting. They also share their expertise and passion with others helping at education programs and community events.

Long-term volunteer Ruth said “The best thing about volunteering at Sydney City Farm is the variety of people who volunteer, and also being outside in the environment. For anyone thinking about volunteering, just give it a go. You don’t have to make a huge commitment and you will definitely learn something about growing and using food that you didn’t know before.”

Strata committee volunteers

Strata committees are often the unsung heroes in multi-residential buildings. Their work is essential – but not always visible.

Andrew is one of the volunteers at Windsor Plaza, a building in Sussex Street that received green building grant.

“There is a lot of work behind-the-scenes to keep a 35-year-old building like ours functioning well,” he said. “Strata committee work can be satisfying, frustrating, demanding and a test of patience and communication skills.

Andrew said the biggest highlight for him as a volunteer has been the energy efficiency measures his strata committee introduced.

Water consumption was reduced by 38%, saving 19 million litres of water and a major electricity efficiency upgrade reduced power consumption by 23%.

The latest part of this power saving work saw the committee commission a 36kW solar power system activated in October 2021.

The water and energy efficiency measures the building’s volunteers worked on have not only significantly cut the building's environmental footprint, but generated savings for strata of over $80,000 per year.

Meals on Wheels: Delivering for our community

Tucked away on a quiet street, you’ll find the distribution centre for Meals on Wheels.

In NSW, over 14,000 volunteers deliver nutritious hot and cold meals. The City of Sydney’s Meals on Wheels service has 20 volunteers who deliver around 40,000 meals a year to vulnerable community members.

The meals are provided to residents unable to shop or prepare their own food. But it is as much about social connection as it is about food.

Dimity has been volunteering with our Meals on Wheels service since 2001. It all started when her mum bought her a car and said she had better do something useful with it. Back then, she was living right in front of a Meals on Wheels centre. She thought that would be the easiest way to give back. Nowadays, she volunteers 3 days a week year-round.

“I’ve built up a relationship with the people I deliver to,” Dimity said when asked why she keeps coming back after 22 years.

Thank you to all our volunteers across our city for their time and passion.

If you'd like to explore volunteering, see our latest volunteer opportunities.