GoogleServe: Thinking globally and serving locally

What do painting murals, teaching tech classes, and gardening have to do with Google? These are a few of the activities Googlers have participated in over the past few weeks as part of our second annual GoogleServe — a chance for Googlers to give back to their local communities through service projects. Over the past couple of weeks about 5,000 Googlers from 60 of our offices took a break from their regular jobs to participate in volunteer opportunities. We've found that community service helps to revitalize and deepen our connections with the communities where we live and work, as well as bring us closer together as a team. This year we partnered with nonprofits, schools and local governments across the world on a wide range of activities. Here's a glimpse at some of the projects that we recently participated in:

• We cleaned beaches with the Surfrider Foundation in Santa Monica, California and with the Irish Seal Sanctuary at Balbriggan Beach, Ireland.
• We removed graffiti in Zurich, Switzerland with Beautiful Zurich.
• We removed non-native plant species with Hands on Bay Area and the California State Parks Department in Half Moon Bay, California.
• We painted murals with Team Up For Youth at the Edna Brewer Middle School in Oakland, California and with Ruach Tova at community centers in Tel Aviv and Haifa, Israel.
• We prepped, packed, and sorted food for soup kitchens and homeless shelters with Resala in Cairo, Egypt and with the Greater Chicago Food Depository in Chicago, Illinois.
• We led computer skills classes for NGOs in Beijing, China for senior citizens in Dublin, Ireland and for teens from orphanages in Krakow, Poland.
• We refurbished computer labs at the Westview Middle School in Goose Creek, South Carolina and Schule Steinfeldstrasse in Billstedt, Hamburg, Germany.

Take a look at the photo album below to see Googlers in action. And if you're looking to give back to your community, websites like All For Good can help you find volunteer opportunities.



Posted by Seth Marbin, GoogleServe Global Leadership Team