Online helper
Volunteering online offers a flexible way of helping and participating, regardless of place and, often, time. It facilitates encounters that would otherwise not be possible and brings people in different life situations together. Online volunteering is a way to make a difference and provide support where it is needed.
Local Red Cross branches and districts also offer various online and hybrid volunteer tasks in addition to in-person volunteer tasks. You can browse the tasks in your area in the OMA Punainen Risti event calendar.
How can I become an online helper?
The national online helping tasks offered by the Red Cross are listed below. Select the most suitable for yourself and learn more about the task. All tasks require the completion of training, and the duration and complexity of the training vary according to the difficulty of the task. Some tasks also require you to be interviewed.
We recommend that all our online helpers complete the Online helper at the Finnish Red Cross self-study course, which provides basic information on online meetings and secure online operations as well as introducing different online helper tasks. You can complete the training even if you have not yet selected a specific task for yourself.
Red Cross online volunteer tasks
You can participate in the following online helping tasks anywhere in Finland or the world!
Serve as an online friend and support people of all ages who suffer from loneliness. Discussions are conducted through email or an anonymous chat app every 1–2 weeks. This task is suitable for people over the age of 15, and we hope that volunteers commit to their task for at least six months.
Facilitate Talking about loneliness peer groups where participants are able to discuss loneliness and solutions to it. The groups meet once a week for eight weeks, and the discussions are supported by two online volunteers.
Moderate low-threshold group chats open to anyone who needs to talk. The chats are hosted in different languages and with different themes on several nights a week on the Red Cross website.
As a volunteer Sekasin-chat duty worker you will offer young people a safe place to talk about any challenges they may have concerning mental health and life in general. On-call times are flexible, so you can take shifts when it suits you best. The task is suitable for volunteers over 23 years of age with fluent skills in Finnish or Swedish.
Provide support for immigrants on various issues, such as restoring family connections, seeking asylum and matters related access to services. Volunteers respond to contact requests on digital platforms with the help of experts. The task is suitable for volunteers over 23 years of age.
During emergencies and disruptions, the Red Cross will launch the ‘Auttava chat’ crisis chat service where support and psychological first aid will be provided by the organisation’s emotional support volunteers.