During their studies in Bremen, our exchange students want to be active members of the Bremen community. Volunteer work is a great way to give back to the city that welcomes you during your studies abroad. There is a large number of ways that young people can engage with their community in Bremen. Most of our students participated in city cleanups. For the cleanups, a group of people meets up in a specific part of Bremen to collect garbage from the streets. A few of our Spring students participated in the cleanup.

Gabe on duty!

The equipment is provided by the Cleanup organization.

After a few hours of collecting trash, this is how many cigarette butts the group found – quite shocking!

Abby’s findings at a cleanup in Schwachhausen!

The students that participated in the cleanup shared that they were most shocked by the number of cigarette butts that were on the streets. At the end of the cleanup, they looked at how many they collected in total on that day – it was almost a bucket full of cigarettes.

Noah dedicated his time to a different project: He helped a lady plant a vegetable garden. Not only was it fun but also a great way to connect with other volunteers: “I primarily volunteered at a garden in Bremen. I helped to plant, learned a bit about certain plants such as Rotkohl (red cabbage), and weeded the beds, while enjoying getting to know the other folks working there. It was a great time and they were very welcoming! When I return to Bremen, I absolutely intend to find a similar program or return to that one.”

Getting ready to plant a garden!

Growing vegetables!