The big volunteer atlas

WestLotto continually supports culture, sports and nature conservation, as well as the public welfare and thus communities in large part, in North Rhine-Westphalia from 40 per cent of the lottery money.

This means that since 1955, WestLotto has provided more than 30 billion euros! A large share of the social-based work in North Rhine-Westphalia would not ever be possible without this legally mandated lottery principle. But: many do not know about this principle. Not even politicians themselves. And this is a problem. After all: only this gambling monopoly provides the billions. And: without the many volunteer hours by the many citizens, the financial support from the lottery principle would mean nothing. Therefore, in the run-up to the state elections in North Rhine-Westphalia in May 2022, the aim was to bring attention to this commitment.

WestLotto wants to make sure volunteer work grabs as much attention as possible. In society and politics, as well as for the individuals who volunteer. What’s more, WestLotto should be seen closely associated with volunteer work. To grab this attention, WestLotto has charted volunteer work in North Rhine-Westphalia with a depth of detail never seen before.

Whether for sports, welfare work, art and culture, nature or historical heritage conservation – the volunteer atlas shows who volunteers in which areas and delivers data for all 53 districts and urban cities in all of North Rhine-Westphalia. It shows that volunteer work is literally unaffordable: 19.14 billion euros is the value of volunteer work in just one year. It also shows how the work changed during the Covid pandemic and makes clear that volunteering needs strong partners!

The heart of the communication and the landing page www.ehrenamtatlas.de is an interactive map of North Rhine-Westphalia which provides information about each district and urban city: the share of volunteers and the time each volunteer spends every year, as well as the economic value. Also showcased is information about the area of the volunteer work.