May is probably my favourite month at Amazon. For the fifth year running, thousands of Amazonians put on their orange t-shirts and showed up for their communities. More than 150 organisations supported across Europe in a single month.
Every May, Amazonians across Europe trade their usual routines for something different - packing hygiene kits, mentoring students, renovating schools, and repairing broken appliances so they don't end up in landfill. Now in its fifth year, Amazon's Global Month of Volunteering (GMV) has become one of the moments I look forward to most - and this edition reminded me exactly why.
Luxembourg
This year, hundreds of volunteers in Luxembourg assembled menstrual hygiene kits mothers; which were donated to organisations like Croix Rouge Luxembourgeoise, Stëmm vun der Strooss, Alupse, Initiative Liewensufank, and Planning Familial, making sure that some of the most vulnerable members of our community have access to essential care products. Our teams were joined by Amazon's Vice President for International Operations, Stefano Perego, at our Luxembourg headquarters, and by myself at the Stëmm vun der Strooss premises. A week later, the Luxembourg Sustainability Ambassadors hosted their quarterly Repair Café, where employees brought in broken appliances, furniture, and clothing to fix alongside skilled volunteers. Every repaired item means one thing less headed to landfill.
Munich, Germany
On May 21, volunteers at our MUC21 (Munich) site came together to assemble family hygiene kits containing essential care items such as washing powder, shampoo, toothbrushes, towels, and feminine hygiene products. The team was joined by Amazon’s Germany Country Manager, Rocco Bräuniger. By the end of the day, six full palettes of disaster relief supplies were filled and stocked at our European Disaster Relief Hub in Germany, ensuring we can deliver critical supplies to communities and relief partners like the Red Cross within hours of a natural disaster.
Iași, Romania
In Romania, volunteers engaged 100 high school students in a career-focused event featuring Amazon's Romania Country Manager as a panel speaker. Sessions covered Amazon's evolution and culture, recruitment insights, career development, and interactive mentoring—providing students direct access to Amazon leaders and professional development pathways. Before the career sessions, the volunteers packed 100 backpacks with kits and gifted them to the students at the end of the event.
A literacy initiative, Book Clubs for Little Dreamers, reaching 250 children from rural areas around Iași launched with the first three cohorts. Volunteers led reading and creativity sessions where children practiced presentation skills, critical thinking, and creative expression, culminating in their own exhibit.
Now in its second iteration, Paint a Better Future is a community service initiative at a rural school where volunteers contributed to educational infrastructure improvements, school renovation, and kids' sports activities—creating tangible, lasting change in the learning environment.
Barcelona, Spain
GMV in Barcelona engaged over 400 Amazonians through several online and in-person events throughout the month. The highlight was assembling 10,000 hygiene kits for Bona Voluntat en Acció, an association that supports social and labour integration for vulnerable individuals and families.
Cagliari, Italy
Volunteers in Cagliari assembled over 800 menstrual hygiene kits for two organisations that support some of the most vulnerable women in our local communities.
Each kit contained pads or tampons, wet wipes, tissues, hand cream, a face mask, and a handwritten note with a personal message of care and encouragement for women going through a difficult journey.
All kits were delivered directly to the people supported by our two community organisations: Centro Antiviolenza "Donne al Traguardo" (Cagliari, Carbonia, Iglesias), a refuge and support center for women escaping domestic violence, and "Lo Specchio" (Domusnovas), a center providing assistance to people, especially women, facing eating and nutrition challenges.
Finding support in the communities around us
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Our most powerful asset are our people. Across Amazon, employees volunteer their time, talents, and skills to address local needs and build something tangible: trust, relationships, and a real difference in someone's life.
While GMV provides an opportunity to serve together, Amazonians always look for creative ways to support their communities year-round. When we harness both Amazon's business capabilities and our employees' commitment, we can forge deeper connections with our communities and truly make an impact.
I was moved and incredibly proud to be out there in my orange t-shirt and loved seeing so many Amazonians with theirs too.
