During Volunteers week at the beginning of June, we were able to feature a number of our dedicated volunteers with the purpose to highlight their contributions and to celebrate our 1000+ volunteer team. Moving forward, we want to ensure that there are more opportunities to thank our volunteers for all that they achieve, as well as continuing to attract new members to get involved.
“Ensuring our volunteers feel valued and appreciated is a key part of the volunteering experience we are aiming to create. The activities delivered by our volunteers play a huge role in the collective success of CIBSE and I am immensely proud and appreciative of the contributions they make. Without them, CIBSE would simply not be able to function or deliver the excellent educational, collaborative, and social activities, for which we are so well respected." - Immediate Past President Adrian Catchpole.
This month's blog features more of what they had to say.
Why did you start volunteering with CIBSE?
Mark Dawson, a member of the Energy Performance Group
“Volunteering with CIBSE is an excellent way to stay up to date with the latest updates in the industry and foster a career in energy performance.”
Diana Ng, who volunteers on our Accreditation Panel (a panel that reviews the documentation for accreditation.)
“I wanted to give back and pay it forward to the next generations of engineers.”
Emma Gibbons, Chair of the Air Quality Task Group
“As a doctoral researcher, it is wonderful to be carrying out research and learning about advancements in my field, but I felt that it was key to link my work to practice and be part of the dialogue. Being part of CIBSE helps me to do this, and it reminds me about the everyday challenges that we face in the built environment.”
Jeroen Van Hoof, who volunteers as an End Point Assessor
“As part of my day-to-day job, I look after the engineering apprentices in the utilities & facilities department. I enjoy supporting and developing young engineers as they go through their apprenticeship. When I saw an advert for EPA volunteers on the CIBSE website, it was a no-brainer for me to apply.”
Derek Clements-Croome, who volunteers in our Fellows Network and Intelligent Buildings Group committees, volunteers because he believes “in the Circular Knowledge Economy in which young and old learn from each other”
As we expected there are many reasons to volunteer with CIBSE, ranging from connecting to the larger industry, to helping young engineers in their professional development. We also wanted to know the benefits of continuing.
Rimmy Vij, Chair of the SFE
“Volunteering for the CIBSE, more specifically SFE has been one of the most fulfilling experiences of my professional life. I feel my contribution towards this institution has provided me with numerous opportunities for personal and professional growth…It has certainly improved my project management, leadership, and communication skills and I have also received recognition for my contributions, which has positively impacted my career.”
Darren Coppins volunteers in various roles, including the Building Simulation Group committee, Judge of multiple awards and contributing author to technical publications
“You meet likeminded people from across the industry in a non-competition environment which provides the opportunity to learn from and enjoy interesting discussion and debate. It is also rewarding to know that you are contributing to the advancement of your industry."
Paul Crampton, who reviews CPD presentations
“I have learned a lot from other CIBSE members who submitted their comments on the presentation package and their views on the technical aspects of the subject matter…The volunteering has helped me to understand what the current position is with respect to topics like managing CCC position and the reduction of energy levels from Buildings and their services.”
Stephen Page, Chair of the CPD Panel that reviews and audits CPDs
"Volunteering on the panel gives me a great way to maintain my own CPD by reviewing presentation material, I found this especially useful when working abroad and being kept abreast of building services developments in the UK."
Charlie Hill, who volunteers through SoPHE YEN,
“Working alongside the other volunteers has helped me to learn new perspectives and gain a clearer picture of the full design process… It has also provided me with great exposure to all sides of the industry, something that will be extremely useful as I progress in my career.”
Volunteering has been rewarding to the individuals, however as we know many of our volunteers carry out their roles around their work and personal commitments – so, we wanted to know if they can use their experiences in other circumstances and whether their employers benefit from their volunteering.
Rusdy Hartungi, a panel member of the Accreditation Panel of Moderators says he uses his experience “to advise the best practice in the industry” at his job as a university lecturer and course director.
Dan McNaughton, who started volunteering with us as an End Point Assessor said he joined as his “employer had junior engineers that were working towards becoming chartered. I thought that a good understanding of CIBSE’s competence criteria would help them with their professional interviews.”
Through asking our current volunteers about their experiences we are proud to see their passion for improving the building services industry has led them to take an active part in CIBSE’s development. If you are interested in joining our volunteers, take a look at the volunteering opportunities page to find a role. If you can’t find the right role for you there, please feel free to send an email with a description of how you would like to get involved to [email protected] and we will try to find a role that matches.