Locals and residents in the Los Alcazares area have a chance to make a positive impact in the area, meet new people, and become part of a kind-hearted group: the non-profit organisation HELP Murcia Mar Menor has announced that they are actively seeking new volunteers to join the long-standing charity, inviting enthusiastic and passionate people in the area to help its dedicated team across a variety of roles.

Crucial roles currently open to volunteers: Administration, store helpers, and van drivers

To be specific, the organisation is currently seeking volunteers in three areas. Those who are well-organised and enjoy administrative tasks can assist in the local Los Alcazares office by handling phone enquiries, filing, and data entry to keep operations running smoothly behind the scenes. For those who prefer meeting people and working in a more social environment, the San Javier outlet shop needs friendly helpers to serve customers, price items, and sort through incoming donations. Finally, the charity is looking for van drivers with a valid driving licence to handle the collection and delivery of donated goods and store purchases.

What is HELP Murcia Mar Menor? Supporting the community through times of need

HELP Murcia Mar Menor, which was first established in 2002, provides essential support, information, and emergency assistance to local residents and visitors in the Region of Murcia. For example, the charity has lent vital mobility equipment including wheelchairs to individuals during health crises. 

More recently, in June, the organisation made a sizeable donation of €2,000 to another local charity dedicated to helping those with dementia, the Forget Me Not centre in Camposol. In July, HELP Murcia Mar Menor also raised awareness to help Paul Gaynor, an active volunteer and nurse, who suffered a devastating brain aneurysm.

As HELP Murcia Mar Menor approaches its 25th anniversary in 2027, volunteer support is needed more than ever to ensure its vital community work continues to thrive.

How a few hours can transform lives: Volunteering at the charity

Those who are interested in collaborating with the charity do not need to commit to a lot of hours to make a difference. Even a couple of hours a week can directly help to raise vital funds and support good causes throughout the local community. Volunteering at the charity can also offer a rewarding opportunity to learn new skills, connect with fellow residents, and enjoy plenty of good company along the way.

Those who want to lend a hand, can reach the team by emailing helpmmm@gmail.com, or visiting their official website at helpmurciamarmenor.es.

Residents in the Region of Murcia have, once again, demonstrated their commitment to environmental conservation through the incredible tenth edition of the national campaign “1m² contra la basuraleza” (“1m² Against Trashure”). Organised by Project LIBERA, an initiative created by SEO/BirdLife in partnership with Ecoembes, the campaign mobilised thousands of citizens across Spain to clean up trash and protect local ecosystems.

Hundreds of volunteers clean up key natural sites in the Region of Murcia

In the Region of Murcia, a total of 456 volunteers joined forces across 33 different collection points in beaches, rivers, mountains, and protected natural areas in the region to clean up and fight against the ‘Trashure’, a portmanteau of “trash” and “nature” that has come to define overly polluted areas in Spain. Their collective effort resulted in the removal of 1.1 tonnes of abandoned waste from valuable natural sites, including the El Valle y Carrascoy Regional Park, the Segura River near Beniel, and the Las Amoladeras beach in Cartagena. Local administration officials, educational centres, community associations, and private businesses also collaborated to help with the initiative and show their commitment to the environment.

Data collection exposes plastic as the primary and most dangerous pollutant

In addition to physical cleanup, the campaign places a strong emphasis on citizen science. Using the “Basuraleza” mobile application, volunteers categorised more than 1,100 collected items to contribute to the national Barómetro de la Basuraleza, or “Trashure Barometer”. This tool provides environmental researchers with crucial data on the types of waste polluting natural habitats. In Murcia, the data revealed that 54 per cent of the identified litter consisted of plastics, a material that is particularly harmful to the environment due to its long degradation period.

Expanding the campaign to drive long-term awareness in Murcia and in Spain as a whole

This year’s edition introduced an expanded nine-day schedule, and featured scheduled activities for large community groups, aligning with European environmental movements including Let’s Clean Up Europe.

Murcia’s contribution to this nationwide project, which accounted for 3.6 per cent of the 919 cleanup points across Spain, highlights a growing citizen dedication to ecological consciousness. In addition to removing immediate trash, the initiative serves as a vital reminder of the ongoing need for environmental education, preventive waste management, and sustained collaboration between citizens, non-profits, and public institutions to keep natural spaces in Murcia clean, beautiful, healthy, and resilient.

A nonprofit organisation based in Murcia, Bomberos por Bomberos (Firefighters for Firefighters), has launched a critical humanitarian operation in Venezuela, delivering safe drinking water to populations severely impacted by the devastating recent earthquakes. As the organisation’s first international mission, the dedicated team has successfully completed complex technical installations to link a water well to a specialised purification unit located at the Caribe fire station in the Venezuelan city of La Guaira.

Local nonprofit’s first international mission delivers vital water supplies

This water treatment plant, a compact, high-capacity unit funded by the Universidad Católica San Antonio de Murcia (UCAM), can process up to 3,000 litres of clean drinking water every hour. The team constructed PVC pipelines to carry unpurified water from the well directly into the filtration system and out to an accessible distribution hub.

Bomberos por Bomberos is also coordinating tanker trucks equipped with large holding tanks to transport clean water directly into camps and remote settlements, where vulnerable local people are currently taking shelter.

Dedicated mobile distribution teams tackling a growing health crisis

Access to uncontaminated drinking water across the regions affected by the earthquakes has become critically scarce. Humanitarian workers warn that the deficit will worsen as other relief organisations phase out bottled water distributions in temporary camps. Without access to safe supplies, many desperate residents have turned to untreated well water, sparking widespread gastrointestinal illnesses and health complications.

Community awareness drives demand at local fire station

Local creators and Venezuelan social media channels have actively spread news about the new purification plant, driving a steady increase in daily demand at the Caribe fire station. With this effort, Bomberos por Bomberos continues to expand its logistics footprint to keep pace with the growing need for clean, fresh water.

Working tirelessly to provide water for displaced people, the Murcian firefighters are playing an essential role in stabilising public health and supporting vulnerable families through this devastating crisis. It is just one of the ways Murcian emergency responders and nonprofit organisations are working to spread humanitarian aid in light of the earthquake disaster in Venezuela.