This May, in recognition of Mental Health Month, we're shining a spotlight on how giving back supports not just those we help, but our own mental and emotional resilience. Volunteering has been shown to reduce stress, combat feelings of loneliness, and increase happiness — all key contributors to positive mental health. By taking time to care for others, we also care for ourselves, fostering a culture of empathy, connection, and wellbeing across RX.

April Stackhouse, Event Vice-President, USA

Volunteering has always been important to me, so I was excited to learn about the RX Cares initiative when I joined our Vision Expo team earlier this year. Filling in the Blanks helps to combat food insecurity in school aged children in Fairfield County, which spoke to me directly as a mother of a young child and community member. I knew that it would be a great opportunity to gather our team and bond while doing some good for the local community. In an area where many of us are so fortunate, it's even more important to recognise that not everyone has the same resources or access to basic needs.

We took an afternoon off and worked together to pack bags of food for students who received aid at school to bring home over the weekend. We shared laughs, as well as conversation to get to know each other better, all while helping to ensure local children had nutritious meal and snack options.

I really appreciate that RX has made it a priority to give employees the time to better themselves and give back to their community or charity of choice and look forward to additional volunteer opportunities throughout the year!

Chloe Davies, Conference Producer, Australia

Four times a year I claim half a day’s leave to donate blood which adds up to the two days of annual volunteer leave available. As a member of the RX Cares Committee and the Lifeblood Champion for our organisation, I also coordinate our group donations. With the donor centre conveniently located just across the road from our office, it’s an easy and meaningful way for me to make a difference. So far this year, RX has helped save up to thirty lives, with our next group donation scheduled for 11 June, during National Blood Donation Week.

I choose to donate simply because I can  ̶  it’s my way of giving back to the community plus it is also a great opportunity for a quick health check, as iron levels and blood pressure are tested each time AND they offer some great post-donation snacks!

Emma Preston, Event Operations Executive, UK

I recently used my volunteering hours for the first time to support a local initiative hosted by Be Richmond, which promotes Richmond town centre (where RX is headquartered) as a great place to live, work and explore. I thought it was a great way to do something for others for a change and use some of my RX Cares hours.

I volunteered with Shepherd’s Star to help them set up the Table of Hope at the Duke Street Church in Richmond. Table of Hope is a monthly community invitation to a nutritious lunch at a communal table within a safe, interactive space – reducing isolation and enhancing wellbeing. It was an extremely rewarding experience, and I feel fortunate that my work allows me to do this. I look forward to using my remaining volunteering day soon.”

 Kirya Brown, Marketing Associate, USA

I’ve been using my volunteer hours to serve at nOURish Bridgeport's food pantry. This cause is deeply important to me because I believe access to food is a human right. As food insecurity continues to rise, I felt compelled to act. I connected with nOURish Bridgeport after learning about the unique and thoughtful way they support our neighbours. They are the first and only pantry in Connecticut with a hydroponic farm, having provided over 14 tons of fresh, healthy food to the community.

What truly sets them apart is how the pantry operates. It's set up like a store, and volunteers walk alongside our neighbours, allowing them to choose the food they want for themselves and their families, giving them agency over their choices and providing them with resources to improve their lives.

Beyond the pantry and farm, nOURish Bridgeport runs programmes like distributing homecooked meals to the unhoused, ESL classes, and more. Of all the incredible work happening there, the part I love most is the relationships I have built. I get to interact with our neighbours, hear their stories, watch their children grow, and even help train community members who were once in need of our services.

It means the world to me that I can continue volunteering at nOURish Bridgeport. I started almost two years ago and was concerned I might not be able to keep serving in a new role. So, when I learned RX supports employees with dedicated volunteer time, I was thrilled. It was a major reason I was excited to join a company that aligns with my values and encourages giving back to our communities.

Award-winning volunteers

The RELX Recognising Those Who Care Awards were presented by our parent company earlier this year to those who had made the most outstanding contributions to RELX Cares in 2023. There were just eight winners across the entire RELX organisation, so we were incredibly proud that they included Amrane Lamiri from RX France, and Dang Phuong Thao from RX Vietnam.

An active Cares champion, Amrane helped to raise funds for numerous charities in 2023, including organising the successful ‘Connected Challenge Against Hunger’ which raised over €38,000. He has also been instrumental in motivating colleagues to participate in RELX Cares.

Thao participated in the RELX Cares Challenge, which encourages employees to use their volunteer days, winning a $5000 prize for the Go Vap District Blind Association, supporting 92 blind members. With the funds, she organised smartphone usage classes, provided Braille reading lessons, extended loans, offered cash assistance, sponsored Braille book printing, and hosted a year-end party. Thao’s efforts resulted in 11 impactful programmes, significantly enhancing the lives of the blind members. 

As part of their ‘Recognising those that Care’ prize, both Amrane and Thao will be travelling to Ghana with their fellow winners in November 2024 to visit RELX supported charity projects.

Support for flood victims

While most RX volunteering is pre-planned, RXers can also be relied on in an emergency. In May, heavy rains caused widespread flooding in the southern Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul, leaving hundreds of towns under water. In the face of this tragedy, our Brazilian event teams came together to help the community of Rio Grande do Sul get back on its feet.

Bar industry event BCB São Paulo and Fenetran, LATAM’s largest road freight transport event, joined forces with Águas Prata and Transportadora Trans Sago to collect and deliver 30,000 bottles of drinking water to those in need. Meanwhile, Feicon, the construction industry event, worked with Acomac Porto Alegre to collect donations of basic necessities and construction materials. Their efforts were supported by the Fenasucro and Agrocana team who, working in partnership with CEISE BR, turned their pavilion into a collection point for donations of mineral water, non-perishable foods, personal hygiene products, cleaning materials and animal feed.

More recently, RX Brazil marked Cares Month by organising an afternoon of fun and friendship for 44 elderly people, in partnership with Unibes, which offers daytime care for the elderly. RX Brazil laid on a bingo afternoon with plenty of prizes, spreading smiles, and creating an enriching experience for all involved, including our RX volunteers.

A journey of love

RX Greater China (RXGC) has embraced the spirit of giving this year under the theme, ‘a journey of love.’ As well as undertaking a series of local volunteering activities across their offices in Beijing, Shanghai, and Shenzhen, they have raised nearly RMB10,000 through charity sales and employee donations, which has been matched by RXGC.

Eight enthusiastic volunteers from RX Shenzhen office joined the ‘Fire Safety in the Community’ event, organized by the Futian District Firefighting Volunteers. Equipped with educational materials and interactive safety demonstrations on the Fire Safety Bus, the team braved the summer heat to distribute fire safety flyers and posters to residents and shop owners, raising awareness about fire prevention and self-preservation techniques.

Marking six years of support for the Shanghai Baby’s Home, an organization devoted to providing medical care and rehabilitation for orphaned children from across China, our Shanghai office organised a charity bazaar in August featuring items generously donated by management and employees. And on September 10^th, seven RX Shanghai colleagues spent the day crafting rabbit lanterns and traditional fans with the children at the Home. For every handmade toy sewn during the event, RX donated RMB300 to the Baby’s Home, further supporting their cause.

In addition to continuing their partnership with Beijing Stars and Rain — China’s first nonprofit organization dedicated to serving children with autism — the RX Beijing team formed a new collaboration with HOPE Equestrian Therapy Centre, the only NPO in China offering equestrian therapy to help individuals with special needs improve their coordination and independence. On September 5^th,  a group of RX volunteers visited HOPE to assist with various tasks, such as cleaning the stables and walking the horses

Gaming for life

Ten years ago, Milton Montaque was asked by a friend to play video games with him for 24 hours on Extra Life Game Day to raise money for Children's Miracle Network Hospitals. “As a former educator, and someone is known to play a video game now and then, participating in Extra Life Game Day has been the perfect nexus of two things that I love,” explained Milton. “I’ve enjoyed video games since I was introduced to the Nintendo many years ago, and very little is more important to me than children and their wellbeing.”

Over the last decade, Milton has fundraised more than $17,000 with the help of his family, friends, and coworkers at RX US. This year he is using his volunteer hours to unite with thousands of gamers to play games and raise funds for kids at his local Children's Miracle Network Hospital. The 24 hour gaming marathon takes place on November 2^nd. You can support him here. Every little helps!