As a Regional Charitable Giving Ambassador at Lush Cosmetics, one of my main responsibilities was to help find non-profits that Lush could monetarily contribute to. It was also an expectation to engage staff members in volunteering with these organizations. While researching groups, I felt incredibly inspired by them to take more action. Most of the groups had a common theme, their core had a group of dedicated and good-willed laborers willing to work diligently to create paradigm shifts, regardless of what an uphill battle that might be.

 

The gravitational pull I experienced in this role and intense desire to do more consumed my thoughts. What "more" meant, I was not exactly sure, but I knew that I wanted to immerse myself deeper into the world of Charitable Giving and provide any little support I could to non-profits in the realm of human empowerment, environmental conservation, and animal protection. 

 

Luckily for me, Lush approved me leaving my Regional Charity Role for six months and I was able to travel to India, Thailand, and Borneo. I searched for volunteer opportunities that worked in one of the realms mentioned above and threw myself into a six-month journey to understand issues that were near and dear to my heart. I found myself saying I had a “happy heart” very often throughout the process and I realized that although I thought I was going on a journey to "help" and volunteer, it was actually the other way around. Offering the little bit of work and service was truly helping me feel lifted and gave me a new perspective and appreciation of life.