Interesting Community service ideas that housing societies can implement to improve community bonding

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Housing societies over a period of time have taken several initiatives in order to show their care and love towards the societies. There are many examples in front of us where we can say that the housing societies served as a boon to its residents and also helped in raising awareness and overall conscientiousness of the society. The members especially the management committees are always on a look out for innovative ideas that they can implement in order to not only bind the members together but also to serve the larger cause.

1) Tree plantation drives – Today when rising pollution and temperatures are everyone’s concern this could be a very good idea as a community service. Imagine large housing societies with thousands of members planting 1000s of trees. The activity is not just limited to planting but also maintenance of the trees by donating money to buy tree guards. This is a good team building exercise as well as very fulfilling for environmentally conscious members. Members can also plant native flowers or plants along the highway.

2) Take the wall and paint it red! – Yes these are the famous lyrics of a Bollywood song but this can also be a very good community service exercise for the housing society members. As the name suggests the members of the society could get together to paint the walls of the local government schools, public park benches or local NGO centers and this would serve as a great resource for the public schools as well as the NGOs

3) Organize a self-defense workshop – Knowing self-defense could be an added advantage for any resident as they will be able to face any threat with more confidence and might even save them from some terrible experiences. This idea is especially good for training female residents as women are more at risk while traveling alone or if they are living by themselves. This will make the residents feel safe within the community and they will feel cared for.

4) Organize Community kitchen for a day – Food brings people together. Cooking food is not only a very fulfilling activity but if done collectively it can improve the bond among the members of the housing societies. This will also serve as a good chance for people to enjoy food of people coming from different regions and they will make them appreciate diversity.

5) Donating used children’s books to the local children’s library – Many of us buy books at different stages of our children’s growth. These books become redundant as the child outgrows the age limit of that book. So collecting these books from the houses and donating them to a library where underprivileged children could avail could be a good idea.

6) Local park cleanliness drive- As citizens of the society we enjoy several amenities which the government provides us for the purpose of recreation. Therefore, it is our duty to take care of these parks as much as possible. Local residents can come together and organize a local park or parks cleanup in their localities. This will also inculcate a sense of belonging among the residents and they will also think twice before littering it. Residents of the nearby societies will also draw inspiration from such drives.

7) Clean up open plots – Often there are many plots which are lying vacant near the vicinity but cannot be used as they are very dirty because of accumulation of waste. The community members could come together to clean up such plots so that these plots can use used as playgrounds for children or for organizing community activities. This will also be a good way to be a part of India’s Swachh Bharat Abhiyaan

8) Organize walking marathon to promote a cause- Identify causes which are very close to your community members or any issue which the community could be facing. Organize walking marathon so that members could participate in them. Members could make placards and spread awareness in the society about the cause. Members could organize food and refreshment stalls proceeds of which could be donated to the charities working towards the cause.

9) Organize a car wash service – This is another innovative idea where the members of the housing societies can organize a car wash service and the proceeds of the same could be donated to any local charity. This could be a fun activity if implemented properly and could help in generating a sizeable amount of donation.

10) IT camp for domestic help – Another interesting idea could be to organize an IT camp where the members can set up booths with their laptops, mobiles, etc and help their domestic help to learn basic of IT especially phones. These days knowing basic IT is essential in order to function smoothly and also with digitalization and the need to maintain social distancing because of the pandemic it has become all the more important. They could be taught to use Paytm, G-pay or any other such payment methods which will help them in maintaining a better social distancing. They could also be made aware of the online Aadhar card registration. So it is important that we help our domestic workers to catch with this situation and help in making their lives easier.    

In the end one should always remember that any act done no matter how small or big has great importance in the overall upliftment of the society. So as members of any housing society we must not hesitate in doing whatever little or more they can in order to serve the community that takes care of us. Don’t forget to bookmark this article if you are planning to organize any community services for your housing society. 

Green Clean India (www.greencleanindia.com) is an initiative to exhibit the collective power of Housing Societies, by providing a common platform across the country to interact and exchange thoughts that best suit community living. For details on how we can help you make lifestyle changes, do contact us at +919717938018 or write to us at wecare@greencleanindia.com