Brussels Bubble Tea S4E5: Supporting Our Communities Through Corporate Citizenship
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October 28, 2026
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Introduction
In this episode of Brussels Bubble Tea (Season 4 Episode 5), host Ani Gundes speaks with Monica Adami, a Director in FTI Consulting’s Technology, Media & Telecommunications team and a member of the Corporate Citizenship team in Brussels. They discuss the charities supported by the Brussels office, including Serve the City and Help Animals, and explore the different ways colleagues can contribute through volunteering and corporate citizenship.
The episode also features insights from Gemma at Serve the City and Deborah from Help Animals, who explain where volunteers are most needed, the activities that benefit most from additional support and how individuals and companies can get involved.
To Start, Can You Introduce Yourself and Tell Us a Bit About Your Role at FTI Consulting and Within the Corporate Citizenship Initiative?
Monica: My name is Monica Adami, and I’m a Director in FTI Consulting’s Technology, Media & Telecommunications team here in Brussels. More importantly for this conversation, I’m also a member of the Corporate Citizenship team.
Since I joined the company in September, I decided to get involved in the corporate social responsibility initiatives that FTI Consulting supports.
Can You Tell Us More About the Charities FTI Consulting Has Supported This Year?
Monica: We have supported two charities this year. One is Serve the City, which is one of the main charities here in Brussels. FTI Consulting has been a partner for quite some time, and I have also volunteered with Serve the City myself since joining the Brussels office.
The other charity we support is Help Animals, which is based outside the Brussels city centre. It is an animal shelter supporting dogs and other animals in need. Both are very interesting initiatives, and they provide different opportunities for our colleagues to get involved.
When Are the Busiest Periods When Serve the City Needs the Most Volunteers?
Gemma: We propose volunteering opportunities constantly, so we have a need for a regular flow of people to get involved.
If I had to identify one particularly challenging period, it would probably be the summer holidays. This is when our reserve of volunteers is at its lowest because many people are away on holiday.
The projects that continue during the summer are often those providing essential services to the community, such as food distributions and language classes. When there are not enough volunteers, it puts additional pressure on both the Serve the City staff and the volunteers who run these projects.
If you have time during the summer, please look at the projects available through our ServeNow app and consider volunteering. We would be very happy to have you.
When Does FTI Consulting Tend To Provide the Most Support?
Monica: I was really happy to hear that summer is when Serve the City needs the most volunteers because that is also when FTI Consulting has supported the charities most actively, particularly in June and July.
August tends to be quieter on our side as well. The weather is better, and we are generally a little less busy, which makes it easier for our colleagues to engage in volunteering activities.
What Are the Activities for Which You Don’t Have Enough Volunteers, Regardless of the Time of Year?
Gemma: I’m sure all of our projects would like to have more volunteers because the more people involved, the more fun and social the project becomes, and the stronger the sense of community around it.
We also have teams outside Brussels, including in other areas where we would love to have more people involved.
In Brussels, our essential projects, particularly food distributions during the week, are always important. Our evening French and Dutch language classes are also areas where we struggle to find enough volunteers.
Most of our volunteer base is made up of expatriates, so we do not always have enough people who feel comfortable teaching the local languages. At the same time, these classes are extremely appreciated by our partners and by the people who attend them.
If you speak French or Dutch and would like to help others learn, these are projects where your support would be particularly appreciated.
Are There Any Activities for Which It Is More Difficult To Find Volunteers?
Monica: I would say that there are some activities for which it is easier to find volunteers.
For example, when we supported Help Animals, it was incredibly easy to get people involved. We initially opened one volunteering slot and then had to open a second one. There were even enough people interested to almost fill a third.
For activities such as walking dogs, many people already have the skills needed and, importantly, a genuine love for animals. I think the closer an activity is to the skills and interests that people already have, the more volunteers are likely to be available.
What Types of Animals Do You Take In at Help Animals?
Deborah: At our original shelter in Anderlecht, we take in cats and dogs, mainly domestic animals that have previously belonged to people.
We also pick up stray cats. Some are born outside and are not always very sociable, but we bring them in when we feel that we can socialise them and eventually place them with a new family.
We have two other shelters that opened over the last decade, where we take in farm animals, including horses and some birds, as well as cats.
At one of our locations, we also have an area for what we call wild cats — cats that do not want contact with people. We are not trying to place these animals for adoption. Instead, we allow them to live in a cared-for environment where we can continue to feed and look after them.
What Are the Most Common Backgrounds of the Animals That Come To Help Animals?
Deborah: There are three main ways animals come to us.
The first is when people give their animals to us and sign them over to the shelter. This can happen because their circumstances have changed. They may have gone through a divorce or separation, had a child who is allergic or need to move into a care home. There are many circumstances that people cannot necessarily predict, which can mean they are no longer able to keep their animal.
Another situation is when people acquire an animal without fully considering the responsibilities involved. They may not have thought about the costs, what they will do when they go on holiday or whether they have enough time to dedicate to the animal.
The second way animals come to us is when they are picked up from the street. In Belgium, this is mostly cats. Some are born outside, while others may have been abandoned or become lost.
In those cases, we keep the animals for 15 days, which is a legal requirement. If nobody comes forward during that period, we then look for a new family for them.
The third way animals arrive is through our work with the police and animal welfare services. Sometimes there has been a legal or social intervention because of mistreatment or neglect. We work with these services to bring animals into our shelters and, when necessary, collaborate with other shelters to accommodate larger animals.
How Did the First FTI Consulting Experience With Help Animals Go?
Monica: It went amazingly well.
We have many animal owners and animal lovers in the office, so as soon as we announced the collaboration, people were very enthusiastic. I sent the email and received 17 replies within 50 minutes.
After the experience, colleagues came to thank us and said that they would like these initiatives to be organised again.
Are You Planning To Organise Another Initiative Soon?
Monica: Once everyone comes back in September, we will start discussing the initiatives for the year and deciding which priorities we want to support.
How Can Individuals and Companies Support Serve the City?
Gemma: We recently launched a campaign called “Become a Community Builder,” and I think it summarises all the different ways people can support our organisation.
There are many options. As an individual, becoming a community builder can mean volunteering in a project, but it can also mean sharing information about our projects or our app with people who may have time to volunteer.
If you do not have the time to volunteer yourself, you can also become a monthly donor and help us continue supporting volunteers and making a difference in the community.
For companies, it can mean joining our corporate programme and getting teams together to become an active part of the community.
FTI Consulting has been a great example of this. The company has supported us directly in the field many times, with colleagues volunteering in food distributions and practical projects through the corporate programme, as well as people who have volunteered in their personal capacity.
FTI Consulting has also supported the core of our organisation through pro bono communications work and sponsorship of our volunteering programmes.
In a nutshell, whether you are an individual or a company, there are many ways to become a community builder. The important thing is to do something for the community in the way that works for you.
What Would You Say to Colleagues Considering Volunteering in Their Personal Capacity?
Monica: Speaking as someone who also volunteers personally, I would encourage everyone to consider both professional and personal engagement with these kinds of initiatives.
I joined an English book sale through Serve the City outside Brussels, and it was an amazing experience.
Here in Belgium, we also have one day per year when you can volunteer, so I would encourage everyone to make use of it.
How Can People Learn More and Get Involved?
As you heard from Gemma, there are multiple ways to support Serve the City. Whether you are an individual or a company, you can participate in activities or support the work the organisation is doing in other ways.
We hope this episode has shared information you may not have known before and encouraged you to learn more about both charities.
If you are interested in getting involved, please reach out to Serve the City or Help Animals and explore the opportunities available.
Thank you to Monica, Gemma and Deborah, as well as everyone in the Brussels office who supports these charities on a regular basis.
We hope you enjoyed the episode and, most importantly, that it inspires you to support the charities and communities around you.
The views expressed herein are those of the author(s) and not necessarily the views of FTI Consulting, Inc., its management, its subsidiaries, its affiliates, or its other professionals.
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Published
October 28, 2026
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