FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS FOR NGOs

What is Lähellä.fi?

Lähellä.fi online service is a free communication platform for associations, non-governmental organisations, and communities that provide non-profit activities. It helps people discover diverse and meaningful activities provided by NGOs and associations across Finland. The service enables non-profit actors to gain visibility and attract more participants to their activities.

Who can register as a user in Lähellä.fi?

Lähellä.fi is designed for showcasing non-profit activities serving the public good. All associations, federations, non-governmental organisations, communities, and active citizens that promote wellbeing can register on the online service. Municipalities and parishes can also register. Commercial businesses may register on the service regarding their potential volunteering activities.

What information can we announce in the service?

Lähellä.fi brings together all activity announcements and events provided by associations, NGOs, and communities across various fields, both locally and nationally. Citizens and municipal service coordinators use the service as an information source. Announce your activities anytime you need more participants in your NGO's activities or when you want to make the services your NGO provides visible to the public sector.

Why should a non-governmental organisation register in Lähellä.fi?

Lähellä.fi is an online service that offers NGOs free visibility to reach both citizens and the public sector. By registering and providing your NGO’s contact details, you ensure that citizens can find your NGO. The public sector also uses the email addresses provided in the service for communication and collaboration invitations.

In addition to providing your contact details, it is beneficial to announce all your NGO’s activities to ensure they appear in search results.

Do I need to submit information to both Lähellä.fi and the Finnish Service Catalogue (FSC)?

The Lähellä.fi network collaborates with the Digital and Population Data Services Agency and has established an interface connection between Lähellä.fi and the Finnish Service Catalogue (FSC). This interface is one-way, meaning that data transfers from Lähellä.fi to Finnish Service Catalogue, but not the other way around.

Therefore, it is enough to submit information to Lähellä.fi, as it will automatically transfer to FSC. The interface was completed in December 2023. You can find more details on this topic here.

Why should a non-governmental organisation announce its activities on Lähellä.fi?

Lähellä.fi is designed to showcase non-profit activities serving the public good. It provides your NGO and its activities with free visibility, enhances collaboration between NGOs, and encourages citizens to participate in NGO activities.

You should utilise the service whenever you want to attract more participants and volunteers or make your activities visible to the public sector. By also entering email addresses related to your activities, you ensure that you receive information and collaboration invitations from the public sector.

Why do I need to announce each activity separately? Is it not enough to submit our entire activity calendar in one activity announcement?

Lähellä.fi is a search engine that compiles information about activities and events provided by NGOs. Users search for suitable activities and filter results based on, for example, date, location, age, diagnosis, and other search attributes.

By listing each activity as a separate activity announcement, the search engine can accurately find and filter the most relevant options for users.

How is the Lähellä.fi online service developing? How can I give feedback or make a suggestion for improvement?

Lähellä.fi is a new online service launched in May 2022. It is continuously being developed in collaboration with its users. You can send feedback on the service’s technical features and development suggestions to info@lahella.fi.

What should I do if I need support with the service?

If you need information on how to use Lähellä.fi, check the user instructions for solutions. If you cannot find a solution to your problem, you can contact info@lahella.fi for technical support.

Who is responsible for producing the Lähellä.fi online service?

Lähellä.fi has been developed through collaboration among 13 regional actors. Together with later additions, they form the Lähellä.fi network (formerly the Toimeksi.fi network), which consists of 17 members and has been active since 2013. You can read more about the background of the Lähellä.fi service.

What other services for organisations are available?

Lähellä.fi is a multidisciplinary online service that operates both locally and nationally. In addition, there are other services that function on a local level or focus on specific fields of activity. You should register on Lähellä.fi if you want to reach your target audience locally or nationwide and attract more participants to your activities.

Couldn't find what you were looking for? Contact info@lahella.fi