A Blairhall man who works at the Amazon fulfilment centre in Dunfermline has been nominated for a national award thanks to his outstanding efforts supporting the local community.
Oliver Forizs, who works at Amazon in Dunfermline as a sustainability ambassador, was nominated for a national Amazon Stars award by his colleagues at the fulfilment centre.
Amazon Stars, now in its fourth year, is a UK-wide Amazon campaign that recognises and rewards Amazon employees who go above and beyond for their local community by using their skills, time and passion to help others.
Oliver Forizs, who joined Amazon in 2020, is a passionate supporter of the Dunfermline community, taking part in many fundraising and volunteering campaigns in his spare time over the last three years. It’s this passion for making a positive impact in his community that has seen Oliver nominated in this year’s Amazon Stars awards.
Oliver’s support of his community means he is in with a chance of winning one of two Dream Boxes, the top prize awarded as part of the Amazon Stars campaign. A Dream Box, worth £1,500, is a personalised prize to honour Amazon’s top two community heroes in the UK.
Dream Boxes won by previous Amazon Stars include community donations, music equipment, holiday vouchers and family tickets for Disneyland Paris. Oliver will find out if he has won a Dream Box in December.
Oliver was nominated for the award by his colleagues for his passion for environmental and sustainability change.
Oliver Forizs is a sustainability ambassador at Amazon in Dunfermline and lives in Blairhall with his seven-year-old daughter.
Before joining Amazon two years ago, Oliver worked in the music industry as a tour manager and as a security supervisor at an international airport. A friend told him about a job opening at Amazon, and a week after applying he was hired.
As a single father, Oliver praises Amazon’s flexible working patterns. He said: “One of the best things about working at Amazon is the flexible hours – something of great benefit to me as a single father. Amazon also offers so many different opportunities that make your daily work very colourful.”
Oliver was nominated for an Amazon Stars award due to his passion for environmental and sustainability change. He recently held an event in conjunction with his favourite environmentalist charity, World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF).
He explained: “As a sustainability ambassador, I try to find ways to extend our work to the community around us. Having organised several events, I proposed establishing a partnership with WWF, an organisation I deeply admire for its incredible environmental efforts.
“My managers were enthusiastic about the idea and encouraged me to reach out to the charity, which shared our enthusiasm. Together, we successfully forged a partnership and brought the collaboration to life.
“The event took place at the end of September, with a Wear it Wild dress up theme and half hour movie with the WWF’s own footage about the marine environment around the UK. There was also fundraising in the canteen, with raffle tickets available for a £25 voucher prize. It was all for WWF’s great cause to build a future in which people live in harmony with nature. The event raised almost £1,000 and engaged more than 150 Amazon employees.”
“The day was a tremendous success, and our team couldn’t be more thrilled. We not only hit our target but exceeded it, raising more funds than we initially hoped. The event was filled with enthusiasm, inspiring speakers, and wonderful people who are as passionate about the cause as we are. The support from our colleagues at Amazon was great and everyone was really interested and engaged.”
Oliver explained why sustainability is so important to him. He said: “The easiest explanation I can give for why I care so much about the environment comes straight from the definition of sustainability.
“We must arrange our daily life to keep in mind future generations. My present is my daughter’s future, and I want to extend this idea to a bigger scale. My daughter Elizabeth inspires me to make the world a better place, and I am passionate about showing people around me that sustainability is not just about us, it is about future generations.”
Alongside his passion for the environment, Oliver also enjoys painting, golfing and travel.
Amazon General Manager, Jamie Strain, added: “At Amazon, we’re passionate about positively impacting the communities we serve, and Oliver embodies that ethos.
“Amazon Stars is one of the ways that we shine a light on the achievements of our team, giving us an opportunity to celebrate the positive contribution that our employees make to local communities around the UK. Oliver goes above and beyond to support our community and everyone at Amazon in Dunfermline is proud that he has been nominated for this fantastic award.”
Last year, the winners of the Amazon Stars awards included a community music mentor from Dartford, a pilot from Birmingham who provides aviation experiences for people from disadvantaged backgrounds and an animal rescue volunteer from Wakefield. Find out more here.
Amazon provides community donations and employee volunteering opportunities for its employees to support community organisations.
These are two of the ways Amazon supports the communities in and around its operating locations across the UK. Amazon provides students, teachers and parents with free computer science and STEM education programmes through Amazon Future Engineer and has teamed up with charity partner Magic Breakfast to deliver more than seven million healthy breakfasts to children at risk of hunger in disadvantaged areas of the country.
Earlier this year, Amazon partnered with Comic Relief to become the official home of the Red Nose. Amazon employees across the UK hosted fundraising activities and together with their customers and partners, raised £2.7 million to support those going through the toughest time of their lives.