ESC VOLUNTEERS FROM CIVIL FORUM AND CIVIL FORUM SHIDA KARTLI CELEBRATED #ERASMUSDAYS

MOBILITY FOR SOLIDARITY TOOK A PLACE IN KRAKOW

Mobility for Solidarity – project summary The project “Mobility for Solidarity” took place in Krakow. At the beginning of September, first group of volunteers arrived: Theo form Germany (who supported the kindergarten of the School and Pre-school Complex no 11), Pia from Spain, Emelyn and from France (they were volunteers in the Special School Complex no 11). In the middle of September next volunteers came: Rocio and Maria form Spain, Anthi from Greece. Maria was a volunteer in primary school in the School and Pre-school Complex no 11. Anthi and Rocio helpt in Special School Complex no 11. The others followed: at the beginning of October: Pamela from Italy (volunteer in kindergarten of the School and Pre-school Complex no 11) and Seyma form Turkey (volunteer in Special School Complex no 11), at the end of November – Marie form Belgium (volunteer in primary school of the School and Pre-school Complex no 11) and in first months of 2020: Eyup and Meryem form Turkey (both were volunteers in Special School Complex no 11) and Mirna from Egypt (she supported primary school of School and Preschool Complex no 11). Due to problems with finding a volunteer from Croatia and Germany, we decided to have also open recruitment for other countries. The main goal of our project “Mobility for Solidarity” implemented under the European Solidarity Corps (apart of a daily support of hosting organizations) was the common work and integration of volunteers, teachers, students, their families and the local community around the Special School Complex No. 11 (ZSS 11) and School and Pre-School Complex No. 11 ( ZSP 11) in Krakow. Volunteers became the integral part of the local community. We also aimed to promote the idea of solidarity and volunteering. We wanted volunteers who participated in the project to develop both in personal and social life. 

AS A PART OF THE PROJECT’s ACTIVITIES WE ORGANIZED: The International & Intergeneration Dancing with Seniors in Tychy, help in setting-up tent and serving food for homless during the World Day of Poor in Kraków, supporting Hanna Community in their service to the homeless (preparing sandwiches, serving soup, backing gingerbread), cleaning and preparation for painting in the UNICORN – organization supporting people having cancer and their families, meeting with local coordinator of Academy of the Future during the Volunteers Day – organization supporting children, meeting about refugees with Sidhuja Sankaran – local activist; founder of grass-roots initative Rethinking Refugees (Nastya was invloved in their theater project afterwards), support of Parasol – children youth club (activities during winter brake), Christmas meeting in Senior’s Club, zoom meeting with Karol Wilczyński local activist and journalist about solidarity, workshops about solidarity with IB Polska coordinatros, Spanish Day in the School and Pre-school Complex no 11 (Theo, Pamela, Mirna, Maria, Marie, Pia) – our volunteers from Spain both form the School and Pre-school Complex no 11 and Special School Complex no 11 took part in this event. Maria was one of the main coordinators of it, Volunteers Day at Special School Complex no 11 – volunteers from special school prepared a short presentation for students and teachers, also coordinators form IB Office were invited.

DURING CORONAVIRUS LOCKDOWN: Preparation of sandwiches for homeless, support of IB Polska in sewing masks for the elderly and children as well as help in the food warehouse working under programme Bank of Food, support Autism Center and UNICORN in works in the garden;  ZOOM calls: meeting with the founder of the Special School nr 11 in Kraków, with the founder and leader of DOMeq – place for LGBT community in Kraków,

ADDITIONAL EVENTS: Quiz about Poland for Cyprian visitors in the School in Giebułtów (Theo), visit in the kindergarten – games from different countries, EKS on tour – sharing the experience of being the volunteer with potential hosting org.  All Saints Day in Promary School – programme about traditions connected rememberance of deceased family members in different nations. Multicultural Festival – stand of IB Polska. High School Competition about English and German-speaking countries (Theo). The Volunteers Day. Christmas games in Parasol. Cultural workshops in High School.  2 sessions of games for kids during winter break, visit in the kindergarten, workshops for Primary School children. Games with kids form kindergarten in Zielonki.

TRAININGS FOR VOLUNTEERS: On arrival and mid-term, training about formalities in the project, training on setting goals, well-being and time management, munication with autistic children (Asser and Gvantsa), workshops on solidarity, Youthpass training (on-line).

INTEGRATION MEETINGS: City walk in Kraków, boarding games, photo-session and laughing yoga, City-Game, Christmas Evening, Jumping Park, Ceramic workshops with BBQ, Kayaks, visit of the castle, ropes park, polish-style BBQ.

Additionally volunteers had polish lessons, meetings with mentors as well as group and individaul evaluations with coordinators in the schools and from coordinating organization. Unfortunetly due to lockdown and limited possibility to organize events for groups and children we did not fulfill all our plans and activities. Still we hope it was good experience for the Volunteers.

“YOUTH AND PEACEBUILDING” – LONG-TERM PROJECT IN TBILISI, GEORGIA !CLOSED!

This volunteering project will take place in Tbilisi, Georgia and will involve two Italian volunteers who will work with the NGO Civil Forum for Peace for 12 months starting from September 2020.
Civil Forum for Peace is to promote sustainable development of local communities in the conflict resolution process and contribute to the dialogue between the Georgian and Ossetian communities development. In their work they try to contribute to the local civil society, to help their professional development and enhance the capacity of youth involvement in local life.
The main aim of the project is to develop and promote knowledge of post-conflict reconstruction and peace building, by producing analytical reports and articles for publication and dissemination by Civil Forum for Peace and others. The other aim of the volunteers is to assist the work of Civil Forum for Peace, for example through empowering local youth for non formal education tools and leading workshop, training, running movie and discussion clubs for local youths, organizational and administrative work, building networks and partnerships, and planning and implementing projects.
This will provide the volunteers with the chance to learn skills in several key competencies and will enhance the volunteer’s knowledge of how peace building and conflict resolution works in practice.
The volunteers will also have gained the practical knowledge of how to design, implement and evaluate projects in these areas.
The project also aims to provide opportunities for local people, especially youth, to have the chance to improve their practical English language skills.

The volunteer plans to follow up on the project by providing advice and guidance to other potential volunteering project participants who want to volunteer in Georgia or who wish to be involved in similar projects.

The volunteer will be an integral part of the work carried out by Civil Forum for Peace in promoting knowledge of post-conflict reconstruction and empowering the local youths. The participant will also gain cultural awareness and linguistic skills through their participation in local youth initiatives.

The reports and articles the volunteers will be working on will be posted on both Civil Forum for Peace `s own website and EURO
SUD website and online portals to provide exposure in Georgia and Italy. In order to show the work,being carried out by the volunteers and as a way for the volunteer to share their volunteering experiences. This will then act to promote the work of the NGO’s and the volunteer. The volunteers will be integrated into Georgian culture and customs by living and building relationships with the local
community and by gaining additional achievements such as personal and professional growth.A major aim of the project is to identify and distill lessons learned and best practices from local peace building NGOs such as Civil Forum for Peace so that they can be made available to civil society actors, academics and others in the peace building community. The first audience of these reports will be the local community – the intention is that they will benefit from the insights the research will generate. The local youths will benefit from having a English speaker to help them improve their spoken language, writing and reading.

The local youth will also gain an enthusiastic volunteers to lead their discussion and movie groups and work with local schools in the region. The second audience will be the peace building community in Georgia more generally – the insights from peace building in Tbilisi and IDP settlements can be extended beyond this area. The third audience of interested parties is beyond Georgia – European and international audiences – what lessons can be learned from conflicts in Georgia to improve our knowledge and understanding of conflict resolution,
post-conflict reconstruction and peace building processes.
Activities
Main activities of project will be empowerment local youth through non formal education tools such as training, workshop,create space of participation youth mobility projects. These activities will be lead by volunteers with assist project coordinator. Participants will be youth from conflicted affected are and IDP settlement. We expect that during project duration will cover more them one hundred local
youth; Office work will be assisted by project coordinator, she will help volunteers and guide how to make partner finding, support volunteers to attend different forum and conference according their needs and interest in Georgia.

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VOLUNTARY SERVICE IN POLAND  !CLOSED!

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“OUTDOOR AND WELLNESS” – LONG-TERM PROJECT IN SLOVAKIA !OPEN CALL!

The project aims to increase the involvement of young people and organizations in volunteering and solidarity activities at the local level, thus contributing to strengthening active citizenship in the youth community in and around Zvolen, developing tolerance, solidarity and promoting active citizenship, volunteering and mutual understanding among young people.

www.slatinka.sk                  www.facebook.com/zdruzenieslatinkaor            www.instagram.com/slatinkaassociation/

The results of our project will be mainly the knowledge and experience gained by volunteers, but also other stakeholders involved in the project (local community, young volunteers, children, etc.) to increase the participation of young people and organizations in volunteer and solidarity activities at the local level.

Another result will be the improved skills of volunteers, their better linguistic knowledge and
cultural awareness of the values of tolerance and solidarity in the European area, a possible change of attitudes and, in particular, a strengthening of the sense of initiative for critical thinking.

The main activity of the project is individual volunteer mobility. Overall, we plan to host 4 volunteers in the project, with two young people coming from Portugal and two from Italy. We want to give the opportunity to two young people from rural settlements or isolated areas, with economic disadvantages. We would like to give priority to volunteers with a relationship to the landscape,environmental and nature protection, who are more skilled, but it is not a condition.

Participation in project activities is not conditional on age or gender – the activities are appropriate and can be adapted for both women and men. The selected volunteers should also have a good relationship with children and young people, the ability to participate willingly in the project activities.
Flexibility, enthusiasm, sound judgment, a willingness to learn, a positive attitude, and the ability to work in a team are desirable. No specific skills are required. However, the important criteria for the selection of volunteers will be their motivation for environmental protection, implementation of nature conservation activities and sustainable community development. The main objective of the project is the personal development of volunteers, their informal learning through assistance to the local community and nature, the development of interpersonal skills through the organization of volunteering activities in the village of Slatinka, and the city of Zvolen to raise awareness of volunteering at European level.

Video workcamp in Slatinka:  bit.ly/3aCyMYq

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IN AUSTRIA “SOLIDARITY, SOCIAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP & THE SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS (SDGS)” !CLOSED!

Through this project, we aim to develop young people & allow them to gain an understanding of global social & environmental challenges by introducing them to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, SDGs, while at the same time exposing them to social entrepreneurs working on solutions for these.

At the same time volunteers will be encouraged to spread this knowledge in the local Impact Hub Vienna community of 600+ (social) entrepreneurs and unite the community members as well as external partners around these topics. We also aim to have volunteers gain skills, inspiration & ideas in order to bring the concept of social entrepreneurship and the SDGs to their own communities at local & regional level. Impact Hub Vienna aims to support diverse people in realising their entrepreneurial ideas for sustainable impact in the world.

We wish to inspire and support specifically young people to use & develop their creative and entrepreneurial skills for a more sustainable society and to become active citizens who understand global challenges & possible solutions. The volunteers and the
communities they are part of will benefit from being embedded into a multicultural setting and making valuable connections with Impact Hub Vienna members & partners, which will enhance intercultural understanding in the European spirit. At the same time the Impact Hub Vienna community will benefit by having people with a different perspective who are actively engaged in hosting, organising events and communicating about topics related to the SDGs. That will allow them to learn about these issues more & to connect around them.

We plan to implement two activities in the area of Community Hosting and Events Hosting respectively. Both topics will allow volunteers to 1) experience what it is like to operate a space for social entrepreneurs and a location where various institutions, partners, etc. meet and 2) gain a better understanding of societal and environmental challenges through understanding the SDGs.

The volunteer in the area of Community Hosting will be working in the co-working space, directly with the social entrepreneurs, freelancers, and impact-minded people who are part of the Impact Hub Vienna community of 600+. This volunteer will be involved in improving the daily experience of the community in order to grow our overall impact. Activities will be both in the space and online, and will involve getting to know the operations as well as hosting events related to SDG topics.

The volunteer in the area of Events Hosting will be confronted with the topic of creating spaces for meeting and working on innovative and socially relevant projects run by or together with external partners. This volunteer will support the organisation of events and will be at the crossroads of various stakeholders – social entrepreneurs, as well as corporates, NGOs, government institutions and will support in making them to connect through events and through the facilities. The volunteer will examine the extent to which the SDGs are present in the events hosted with and by partners at Impact Hub and will raise awareness among the community and the public by engaging in various communication activities.

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“STRENGTHEN PEACE AND CITIZENSHIP EDUCATION” – CROSS-BORDER COOPERATION PROJECT IN GORI, 2020 2021 GEORGIA   !OPEN CALL!

This Volunteering project will take place in Shida Kartli region in GORI city, Georgia and will involve two Italian volunteers who will work with the NGO Civil Forum Shida Kartli for 12 months. Host organization is to promote youth work and youth development through youth mobility and volunteering projects.
Our volunteering project will be one of the main activities for local youngsters development. In their work they try to contribute to the local civil society, to help their professional development and enhance the capacity of youth involvement in local life. The main aim of the project is to develop and promote knowledge of post-conflict reconstruction,peace building, active citizenship and human rights.

The other aim of the volunteers is to assist the work of Civil Forum Shida Kartli, for instance to create youth mobility projects volunteers will help organization for networking and partnership during the Erasmus+ program deadlines, to be partner for youth exchanges, training.
All this activities will provide the volunteers with the chance to learn skills in several key competencies and will enhance the volunteer’s knowledge of how peace education and youth works is in practice.

The volunteers will also have gained the practical knowledge of how to design, implement and evaluate projects in these areas.

The project also aims to provide opportunities for local people, especially IDP youth, to have the chance to improve their practical English language skills. The volunteer plans to follow up on the project by providing advice and guidance to other potential volunteering project participants who want to volunteer in Georgia or who wish to be involved in similar projects.

The volunteer will be an integral part of the work carried out by Civil Forum Shida Kartli in promoting knowledge of peace education and empowering the local youths. The participant will also gain cultural awareness and linguistic skills through their participation in local youth initiatives. The reports and articles the volunteers will be working on will be posted on both host organization`s own website and EUROSUD website and online portals to provide exposure in Georgia and Italy. In order to show the work, being carried out by the volunteers and as a way for the volunteer to share their volunteering experiences.

This will then act to promote the work of the NGO’s and the volunteer. The volunteers will be integrated into Georgian culture and customs by living and building relationships with the local community and by gaining
additional achievements such as personal and professional growth.

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EUROPEAN SOLIDARITY CORPS 2020 INDIVIDUAL VOLUNTEERING – “4H” 20.09.2020 – 20.04.2021 LATVIA !CLOSED!

The main goals and aims of this project are:
· To promote and strengthen the values that our NGO holds – (well – done job, comprehension about democracy,clean and tidy environment in our country), by providing better publicity of our projects and events with the help of ESC volunteers;
· To provide comprehension and cooperation between people of different nationalities of the EU countries;
· To enhance the youth mobility by giving options to young people from different countries to participate in our organization’s daily life and become significant members of it;
· To promote healthy and active lifestyle among young people;
· To provide opportunities for the volunteers to develop their skills and broaden their knowledge on various topics. That way also helping them to find their best
qualities and use them.
· To distribute our NGO’s experience and knowledge related to youth work, environment protection and rural development to our ESC volunteers so that they can use this knowledge when they return to their countries.

The project ”Sun Garden” is a European Solidarity Corps project between Latvijas Mazpulki(Latvian 4H) as hosting and coordinating organisation and three
partner organisations. The office of Latvijas Mazpulki is based in Mezaparks, Riga. The voluntary service will be carried out by three volunteers, one from each
of the partner countries, for 8 months (244 days).

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“SUPPORT IN ACTIVITIES FOR DISABLED PEOPLE”IN SPAIN,ALMERIA 2020 2021 !CLOSED!

Federación Almeriense de Asociaciones de Personas con Discapacidad/ Almeria Federation of Associations of People with Disabilities (FAAM) hosts and sends European volunteers with the main aim of giving them an intercultural learning experience, encouraging their active participation, building up their employability and giving them the opportunity of showing support with the group of people with disabilities.

The FAAM ESC project is within its actions and activities of attention to disabled people as a main part of them, giving the volunteers the opportunity of being involved in all kind of tasks in which they can give their support, interest and enthusiasm.

FAAM has a wide and continuous experience in ESC/ Erasmus + Programme, considering that since 1999 has hosted 56 volunteers from all over Europe (France, Germany, Belgium, Sweden, Italy, Hungary) and also has sent 29 volunteers from Almería and other cities of Spain to countries such as United Kingdom, Germany or Portugal.Perform support activities organized by the Federation and the federated associations in favour of the group of people with disabilities, such as:

• Support staff of the residence for very severe disabled people and the day stays units for elderly and disabled, children’s schools and occupational centre managed by FAAM. The tasks of the volunteer will be helping with transportation, food, grooming and occupational therapy activities (drawing, crafts, music, etc.) for users.
• Support people with severe disabilities in transfers to attend the Comprehensive Rehabilitation Center of FAAM, at its headquarters, cultural activities, etc. The volunteer will support FAAM bus and adapted vans drivers, taking care of people with disabilities so they can travel with maximum safety and comfort.
• Support summer camps and other leisure activities organized by FAAM and the federated associations for people with disabilities, facilitating the transfer of disabled persons both pushing wheelchairs and adapted transport through assisting in the toilet and meals, working with monitors in the development of games and various recreational activities (adapted sports, pool activities, workshops, crafts, drawing, painting, makeup, music, dancing, etc.).

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VOLUNTEERING IN A CHILDREN’S HOME IN FRANCE !OPEN CALL!

The Children’s home with Social Character – MECS is situated in the city of Anglet, neighbour city of Biarritz and Bayonne, on a large estate together with other social institutions. It hosts 48 children aged 6 to 18 years entrusted by children’s judges or the social welfare service for children, some are minor refugees who arrived without their parents in France. Its role is to protect the children by giving them a living environment in the form of an educational boarding school.

The volunteers will join the 4 educational groups of the Children’s home and will assist the teams of educators. They will be involved in cultural and sports activities: select sites to visit or specific topics to discover, according to the age of every group, and prepare excursions with the educators and the children.

They can organize activities around gastronomy, dance, music, painting, theatre, sports within the centre. They will help the children with their homework and participate in short holiday trips.

Accommodation, food and transport arrangements : The two volunteers will share a flat in Anglet with a third volunteer, having each a single room. They will be able to take lunch or dinner at the Children’s’ home from Monday to Friday and receive a monthly budget for the remaining meals. They will have a monthly bus card and a bike.

Training during the project : French language support is not provided (apart from OLS), but they have the possibility to sign up for a cheap language course run by a local association at Bayonne. The volunteers will participate in an on-arrival and a midterm training. The costs are covered.

Volunteer profile : The volunteers should be into sports or culture, interested in group activities with children and teenagers, in setting up projects and in exchanging with the youngsters. We look for dynamic and autonomous profiles around 25 years old. They must present a clean police record and need to have the driving license. Knowledge of French is important.

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VOLUNTEERING IN SCHOOL IN POLAND !OPEN CALL!

Volunteers will be young people aged 18-30 who share the values of the European Solidarity Corps, as solidarity, respect for human dignity and human rights, pluralism, non-discrimination,tolerance, justice and equal opportunities.
Above all, however, we care about inviting motivated people who want to help others via participations in the project, and through their involvement develop and create more solidarity societies.

We hope that all people involved in the project will acquire (or develop) language, cultural, social and ecological competences, develop solidarity and social attitudes, depending on the level of involvement in the project, learn the value of volunteering and European values in practice.
They will develop a sense of tolerance and respect for other cultures, and will also be sensitized to the need to include groups at risk of exclusion, especially disabled
people. They will acquire the skills to initiate and conduct multicultural and ecological activities, as well as learn the value and impact of such activities. They will be able to work in multicultural teams.

Enabling young people to participate in a 10-month project during which they will be able to experience personal development and acquire or develop competences that will allow them to become better citizens, to understand common values of the European Union, as well as to increase their potential in the labour market.

The second goal is to support host organizations in their daily educational work and to add an international dimension to it.

The third goal set by us is to popularize pro-ecological attitude,zero waste idea, rational and ethical purchasing decisions, not wasting resources among volunteers, students, teachers and the entire community of host institutions. Participants will understand that small changes in everyday life can help to protect and save
our environment.

The last goal is to teach participants how they can manage information (selection, evaluation, verification information) and teach them how to check if information are real.

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