A support platform for volunteering

• Financiers: EACEA
• Start year: 2011

Descrizione

In 2011, 4 organisations from 4 different countries joined their effort in the implementation of a project that aims to create a support platform specialised in the field of volunteering within a network of organisations from twinned cities. Twinned cities are set up by public bodies but this time the initiative comes from the civil society. ADICE (Roubaix, France), CreACTive (Skopje, Macédoine), GSI (Spoleto, Italy) and In Via Köln (Cologne, Germany) decided to gather in order to set a network between their respective cities specialised on volunteering abroad. As Roubaix cities concerned are already twinned with other participants, the project aims also to involve the local authorities in exchanges activities between youth local policy makers and non profit organisations as well as to encourage organisations and local city councils to apply for Youth in Action and Europe for Citizens programs. Why volunteering? Young people, adults and seniors’ various ways of volunteering are more and more recognised as an extraordinary source of richness. Everywhere, in tiny local organisations or within big NGO’s, volunteers provide competencies, innovative approaches and useful other resources which make the difference to achieve the humanitarian, development or social goals of all the non-profit organisations. From free-time volunteering to long-term project in developing countries, this involvement is always also an opportunity for volunteers to develop new social, intercultural and professional skills. To volunteer at local or international level is always a key element of an active citizenship as it is a way to discover social, economical, cultural or even sport challenges that contribute to enlighten the way to thinking and acting for a better world. All the organisations involved in this project share this value and propose various programs and projects connected to volunteering and solidarity towards European citizens.