Case study. Volunteering in Romania By Oana Romana Roman
Overview of the case organization General Directorate of Social Work and Child Protection, District 1 is a public body subordinated to Local Council of District 1. The main aim of the institution is to provide social services to the people in need within District 1: children, families, rroma people, people with disabilities, elderly people. G.D.S.W.C.P is divided in 3: Child Protection Directorate, Person and Family Directorate and Economic Directorate. During the years, the institution implemented several project with European financing, including project for youth people. Also, the institution hosted european volunteers, and collaborate with European Universities for the practice stage of the students. Issue/ problems you are including in your case The article below analyze the issue of the young people employment and school levers and identify as a solution volunteering. Also offers learning space to vulnerable people in risk of marginalization. Profile of the users: ● People from both gender with ages between 18-30 ● Disadvantage youth people: minority, precarious economic area, don t have access to services ● Educational deficit Strategies that you employ, engage with to manage problems and issues that arise
General Directorate of Social Work and Child Protection, District 1 writes European project and gives the opportunities for the young unemployed people to aquires skills, abilities and competences for finding a working place when they will get back to their home country. Provides a learning space and professionals who will support disadvantage young people integrate easly in our local community.
Volunteering in European Projects As soon as a person can sustain himself working less, it gets easier to start thinking to others. That’s how the volunteer phenomen started . All around the world beeing a volunteer is no longer a surprise, but an effect of education and a way of living. The article, presents to the readers the situation of volunteering in Romania, financed through European Projects and describe a good practice model developed and implement by a public institution with responsabilities and competences towards social inclusion of the young people. Also, the
article is focused on the volunteers and what they get out of the volunteering, what are the benefits of the process for the young volunteers. Volunteering occurs in a variety of forms across Europe reflecting the diversity of approaches and traditions in the Member States of the European Union and is perceived as social and communal activity that involves social capital for the community and helps in delivering services ( Putnam, 2000). However, common features can be identified. Volunteering is an activity undertaken 1: -
Out of a person’s free will, choice and motivation Within concern for financial gain (non- remunerated) In an organized setting (within NGOs, volunteer centers, more or less organized groups ) With the aim to benefit to someone other than the volunteer and to society at large contributing to values of general interest
In Romania, volunteering started in 1990. A number of two NGOs like World Vision, Habitat for Humanity with international links, brought expertise and experience to the social sector. In 1997, Phare projects created the first volunteers centers in Cluj and Botosani. Later, volunteering process was facilitated by EU through Youth in Action Programme. In practice, this was achievied by the European Commission which financed lot of organizations to host or send european volunteers. To be involved in this kind of projects, the organization had to follow a procedure of accreditation ( to prove the organization had the capacity for hosting and sending volunteers ). In addition , a database of all the organizations and institutions interested to develop this kind of projects was created. Right now in Romania, many institutions are implementing projects in which the target group are european volunteers. The aim of the Programe Youth in Action The European Voluntary Service, now Erasmus Plus (EVS- Mobility ) is to provide young Europeans with the unique chance to express their personal commitment through unpaid and full-time voluntary activities in a foreign country within or outside the EU. In this way, it seeks to develop solidarity, mutual understanding and tolerance among young people, thus contributing to reinforcing social cohesion in the European Union and to promoting young people's active citizenship” 2
Why we need volunteers? We need volunteers for the community: public institutions, NGOs. Some benefits of volunteering to public institution include:
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Creative approach to community problems
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Involvement of the community in solving the problems Human resources for doing special volunteering activities Responsibility for the community Transfer the concept of “Europe” at the organization and community level Creates a cultural exchange, from which the local community will benefit
The roles can be accomplished very easily throughout different kinds of programmes or projects, implemented by a public institution. The citizens are involved directly in resolving community problems. The material resources are never enough to handle with needs , that’s why volunteer programmes can add energy, abilitity and aptitudine through the volunteer’s work. An important step in involving the volunteer in public institution is connected to the main activities of the volunteering services: what are the abilities, competences and background of the volunteers3.
What is the impact of volunteering? The volunteering process can have some effect on the european dimension. As the european volunteer comes from another cultural horizon, an important role of the hosting organization is to identify and explore the common elements that make easier to pass from one context to another. A real dialogue is very useful for an open interaction. Activities generated by Erasmus Plus, EVS programme can sustain also, intercultural action.
What is the impact upon the volunteer? Non formal and informal learning play a major role in gaining skills and competence needed in so called “knowledge society” and contribute in the same time to personal development. By volunteering, learning opportunities are available to all, especially for early school leaves. Another effect of the volunteer process is awareness that this activity can reduce the social exclusion. The main benefits of the volunteering as a learning process are: - Importance of the volunteering as a learning environment. It still exists the idea that that volunteering is non-formal and informal learning that needs to be recognized - The volunteer is complementary to education and training - It can recognize the skills gained to the volunteering process. It can be a way of empowerment and raising self-esteem for the volunteers and make volunteering more attractive especially to volunteers keen on learning and raising the human capital; it will raise also the profile of the whole sector by showing its contribution to learning. - Skills development and recongnition can be beneficial both for the volunteer and for the volunteer organization: the volunteers organization may attract new 3
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volunteers rewarding to propuse skills. In the same time the volunteer can be involved in project management or can become a support person ( mentor is a person who provides personnel support to the volunteer during the volunteer stage). Skills and competences are recognized in a certificate called Youthpass (official validation instrument to recognize non formal learning from the Youth in Action Program). Youthpass is more than a certificate recognizes what it was gained and it is also a reflection process. The learning process can be individual or at the group level. At the end of the project, through Youth pass, the volunteers or the participant in an EVS project are invited to reflect upon their activity about the outcomes. Youthpass can be received by the young people from various backgrounds who finish or not school, who are doing an apprenticeship, or are engaged in another type of training or youth workers. Until right now, 45000 young people received it. This certificate includes formal, non-formal and informal learning. As our European Union (Life Long Learning Strategy) recommends we should focus on personal and professional development of the human being. All this contain an economical dimension, and if we are thinking about the youthpass certificate, it is very useful for the employability of the future young people. When the reflection process occurs, young people are aware of their potential, about the effect on the learning process that will contribute to their growth. Although sometimes youthpass is useful on the labor market because of the key competence, in some cases, is not successful. That’s why is very important for the organization to reflect upon their contribution to the education and learning process of the young people (raising their self-confidence). The volunteers who experience this kind of project, can share their experience with others: the impact of the Youthpass in their environment, about the learning process and their experience as an European volunteer4. If we are talking about official statistics 80% of young people between 25 and 29 have completed secondary school and six million young people left school without any qualifications. A good practice model taken from the examples of the vast experienced NGOs, implemented by a public institution with strong expertise in implementing projects with European financing, General Directorate of Social Assistance and Child Protection, District 1 is the project called Make them smile!, project financed by Youth in Action Programme, European Volunteer Service.
Study Case The project “Make them smile!” had the following themes: to promote young people’s active citizenship and European citizenship, to develop solidarity and promote tolerance among young people, in order to enhance the social cohesion within the European Union. The project took place at the General Directorate of Social Assistance and Child Protection District 1, Bucharest, Romania. There were a number of 8 volunteers involved and the period 4
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of the volunteering stage was 10 months, from October 2010 until July 2011. The role of the European volunteer was to get involved in social and leisure activities with children and adult persons with disabilities (mental, physical mental from the day centres, residential and unit type families within our institution. Upon the arrival in Romania, the volunteer was trained at the General Directorate of Social Assistance and Child Protection and he/she attended Romanian language classes. The countries involved in our project were: Germany, Italy, Spain, and Turkey. In this project, the main used methods are: informal learning, participative and non-participative observation. -
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The main activities of the project were: Courses that support the volunteers in during all the stage: learning useful for children with disabilities contact, learning drums and Chinese shadows theatre Pre-departure training courses were accomplished by the partners of the project. The expectations of the volunteers was identified, being in the same time an opportunity to meet another volunteers On arrival training organized by General Directorate of Social Assistance and Child Protection, District 1 (the personnel presented our institution structure, the unit type families where the volunteer have done their stage). Romanian language courses offered by a Romanian language trainer. Trainings regarding the volunteers activities: spending free time or socialization activities. During the implementation of the project, the integration activities and personal support were offered to the volunteers, by the mentors and by the specialized personnel of General Directorate of Social Assistance and Child Protection. The role and the responsibilities of the volunteers were to implement the following activities: Spending free time and socialization:, Music, Dancing, Drawing activities, Trips, walking in the parks
The volunteers were hosted in our centers or flats rented by General Directorate of Social Assistance and Child Protection, District 1. The local transportation was ensured with financial resources offered by our institution. The benefits and the results of this project for the volunteer were: Social development: Development of the relation and socialization abilities, Development of team work abilities Personal development: language abilities, information about the persons with disabilities, knowing a new culture, information about the history, legislation, tradition, customs. Benefits to people using social services included: children and youngsters of social support system gaining non-formal education, increasing same knowledge capacity and independent life skills, increasing the adaptability to the society and family environment, developing the psycho emotional stability of children and youngsters. At the end of the project the volunteers received Youthpass useful for a part of them to be allows to enroll to the University and in the same time obtaining credits.
Conclusion The article presents what are the benefits of volunteering and how the process has started in Romania. On practical aspects the article is useful for public institutions managers to get outside the box and enhance working with volunteers. The example giving through “Make them smile” project, demonstrated new ways in doing that. On the other hand, it may give information to young people about the way to improve skills, abilities for a future professional career, a new approach, in which both sides have something to learn. Parallel models can be developed for the other places around the world, where sometimes volunteering is less popular.
Bibliography 1) https://www.salto-youth.net 2) http://www.voluntariat.ro
