The European Solidarity Corps is a volunteering program introduced by the European Union to bring together youth from different EU countries to create a better society by supporting helpless people and responding to societal challenges. This time FRSP together with partner Attiva Mente from Italy organised a team volunteering project in Sicily where 10 amazing young women spent one-month helping local society and taking part in various activities. We encourage you to read the first part of the memories, prepared by Italian participants. Enjoy!
Life together with 10 volunteers from Bulgaria, Poland and other parts of Italy in two shared flats is interesting and sometimes challenging. But we get along well and we are developing our friendships.
The aim of this volunteering project ”Let’s do it to Together” is to embrace the values of solidarity, respect for human dignity and human rights, and promote a fair and equal society in which non-discrimination, tolerance, and solidarity prevail. I chose this project because my goal is to be informed and to inform others in order to solve a lot of social problems, and build a stronger society. I’m down for everything that can make our world a better place. I believe that by participating in volunteering projects everyone can become a gamechanger for their community because social involvement of young people makes a difference.
I was lucky enough to be a volunteer in Modica, Sicily for one month. My hosting organization, Associazione Attiva-Mente, was amazing. To be honest, it seems like writing this article is the official end. But then again, there are no ends, only new beginnings.
The activities we facilitated tackled different topics such as refraining from negative judgment, myths about different religions in Europe etc.
As a part of our regular activities, we visited Scicli and the organisation Mediterranean Hope. We got to know the premises and the staff of the Mediterranean Hope, the asylum seekers and the refugees, in order to work better with them. We had a walking tour of the city with refugees during which we had a chance to understand their life .
Apart from that, we conducted fun workshops for 13 school students in Liceo Scientifico Galileo Galilei in Modica. The workshops covered topics of discrimination, stereotypes and prejudice. We also went to the office of Caritas Diocesana of Ragusa where we learnt about the work of Caritas. It is the initiative to support homeless people by providing accommodation. The last place we visited was a seaside town of Marina di Acate. It was a very emotional experience for all of us. We visited the Presidium of Caritas. First, we went for a tour to learn more about the life of agricultural workers from different countries. This is a huge area of greenhouses where foreign workers are exploited and live in extremely bad conditions.
This one month was full of challenges, surprises, sadness, overcoming my fears, deep conversations, long evenings, amazingly good food, communication problems, self-analyzing and growing as a person. I am grateful to people who made my European Solidarity Corps experience so amazing – Vincenzo, Ivan, Patrycja and Mario.
Anoosha Qaisar
The video was financed by European Commision funds under the European Solidarity Corps Programme.
