Call for Volunteers: “Progettazione sociale e Youth Work” Volunteering in Rome for 11 months 15th January 2024 – 15th December 2024
We are looking for 2 volunteers to join our long-term volunteering project funded by the European Union through the European Solidarity Corps programme, for the period between January and December 2024.
What is the European Solidarity Corps?
The European Solidarity Corps is a funding programme of the European Union that creates opportunities for young people to undertake a long-term voluntary placement with the costs paid. Projects can be of community interest, in the social, environmental, or cultural field.
To participate in ESC you must be aged between 18 to 30 years old and be motivated by supporting important causes, discovering other cultures and living closely with people from other countries.
Volunteers abroad receive funding to cover accommodation, food, travel, insurance and pocket money through their hosting organisation.
Servizio Civile Internazionale: the hosting organization
Servizio Civile Internazionale (SCI Italia) is the Italian branch of Service Civil International network (sci.ngo), an international voluntary movement that is present in more than 80 countries around the world. It’s been promoting international volunteering projects for 100 years on the themes of peace and disarmament, conscientious objection, human rights, and international solidarity, sustainable lifestyles, social inclusion and active citizenship. In the core, there is a real commitment to make a change against inequality, injustice, and violation of human rights.
SCI Italia, founded in 1948, is an NGO recognized by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Advisory Member of UNESCO and the Council of Europe.
It is based in Rome and it is supported by several regional and local groups of activists. The regional and the local groups support the work of the National Secretariat by dealing with trainings and the promotion of volunteering in various Italian regions.
To know more…
- Web site: www.sci-italia.it
- Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/sci.italy
- Instagram page: https://www.instagram.com/sciitalia
“La Città dell’Utopia”
SCI Italy’s project “La Città dell’Utopia” started in 2003 and it is located in the neighbourhood of San Paolo (via Valeriano 3F – Rome), a popular suburban area inhabited mainly by elderly people, university students, and migrant families coming from Latin America, northeastern Europe, Asia, and Africa. The building is used to host several groups and associations working on active citizenships, especially in relation to migration, environmental sustainability, antifascism, gender, and self-determination of food and consumption. Currently the office where you will work is based here.
The main activities carried out in “La Città dell’Utopia” are:
- Organising and hosting of international workcamps, north/south trainings, and international youth meetings (trainings, seminars, youth exchanges, and capacity building activities).
- Organising and running awareness-raising events.
- Organising conferences, meetings, festivals, photo exhibitions, thematic meals, farmers’ markets, and courses on music, group dancing, language courses, gardening.
To know more…
- Web site: http://www.lacittadellutopia.org/
- Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/lacitta.dellutopia.7/
- Instagram page: www.instagram.com/lacittadellutopia
About the project
The project is addressed to:
This project is suitable for someone who is interested in both grassroots political activism and the world of volunteering, specifically related to local and international volunteering, active citizenship, social inclusion, and non-formal education for youngsters and adults. It is for someone who would like to improve their professional skills in social projects, group management, activity organisation and someone who is flexible and can easily adapt to different contexts
Objectives
– Include volunteers in an international dimension, to develop intercultural and linguistic skills;
– encourage the acquisition of non-formal education tools and methods, through concrete experiences;
– share and multiply the values of SCI Italy, the network and the movement of the Service Civil International (SCI): international solidarity and volunteering, social inclusion, peaceful conflict resolution, nonviolent communication;
– raise awareness on the importance of cooperation, partner involvement and approach systemic in the development and implementation of initiatives and projects.
Activities
Volunteers will be involved both in local and international activities, some funded by European programmes or and other international donors, some self-funded. Most of the activities follow non formal education methodologies. Topics can be various: environmental, social inclusion, gender, migration, anti-fascism, etc. In a serious and professional work environment which follows at the same time informal attitudes in human relationships.
The volunteers will take part in the following activities:
Main tasks
- Deal with volunteers placement to workcamps and Erasmus+ projects in Italy and abroad
- Support relationships with partners organisation workcamps in Italy and abroad
- Keep relationship with volunteers and collect infos and materials about their experience and support the creation of materials for communication and awareness raising
- Take part and support the organisation of training for volunteers and coordinators
- Support the organisation and the realisation of public events related to volunteering and active citizenship
- Support the management of volunteers participating to social inclusion programmes and to long term and ESC programmes
- Support the organisation and attend the activities of the Erasmus+ project hosted and coordinate workcamps in La Città dell’Utopia and in other locations in Italy
Support “La Città dell’Utopia”
- Helping in the planning and organisation of cultural events and workshops on active citizenship, especially in the levels of communication, logistics, and operation at “La Città dell’Utopia”.
- Running a course for the neighbourhood (language, music, IT or any other skill).
Personal project
- Developing a personal project following the lines of the project and the hosting organisation is an important part of the project. The volunteer must be proactive in proposing a project and SCI Italia will provide support to implement it.
- After the project finishes, the volunteers have the responsibility to organise events, as well as produce and spread materials about their experiences here.
Volunteer Profile
Who are we looking for?
- Have good command of English
- Have basic command of Italian (preferable)
- Be able to work in a team
- Have good communication skills and motivation to cooperate with colleagues and SCI Italia’s activists
- Have good educational and social skills, to be able to work with several target groups motivated to learn and share knowledge and skills
- Have good computer skills (Ubuntu or Microsoft Office, email, internet)
- Have a responsible attitude and take initiative towards her/his tasks
- Have administrative and organisational skills open mind and flexible attitude towards working hours, especially between May-July
- Have a good level of adaptability to basic living and working conditions
The volunteer should be legally resident in one of following countries:
Belgium, Bulgaria, Czechia, Denmark, Germany, Estonia, Ireland, Greece, Spain, France, Croatia, Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Hungary, Malta, Netherlands, Austria, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovenia, Slovakia, Finland, Sweden, Iceland, Republic of North Macedonia, Turkey, Liechtenstein, Norway, Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro, Serbia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova, Territory of Ukraine as recognised by international law.
ESC Volunteer management
Learning opportunities
Volunteers will have the opportunity to improve hard and soft skills:
- Work and live in a multicultural context
- Learn about volunteering world
- Basics of project management and group management
- Functioning of an Ngo and of an international network
- How to work in a structured way within the framework of a complex context
- Digital and communication skills
- Management and problem solving skills
- Language skills
The daily program consists of 6 hours 5 days a week. There will be 2 consecutive free days/ week and 2 days of holiday for each month. To facilitate the participation of a high number of volunteers, some activities will take place during the weekend. In these cases, the number of working hours done by the volunteer will be adjusted for the following weeks, by reducing working hour’s amount or taking days off so that the total number of working hours per week does not exceed 35h.
Project language: English, Italian
Local language: Italian
Pocket money: 300 €
Travel costs: covered according to ESC funding rules, 275€ as maximum reimburse
Visa cost: covered up to 100€
Lodging
In a separate flat in “La Città dell’Utopia”, with 3 shared double rooms (up to six international volunteers) kitchen, living room, and bathroom. The accommodation has all the basic facilities (Wi-Fi and washing machine included). The building is historic, so the accommodation is basic. There is no centralised heating or aircon, so it can be humid, cold in the winter, but also perfectly fresh in the summer. The building is surrounded by a very beautiful garden (which means mosquitos in the summer). It is located in a student area close to the metro.
Application procedure
Please send your application (CV and motivation letter in English) to esc@sci-italia.it
The deadline for applying is 15.12.2023
For more information please contact: esc@sci-italia.it
Your motivation letter should answer to the following questions:
- Why did you choose SCI Italia and this particular project?
- What do you expect to learn and experience during your ESC?
- What can you bring to the work of SCI-Italy?