OPINION of the European Economic and Social Committee on the Proposal for a Decision of the European Parliament and of the Council on the European Year of Citizens (2013) COM(2011) 489 final – 2011/0217 (COD)

European Economic and Social Committee SOC/428 European Year of Citizens (2013) Brussels, 28 March 2012

OPINION of the European Economic and Social Committee on the Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament, the Council, the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions - Communication on EU Policies and Volunteering: Recognising and Promoting Cross-border Voluntary Activities in the EU, COM(2011) 568 final.

European Economic and Social Committee SOC/431 EU Policies and Volunteering Brussels, 28 March 2012

Long-term International Volunteer Statement

From 28th of November 2011 until 1st of December 2011 Silesian Diaconia, a non governmental organization, organized the international seminar called „Privilege – yes or
no?“ in the Czech Republic, in Malenovice. The aim of the international seminar called „Privilege – yes or no?" was to promote equal opportunity and mobility of young people to participate in long-term international voluntarism, particularly between EU and non- EU countries. The participants of the seminar were coordinators, volunteers, former volunteers, supervisors, and mentors active in the international voluntary service field from ten different countries (Denmark, Italy, Germany, Hungary, Romania, Serbia, Ukraine, Belarus, Poland and Palestine). Participants shared their different authentic experiences within the context of international volunteering which resulted in the unanimous support of the attached statement.

JOIN exhibition "Volunteer without borders"

Johanniter International organised the opening ceremony of the JOIN exhibition "Volunteeer without borders, a tribute to the European Year of Volunteering" on 8 November 6:30 pm at the European Parliament. The exhibition took place between 7-11 November 2011 and was hosted by Alexander Graf Lambsdorff, MEP. The opening ceremony will be followed by a reception and the opportunity to exchange views with JOIN volunteers and board members. With this exhibition the Johanniter organisations concluded their contributions to the European Year of Volunteering 2011. Read Johanniter press release.

Caritas Policy Statement on the European Year of Volunteering 2011, Caritas Europa, 2011

Volunteering for Democracy. Dangers and opportunities for good governance and active citizenship.

ALDA-The Association of Local Democracy Agencies

The ALDA conference "Volunteering for democracy", held in Bydgoszcz (Poland) in July, in the framework (and under the auspices) of the Polish Presidency of the EU. The conference, attended by more than 150 representatives from 25 different countries, led to the drafting of a set of recommendations, jointly developed by participants, which constitutes the guidelines for further promoting and developing "volunteering" in the fields of democracy and citizen participation.
For further information, Download here the Final Recommendation of the Conference in Bydgoszcz, Poland, 8th July 2011.

 

Volunteering: a tool for inclusion? Magazine of the European Anti-Poverty Network (EAPN). Special issue on the 2011 European Year of Volunteering, March 2011. NO. 134 | 2011/I

Contents:

* 2011 European Year on Volunteering – A space for anti-poverty organizations to engage

* Volunteering and the Fight against Poverty and Social Exclusion – towards an EAPN Position

* Portugal: Being a volunteer versus promoting volunteering

* The UK Government: Big Society and Volunteering

* Volunteering in Bulgaria – the Need for a Modern Vision

* Poland, willing to move on towards a strategic approach on volunteering

* The recognition of volunteering time as in-kind contribution in Structural Funds

* The 100 million Europeans volunteering deserve recognition

* Eurodiaconia: the multifaceted value of volunteering

Paper on the economic value of volunteering and contribution-in-kind

Roundtable discussion on European financial regulation review and civil society. Contributions from EUCLID & Volonteurope, Authors: Filippo Addarii, Luisa De Amicis, Tamara Flanagan, January 2011.

Final Report of the Research Seminar "Mobility of young people – Opportunities and obstacles for cross-border volunteering for young people, particularly with fewer opportunities" (European Youth Centre, Strasbourg 11-13 December 2011), a report produced for the EU-CoE youth partnership and does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the partner institutions

Policy Agenda on Volunteering in Europe P.A.V.E

 

The objectives of the EYV 2011 Alliance included the development of the Policy Agenda on Volunteering in Europe (P.A.V.E). The work took place larg

ely in the framework of 6 working groups who met 5 times during 2011. The Policy Agenda on Volunteering in Europe (P.A.V.E.) was approved at the EYV 2011 Alliance Steering Group meeting in November 2011 and the Alliance members presented P.A.V.E to the European Commission at the 4th EYV 2011 Thematic Conference on 1st December 2011 in Warsaw. Download P.A.V.E. here.

The EYV 2011 Alliance Policy Agenda on Volunteering in Europe (P.A.V.E) provides recommendations for a more efficient and effective European policy framework to support and promote volunteers, volunteering, volunteer-involving organisations and their partners. The recommendations include proposals for action echoing the aspects of volunteering policy already identified as needing attention in both the 2009 European Council Decision on EYV 20111 and the EC Communication on Volunteering 20112. The P.A.V.E. recommendations promote and support volunteering as a demonstration of European values, providing a vehicle for active citizenship and contributing to economic and social-capital growth.