New stockshots are now available to add to the ones launched earlier in year by the Audio Visual team at the EC. The volunteering stockshots feature volunteers from the EYV 2011 Alliance organisations and can be used free of charge by anyone during 2011 and beyond.  Get the first stockshots and the script here, 2nd release here and the script here. The 3rd and final editions can be found here and here.

CEV Symposium: " The future of volunteering: concepts, trends, visions", will be organised on 4th – 6th May 2011 in Tallinn (Estonia).

The topic of voluntary action has gained momentum in Europe over the past years. The European Year of Volunteering 2011 is the latest peek in the growing public awareness that our societies are better of with active citizens. The coming months will see manifold projects, activities and awareness raising campaigns to further promote, facilitate and develop voluntary action all over the continent and beyond. This seems like a perfect moment for us to hold our breath and to ask ourselves: Quo vadis volunteering? Where are we and where should the journey go? What are the current trends in our sector and what is our vision for the future?

Many new features and new developments characterise the voluntary sector with the new information technologies playing an ever rising role in our daily lives; an increasing commercialisation of international voluntary service placements; the appearance of business players in the nonprofit world of volunteering; with changing patterns of engagement by volunteers; and with our societies facing an economic and financial crises that may lead to unprecedented transformations to our societies and to the way the state perceives the unpaid contribution of citizens to economy and society. These and other developments have led our sector to ask questions such as: Where are the boundaries of volunteering? What are its inviolable core concepts and principles that we need to defend? What are opportunities and threats of further unleashing the potential of voluntary action to make our societies the places we want to live in? How do we shape tomorrow's volunteering and how do we empower volunteers to shape tomorrow's society?

Our conference will strive to achieve the following objectives:

1. To provide an overview of the current trends in volunteering;

2. To facilitate a space for debate on controversies that have developed over time;

3. To identify the core concepts and inviolable values of volunteering we adhere to and that we want to safeguard;

4. To develop a vision for the decades to come of how volunteering will continue to serve as a central cornerstone in all European countries.

Please find the draft programme, as well as the registration form, and tourist an hotel information on our website:  http://www.cev.be/136-2011_may_%28tallinn_estonia%29_the_future_of_volunteering_concepts_trends_visions-EN.html.

Please note: the deadline for registration is 23th April. Registration forms should be sent to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it . Should you need any further detail or clarification, do not hesitate to contact the CEV Secretariat at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

EYV 2011 Alliance Executive Group member the European Youth Forum invites all relevent stakeholders to participate in the open discourse towards a European Charter on the Rights of Volunteers.  To join this debate and contribute expertise see the briefing included here.

Volunteer work and learning: hidden dimensions of labour force training. Authors: Daniel Schugurensky and Karsten Mundel. Ontario Institute for Studies in Education OISE /University of Toronto, CA, 2005. International Handbook of Educational Policy.

UK University courses for volunteers / Voluntary Sector. AUTHOR: University of Liverpool, UK partner in VALUE project. December 2010

Case study (pdf) and spreadsheet (excel) providing detailed data on UK University courses for volunteers/Voluntary Sector - updated July 2010)

A Dutch Case Study on Trade Union Volunteers. AUTHOR - InHolland University of Applied Sciences, NL partner in VALUE project.  2010

Case Study: University Lifelong Learning (ULLL) and Volunteering in the Cultural Sector. AUTHOR: University of Liverpool, UK partner in VALUE project. August 2010

The Alliance of European Voluntary Service Organisations (www.alliance-network.eu) has launched an EYV 2011 Flag Tour to celebrate volunteering, encourage active involvement of people within civil society and raise awareness on the European Year of Volunteering 2011 & European Year of Volunteers +10!

 

During this campaign, 36 voluntary service organisations from 25 countries, celebrate the valuable contribution the voluntary service has on society, communities and individuals.

With two flags travelling through four continents starting on the 4th March in Armenia during the Technical Meeting of the "Alliance" and ending in November in the UK at the General Assembly of the "Alliance", the Alliance Flag Tour raises awareness and the profile of the European Year of Volunteering 2011 and the International Year of Volunteers +10 while encouraging active involvement of people within civil society.

EUCIS-LLL Annual Conference 2011 on Volunteering within Education & Training

The European Civil Society Platform on Lifelong Learning (EUCIS-LLL) gathers 25 European networks working in education and training. Together, these organisations cover all sectors of education and training including networks for higher education, vocational education and training, adult education and popular education; networks for students, school heads, parents, HRD professionals, teachers and trainers. Through its members, EUCIS-LLL embodies lifelong learning.

Volunteers play an essential role within education and training organisations in the formal and non-formal systems. For instance, it is crucial to look at the role of volunteering to develop skills and competencies for personal, social and civic development as well as to look at ways of recognizing or validating them. Educational providers have also a specific role to play regarding volunteering in terms of guidance and training. The conference tackled these issues notably during its four thematic workshops. It took place during the European Year 2011 on Volunteering and aimed to contribute to the debates by providing a specific insight on lifelong learning. Experts from the various sectors and levels of education and training participated to share their experiences and worked on policy recommendations.

VALUE: Draft Romania National Report. This document reports on the interaction between University Lifelong Learning (ULLL) and volunteering in Romania. Published by the VALUE Project, January 20110 (Authors: Ramona Dragomir – Pro Vobis National Volunteer Centre, January 2010 version DRAFT)

Available in English