Europe – Entreculturas and Alboan claim on International Volunteer Day the important role of volunteers in the world
● They point out the urgent need to support, promote and strengthen both local volunteering and international volunteering in Spain.
● They affirm that in an increasingly complex world, volunteering is more relevant than ever.
Bilbao, 5 December 2022. On the occasion of International Volunteer Day, the NGOs Entreculturas and Alboan wanted to reiterate the important role of volunteers in the world, claiming the urgent need to support, promote and strengthen both local volunteering and international volunteering in Spain. This recognition is included in the recent Cooperation Law approved by the Spanish Congress of Deputies, which both organisations applaud as a valuable first step.
However, the situations experienced in recent years have had a strong impact on people's motivations for becoming volunteers. The complexity of today's world was multiplied by the outbreak of the pandemic, an unprecedented event that highlighted pre-existing inequalities, global interdependence and the enormous challenge of global governance.
Both organisations affirm that, although these issues may seem very big to ordinary citizens, their consequences do have a real impact on day-to-day life and it is there, at the local level, where people can make a difference and get involved in organisations, actions or movements that can improve the lives of thousands of people. It is for these reasons that the promotion of participation and the construction of a global citizenship is more relevant than ever, something that Entreculturas and Alboan have been promoting for more than 20 years.
From their experience of more than two decades, the organisations point out that in order to achieve a planetary outlook and heart of society, it is essential to facilitate channels of socio-political participation from the local to the global; to foster a genuine democratic culture based on constructive dialogue and to contribute to the articulation of civil societies so that they can claim spaces for participation and leadership in the governance of global affairs.
In this sense, volunteering is key as it is a school that fosters civic engagement, with international volunteering being a privileged channel of participation to create intercultural relations and, therefore, global citizenship, according to Entreculturas and Alboan. Both organisations understand this participation as a gradual process that requires a slow fire and a sustained commitment over time. A process that is collective, as volunteering is only understood as a collaboration between people for a common good; and a transformative process where the starting point is a personal change to achieve a social change that improves the lives of thousands of people.
The volunteers of both organisations are clear about the important role they play in society and what it means to take action to change the world from the local level, and in this way they express the reasons for their commitment:
- Volunteering helps to become aware of the situation of our world and how the fact of being born in one place or another, gives us more or less opportunities:
"Life places you at birth in a place with many possibilities to grow as a person, with comfort, with the ability to see what is happening in the world. It allows me to put a face and a name to inequalities in order to become aware that not everyone has the same privileges".
- It allows us to channel our indignation and anger at the pain in the world, it mobilises and also helps us to understand the value of the collective:
"I volunteer because I feel immense rage at the injustices and I consider it urgent that we all get to work together for a fairer world. I feel that my way of being able to do something is to get involved with others who feel the same way and together we can build a stronger network of action and thus reach as far as possible", "...and to position myself in the face of reality and injustice", "to remain active so as not to be impassive to situations of injustice that occur in my environment and in other places further away".
- It makes us see and feel that the time and effort given freely are worthwhile. It is a contribution to building a better world:
"It is the way to be able to collaborate and contribute to building a more humane world. It increases our capacities and values as human beings",
It is to contribute and learn about different causes we work for".
In this sense, volunteering is key as it is a school that fosters civic engagement, with international volunteering being a privileged channel of participation to create intercultural relations and, therefore, global citizenship, according to Entreculturas and Alboan. Both organisations understand this participation as a gradual process that requires a slow fire and a sustained commitment over time. A process that is collective, as volunteering is only understood as a collaboration between people for a common good; and a transformative process where the starting point is a personal change to achieve a social change that improves the lives of thousands of people.
The volunteers of both organisations are clear about the important role they play in society and what it means to take action to change the world from the local level, and in this way they express the reasons for their commitment:
- Volunteering helps to become aware of the situation of our world and how the fact of being born in one place or another, gives us more or less opportunities:
"Life places you at birth in a place with many possibilities to grow as a person, with comfort, with the ability to see what is happening in the world. It allows me to put a face and a name to inequalities in order to become aware that not everyone has the same privileges".
- It allows us to channel our indignation and anger at the pain in the world, it mobilises and also helps us to understand the value of the collective:
"I volunteer because I feel immense rage at the injustices and I consider it urgent that we all get to work together for a fairer world. I feel that my way of being able to do something is to get involved with others who feel the same way and together we can build a stronger network of action and thus reach as far as possible", "...and to position myself in the face of reality and injustice", "to remain active so as not to be impassive to situations of injustice that occur in my environment and in other places further away".
- It makes us see and feel that the time and effort given freely are worthwhile. It is a contribution to building a better world:
"It is the way to be able to collaborate and contribute to building a more humane world. It increases our capacities and values as human beings",
It is to contribute and learn about different causes we work for".
- It brings happiness and meaning to life:
"It gives me happiness to collaborate in something that I believe in and that serves to improve the world, even if it is just a grain of sand in a little corner of the world".
These are just some of the reasons why today, 5 December, International Volunteer Day, Entreculturas and Alboan reaffirm their commitment to volunteering and invite citizens to join in this way of participation and social transformation, because for them, volunteering, today, makes more sense than ever.
For more information or interviews
● Edur Mintegi. 660 445 247. [email protected]
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