Perspectives on the development of Voluntary Work Jussi Ronkainen Dr., Research Director Juvenia – Youth Research and Development Centre

Volunteer engagement in Finland The dicussion about the future of welfare state/society services What is the role of voluntary organisations / NGO’s in offering welfare servces? Cooperation between municipalities, companies and NGO’s? NGO’s worry about their economy and where to get new volunteers How to help people in weaker position?

Volunteer engagement in Europe Seminar is organized by the Erasmus IP-project ”Volunteer engagement in Europe” (2012-2014), funded by Erasmus Life Long Learning Programme & CIMO Partners from Mamk, Nuremberg Institute of Technology, University of Lodz, University of Bangor and University of Lodz Objectives of the project: to promote knowledge about volunteering and volunteer engagement (VE) in Europe among students and teachers of social and youth workers to form a European perspective to the issue. to enhance and to promote volunteer engagement (VE) skills of future European social and youth workers by discussing the historical, current and future perspectives of VE in different participating countries.

The IP program creates the opportunity for learning from own experiences about European systems of organizing the voluntary activity and to create the possibility of working in international groups, sharing experiences, ideas, and theoretical concepts. Project enables students to examine objectives, methods and results of voluntary action within a comparative European context.

6 students from 5 Universities participated into 10-day Intensive courses First course in Nuremberg in November 2012: Topic ”Norms and Values” - norms and values behind voluntary work and contemporary and future challenges of volunteer engagement in Europe Second course in Lodz in November 2013: Topic ”Social change” - the role of volunteer engagement in supporting or reacting to social changes in different European countries

Tasks: Articles about statistics and structures of volunteer engagement and important concepts related to volunteer engagement Preparing national posters about structures of VE, national challenges and opportunities of VE, VE’s role in social changes etc. Working in international groups to do field-work study in different voluntary organisations: Examples of fields covered in international groups: Structural issues in the field of VE: Infrastructures of promoting VE, Collaboration of State, Market and Volunteer organisations in addressing social problems Specific cases and fields of VE: Community Work, Self-Help groups, VE with migrants and refugees/intercultural volunteer work, VE and Poverty, VE and Homelessness, Professional and volunteer work with mental illness and drug abuse Social and personal outcomes of VE: Building social capital through voluntary work, Civic engagement and Social change, Socio-biographical experiences of people engaged in volunteer work

Outcomes of the IP-project Articles, seminars, posters, teaching material, lectures to be used and disseminated as part of teaching or as important background material for giving new insights and developing voluntary work, improving the intercultural and professional skills of voluntary workers and professionals working with volunteers Web-based teaching material about voluntary work

Regional benefits Increase of intercultural and professional skills of participating students as future workers in municipalities, ngo’s or private companies Development of higher education and curricula Co-operation and Dissemination of good practices about development of voluntary work in different European countries