The Volunteer's Guide to the Galaxy

I have been living in Romania for eight months, working for an NGO in an EVS project. This experience brought up the best of my life. 

Firstly, some information. EVS means European Voluntary Service, probably the most known Erasmus+ program. Now, it is going to be completely replaced by the new European Solidarity Corps. The only requirement is age: between 18 and 30. For non-EU participants, selection might take longer. English is welcomed but not mandatory. To know more, check the European Youth Portal.

International volunteering means being part of a community. You are one of those who can make positive changes. This “guide” is made for all people who want to discover new worlds! Here, you can find some tips and clues before starting this adventure.

We will start by describing four phases: motivation, adaptation, understanding of the experience and creativity. Warning! They are not set in a temporal sequence!

Do you want to save those hungry children in Africa? Is your dream to build peace in the world? If the answer is yes, relax! You are not Wonder Woman or Spiderman – but if you are, please contact me! 

Number one: find your motivation! Its meaning is complex and easy to misunderstand indeed. You are a normal person in a crazy world, right?! What can you do then? What is highly important is getting into the position of being part of the community. This corresponds to a sustainable intervention logic; a volunteer should be an active piece of society, and a long term transformation from the community to the community. In other words, motivation should not mean "I will do it for you", but "We will reach our goals together". 

Many times, I find myself wondering wether a given activity was helpful and met the needs of students – our beneficiaries – or not. It is part of the game! You must deal with contradiction.

Apart from theoretical rhetoric, volunteering is a great opportunity to learn by learning, being aware of other cultures and knowing more about yourself. Travelling is also part of this experience. But be wise in spending money if you are not into currency exchange. 

Did you think the motivation phase has ended? Sorry, this was just about pre-departure concerns! Motivation is like a river that turns right and left. And it happens several times during your experience. You can start from either the beginning or the end or the middle. Just try not to drown!

So, your luggage is ready, and you cannot wait to leave your country. What is missing? Are there guidelines to live there? Any survival tips around? If you have a sending organization, ask for guidance before leaving. Also, your host organization should provide training to improve your experience. After that, take your flight!

When you arrive, the adaptation phase starts. You may not know the language. Even if you do, it may be quite different because of the accent. You barely know something about the culture, stereotypes mainly. And, you are scared and excited at the same time. 

Adaptation is a never-ending phase since it depends on the environment, personal and external factors. You might not like either your accommodation or your office, the city, the community and so on. I met a volunteer that used to chop wood to have heating and cook, in a forest, in Transylvania.

Language barriers can be part of this environmental issue too. Firstly, it might seem impossible to learn the domestic language or to communicate with locals. Furthermore, some of your colleagues might not understand your accent and vice versa. Even the accommodation can become a problem. Reality can be disappointing! Be open to changes and enjoy your environment!

On the very first day of work, I was wondering about how to proceed. Until I realized that the best method is going through the experience. At the outset, we talked about our personal and team objectives. You might find it interesting to define them together with your team, facilitators, managers, etc. It is really helpful! 

As soon as we got into this, we were able to design our activities. Afterward, it was surprisingly stimulant to receive and share our know-how. A sort of quid pro quo or, even better, what is called peer learning. This relation must be mutual and continuous to be effective. 

You can also improve by observing the community. That is how you can adjust and assess results better. For example, over-focusing on an issue might conduct to a wrong approach. Especially with an incorrect perception of processes and causes. Experiment and learn from your mistakes!

Passing through phases is easier and easier. That is because we are on the wave!

Here comes the creativity phase. Designing ideas, planning them and preparing a strategy to avoid risks and issues seems difficult, but it is electrifying. This is not something that comes to everybody at the same time. No worries then.

Anyway, a sense of initiative is essential to spur your team. In this segment, leadership and pro-activeness are additional and complementary skills to develop. Take care of ideas, whoever they come from. Do not go into a slippery slope argument. It is valuable to be empathetic and develop active listening. However, sometimes you might dislike propositions, which is normal when you work in a multidisciplinary and intercultural team. But it is a fantastic opportunity to learn from other perspectives. 

Hey, we have just passed the border! Finally, the team-building phase begins! 

Whenever it comes, a discussion is a chance to analyze the risks and benefits of a proposal. Then, listen, share your doubts and find solutions within your team. Finding a common way to address conflict and differences is indeed crucial. 

In the graphic below I represented two main approaches to problem-solving: by rules or processes. For example, you can decide by voting or discussing. The second approach in my experience brought on a more shared and collective choice.

Implementing a proposal sometimes leads to unexpected impact, positive or negative. Use feedbacks to rearrange your strategy. Networking competences and skills is a solid base to start with that. By sharing your perspectives, you will easily make adjustments, integrate new ideas and find solutions to possible or experienced issues. Again, defining a strategic plan might be an efficient solution, particularly useful to establish milestones and short-term objectives. In other words, the team must create a vision linked to project community objectives. 

Last but not least, always support your team. Volunteering is part of your life, which means you can live bad and wonderful moments together. In my experience, friendship and community relations are handy to cross the most strenuous phases of volunteering. Try to facilitate others’ experiences if needed and lead your team through good vibes and a positive attitude. 

As an afterthought, it appears extremely arduous to explain how much I felt changed. Evaluating all this experience, in a nutshell, is out of my reach. But, reviewing my Youthpass and looking at everything I learned, developed and shared with other people around the world is a powerful sensation.

What are you waiting for? Apply now!

Edited by Hiba Arrame