Within the invitation of the Human Resource Development Center, on November 15th, 2023, NARU presented its work with volunteers during the thematic monitoring and project management meeting on “European Year of Skills” under the European Solidarity Corps Program.

NARU representative, Mrs. Petya Dimitrova, shared details about our volunteer program. Each volunteer spends 6 months with the organization and participates in activities across 5 main areas: involvement in a summer school for children with special educational needs with the support of mentoring; office work; working in schools under the supervision of a resource teacher; youth work; participation in intercultural dialogue – through meetings with people from different countries, cultural evenings, visits to landmarks and events. The activities are carried out in the city of Sofia and are aimed at developing skills in volunteers for: teamwork – adhering to a work schedule, completing tasks; proactivity, finding common ground, and coordinating activities; independent living – from paying utility bills, shopping, and cooking to managing a budget; improving digital skills through publishing information on the volunteer’s special blog and on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GTSOLB, using tools like Canva, AdminProject, and others; professional skills; language skills; and social skills.

Through working with children and young people from various vulnerable groups, we also promote positive attitudes toward diversity and solidarity. We encourage our volunteers to display sustainable behavior – living in a way that aligns with decreasing resources.

Our volunteer, Nisa Altai from Turkey, shared her perspective on participating in the program and the benefits she gained from it.

Funded by the European Union. The views and opinions expressed, however, are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of the European Union or the Human Resource Development Center – Bulgaria (HRDC). Neither the European Union nor the HRDC is responsible for them.