Volunteers act first. They provide support in times of instability, disasters and humanitarian crises
Published: Dec 5, 2017 Reading time: 3 minutes
#VolunteersActFirst
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Each year on December 5th, we honor International Volunteer Day. It is a recognizing the positive solidarity of volunteers around the world who answer calls in times of crisis, helping to save lives today and support those who want to continue living their lives with dignity tomorrow. EU Aid Volunteers program gives European volunteers the opportunity to become involved in humanitarian aid. We are glad to introduce you to our EU Aid Volunteers, who have already participated in and went to some of PIN’s foreign missions.
Tamara
'I’m currently working with the PIN Philippines mission on Communications and Advocacy. I’m based in the town of Guiuan in Eastern Samar, a poor province of the Philippines where PIN works to improve the livelihoods of farmers through a market-based approach.'
Samrawit
'My name is Samrawit and I joined PIN’s Cambodia mission as a Communications EU Aid Volunteer. My background is in journalism, where I have worked briefly in political journalism before embarking on communication projects with health NGOs and the UN. I have a BA in Journalism, Media, and Cultural Studies from Cardiff University, and a MSc in Global Health and Development from University College London. I have been with PIN Cambodia for 3 months now and I am enjoying every minute of it! I love being able to join the various program teams in the field and meet the people in Cambodia we are helping in various areas including health, poverty, livelihoods, and disaster management. Sharing their stories with the world is what keeps me going. The volunteer program is also very thorough as I’ve received training from both DG ECHO and PIN before departing for Cambodia, which prepared me very well. To anyone who is considering to join the EU Aid Volunteer Program, my advice to you is to DO IT and embrace the experience! It’s the best decision I’ve made so far.'
Paolo
'My name is Paolo Isamu Zorat, and I am an EU Aid Volunteer in Kazbegi, Georgia. After my first two months of deployment, I am really happy that I decided to apply to the EUAV initiative. I see this volunteering experience as an excellent opportunity to advance skills, tackle great challenges, and grow as a professional My main tasks include: supporting the capacity building of the Local Action Group (LAG) Kazbegi on fundraising and reporting; developing trainings and workshops related to DRR, and assisting the LAG Management in identifying and communicating with relevant organizations and networks outside Georgia.'
Zsofia
'Mingalabar to all of you! This is how we say hello here in Myanmar. With my field officer and M&E colleagues we are ready to go for a mentoring visit to our partner organizations in Mandalay Region. Our project aims to create space for the participation of Myanmar´s civil society organizations in policy dialogue. Besides this overall objective, it is a crucial part of the project to focus on the individual capacity building of each partnering organization, and this is the part I am responsible for. So today, we are ready to visit two of these CSOs and discuss their progress and further needs with regards to their organizational development plans.'
All current volunteering opportunities are published on the European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations (ECHO) website.
