VOLONTERSKI CENTAR VOJVODINE

Volunteers’ Center of Vojvodina (VCV) is a civic association established in Novi Sad, Serbia, in 2005. Volunteers’ Center of Vojvodina strives for the promotion and recognizement of voluntary work as a tool for development of individuals as well as society through organizing volunteer actions and promoting volunteering, its values and benefits to different groups in society. The main activities of VCV are: •international short-term voluntary projects (workcamps) in small towns in the regions of Vojvodina; •long-term exchanges of volunteers on a regional and international level (mainly through the ESC programme) •non-formal educational activities such as workshops, presentations, movies screening and other, aimed mainly at youth, on different relevant topics; •local projects (mainly solidarity-oriented actions) based on volunteering and capacity-building of volunteers; •awareness raising campaigns on a variety of topics, mainly linked to human rights and climate/environmental awareness and justice ; •mobility of young people and youth workers; •promotion (through events, presentations, the web) of mobility opportunities for learning and volunteering(youth exchanges,training courses, ESC, workcamps). Since 2008, VCV is the Serbian branch of Service Civil International (SCI), one of the largest global voluntary peace movements, that celebrated 100 years of existence last year. Our mission is to strive for volunteerism to be recognized and valued as a practice that positively affects individuals and society by organizing and implementing volunteering, educational and community programs and actions, creating opportunities for quality and informed volunteering and spreading the values of volunteerism. Our vision is an active, just, connected, supportive and stimulating society built on solidarity, equality, anti-fascism, diversity, volunteerism, as well as collective and individual responsibility. This is a society that actively advocates for peace and that is based on social, gender, economic and environmental justice and fairness, in which people are aware of the importance of change, critically reflect on problems in society and the environment and are actively involved in solving them. Our main goal is providing opportunities, especially for young people, to gain insights on otherness and diversity through participation in organized programs and activities, as well as to gain critical insight into the problems of society and the environment and actively participate in solving them as well as contributing into (re)building society and communities.