Solund Frivilligsentral

Solund Frivilligsentral is an institution that acts as a link between people who want to provide services free of charge, and those in need of receiving such service. The organization also links together different institutions and organizations in the community, thereby stimulating creative activities that contribute to making Solund a good place for all to live. The organization has the responsibility to integrate and assist new inhabitants who have settled in the municipality. Solund Frivilligsentral find it is an important task to assist in developing a wide variety of cultural activities for all residents. Solund Frivilligsentral is also responsible for the local second hand shop which has recently been expanded to include a cafe in order to establish a meeting place for people. The organization has an employed coordinator with extensive experience from both business and voluntary work in Solund. Solund Frivilligsentral also has an active board and solid partnerships with the organizations and municipal bodies in Solund. Solund is a small island municipality on the west coast of Norway. The project objective is for the volunteer to gain new skills while the local community gains knowledge and increased understanding for other cultures. Volunteers will create positive effects in many arenas through their work in the local community, while simultaneously having the opportunity to receive individual mentoring. During the project the volunteers are to learn to speak Norwegian. In addition, the volunteers will learn about Norwegian coastal culture, what it is like to live in a small coastal municipality, how schools and kindergartens in Norway function, and the structures and functions of Norwegian organizations and voluntary work. Project activities vary throughout the year, but include planning, organization and administration tasks under the guidance of the manager of Solund Frivilligsentral; practical outdoor work related to the regions ’coastal culture; selling goods at the second hand shop and café; cooking and maintaining basic finances in the school canteen; assisting in the kindergarten; as well as planning and conducting cultural and outdoor activities in cooperation with youth clubs, sports clubs, and others. The volunteers also participate in Norwegian language classes each week. Through the volunteers we aim to gain new ideas and energy to strengthen and improve the work done by Solund Frivilligsentral, especially with regard to sports, outdoor activities, and certain cultural activities. The volunteers will bring new ideas and perspectives to the lives of Solund’s youth and children, and this will hopefully in turn motivate youth from Solund to take part in EVS in the future. Since 2009 Solund Frivilligsentral has hosted volunteers from EVS on a regular basis. There is a lot of work involved in hosting volunteers, but the experiences have been very positive, both for Solund Frivilligsentral, the volunteers and the local community as a whole. Feedback from organizations in Solund show that the volunteers are highly appreciated for their contributions. Furthermore, Solund Frivilligsentral believes that the presence of volunteers in Solund is an effective way to promote international and cultural understanding in a small community such as ours. After all there are 18 - 20 different nationalities living in Solund, and integration for other cultures are thus important aspects to work with. This task falls under Solund Frivlligsentral. We believe that we are able to give young Europeans who come to Solund an opportunity to gain new experiences and improve their knowledge of Norwegian culture.