ASHRAM

The cultural association ASHRAM acts as a center of aggregation frequented by Italian and stranger people of all ages. It has worked for many years in the field of socio-cultural promotion for processes of democratic participation involving especially people with fewer social opportunities to help their emancipation and integration. From 1995, the association is an open space that welcomes proposals coming from the community and the association members, a socio-cultural “incubator” organized around general aims such as fighting against every form of ignorance, violence, discrimination, racism, and marginalization by helping the diffusion of participation, inclusion, and cultural diversity. Since 2008, ASHRAM has been involved in various European volunteering projects by hosting, so far, young volunteers coming from Spain, The Netherlands, France, Germany and Turkey; along time, new partnerships are being implemented while the association was and is acting both as a receiving and as a sending partner. We have also sent Sicilian volunteers to participate in other actions of the program, such as formation courses often occurring in Rome together with our volunteers and mentoring formation programs for our staff. Our special care goes to the local population with fewer opportunity, through creative laboratories for migrants, children and foreigners in general in which everybody is welcome to give its contribution to improve the outcomes of such collaboration with its creativity and handcraft; in addition, we have collaboration with yoga and dance teachers who give classes at least once a week, which the volunteers and the other members of our staff are ready to help. Our activity tables also includes Italian and English classes, held by a member of our staff and where, once again, our volunteers are called to help, either to gain material, to attend the classes or to hold classes regarding other languages on their own. A relevant aspect every previous volunteer would thank us for is the great sense of friendship and family we make them feel: often we take excursions and make them participate and being an active part of the social local life so that they will feel motivated and thankful to life for doing what they do.