Bona Fides Association and Zavod Manipura are looking for participants from Poland (or Polish residents) to join short-term individual COMPASS PROJECT in Begunje Na Gorenjskem, Slovenia!
Location: Begunje Na Gorenjskem, Slovenia
Duration: 2 months
Mobility period: 09.09.2024 – 03.11.2024
ABOUT THE NGO
Zavod Manipura is a small NGO with many years of experiences in international volunteering for young people. We‘ve been an accredited hosting & sending organisation from 2008 and each year we host volunteers from many different countries. Solidarity activities in our organization are focused on different topics – we support charity organizations, help in the local community, support environmental organisations, NGOs for animals in need, we help elderly and families in need and we organize workshops for children, for young people and for people with special needs. Next to the international volunteering projects we offer trainings for youth workers, trainings for parents, experiential learning projects, psychological counseling and psychotherapy.
ACTIVITIES
SOLIDARITY WORK IN THE LOCAL COMMUNITY
We take care of the surroundings of the local church, and castle ruins. We help with cleaning actions and different non-profit events in our community: Celebration of the Liberation Day, Carnival for children, Midsummer’s Eve Bonfire, Christmas program for children, Day of Volunteering etc.
HELPING ELDERLY AND FAMILIES IN NEED
We help older people and families with practical work like mowing grass, preparing wood, small renovations, with work on the fields and on the farms.
SOLIDARITY ACTIVITIES FOR ANIMALS
Our volunteers regularly help in the shelter for rescued wild animals (www.facebook.com/Zoo.park.Rozman/) and in the shelter for horses with special needs (www.facebook.com/ckppalisa).
HELPING AND LEARNING ON ECOLOGICAL FARMS
We help different ecological farms with their work. Volunteers learn about ecology, nature friendly and sustainable food production.
SOLIDARITY ACTIONS IN CHARITY ORGANIZATIONS
We support Caritas and other charity organizations during different charity actions: – packing food and school items- packing promotion materials for fund raising- repairing old wheelchairs etc.
ACTIVITIES FOR PEOPLE WITH INTELLECTUAL DISABILITIES
Once or twice a week we go to Radovljica and spend some time with people with intellectual and physical disabilities. We go for a walk together, do some sports and play some simple games.
INCLUSION HIKES WITH ALPINE ASSOCIATION OF SLOVENIA
Volunteers assist people with special needs during the mountain walks, organized by Slovene mountain association, unit for inclusion hikes. Assistance consists of pushing the wheelchairs, guiding blind people and socializing with them.
WORKSHOPS FOR CHILDREN AND YOUTH
During the school holidays we organize free-time activities for children and for young people. During school time we organize intercultural learning workshops for young people, and sport days for the high schools of Radovljica every autumn.
HANDICRAFTS AND PRACTICAL WORK IN OUR CENTER
The volunteers help a lot with the construction work in the house, with work in the garden and with preparing wood for the winter. We also like to do wood & natural materials handicrafts.
ABOUT THIS VOLUNTEERING PROJECT
We prepared an 8 weeks programme for young people who are eager to meet new friends from different countries, are ready to accept the challenge of living together, who want to get experiences with different groups and topics and enjoy our beautiful and peaceful environment. The programme consist of different solidarity activities, workshops for youth, handicrafts, practical work and educational workshops for volunteers.
The working week starts on Tuesday and ends on Saturday. Depending on the activity, we start at 8.30am or at 9am. and finish around 2pm. If we have a solidarity action in another city, we need to leave a bit earlier.
Tuesdays are usually reserved for a workshop for volunteers, handicrafts and practical work (construction work in the house, preparing wood for the winter, work in the garden, handicrafts with wood, cleaning the house after the weekend etc.).
On Wednesdays, Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays we do one of the following activities:
• workshops for youth in different organizations, especially for the local support programme for school drop-outs
• activities for people with intellectual disabilities
• playing with children in kindergarten
• helping environmental NGOs and ecological farmers
• helping in the shelters for wild and domestic animals
• helping elderly with practical work
• helping families, especially foster families with practical work
• taking care of the local castle ruins and the surroundings of the church
• helping Caritas when needed
Next to this we help mountain association with inclusion hikes in the mountains (pushing wheelchairs). The inclusion hikes are organized on average once a month, mostly on Saturdays and we need to leave early in the morning, sometimes at 5 am. On Sundays we sometimes help in the shelter for horses with special needs.
At least twice a year we organize an event for children and youth and we help with other events in local community.
In between we have non-formal language lessons, intercultural learning and other interesting workshops for our volunteers.
ACCOMMODATION
Our new house is situated in the village Begunje na Gorenjskem, 6 km away from Radovljica. It’s still work in progress and there is a lot of practical work around the house. The flat for the volunteers has 5 bedrooms, kitchen with living room, 2 bathrooms with toilets and 2 separate toilets. There is also a free time room with table tennis and table football. Each bedroom is for 2, 3 or 4 volunteers. The bus station, the shop and the pub are 15 minutes away.
There is no cleaning lady in the house and you can’t bring your mother with you :). Therefore, the cleaning of the house is a part of our daily routine and each volunteer needs to do their part of the cleaning.
WHAT TO DO IN YOUR FREE TIME
Our place is perfect for the volunteers who like nature. You can walk in the forests, hike in the mountains, bike, swim in the famous lake Bled which is less than 15km away, visit the Vintgar gorge. And for the ones who prefer city life there is Radovljica and also Kranj and the capital Ljubljana is not far away.
COMPASS PROJECT INFOPACK
APPLICATION
To apply send your CV and the motivation letter to: mariachiara@bonafides.pl i anna@bonafides.pl or contact us for further information! Please write in the title “ESC in Slovenia”.