Active Volunteering Workshop

In order to support the development of the society, we all must act pro-actively in order to become change makers and active citizens. From smaller, to bigger acts, each action has its importance and is relevant.

Empowering youth people to become active citizens and understand their role in the society as change makers. 

The aim of the session was to improve the understanding of the concept of active citizenship for 10 young Romanians through a one-hour workshop. While doing this, the participants can exchange good practices and learn from each other what to do in order to be an active citizen.

There should be a minimum of one facilitator with knowledge and expertise in the field of youth work and experience in online facilitation.

The session starts with an introduction of the topic and the purpose of the session and continues with a get to know each other activity and an energizer. The facilitator introduces himself and says a few things about himself, after which he invites the participants to introduce themselves. After the participants got to know each other, it's time to have an icebreaker to feel more comfortable with each other and warm up a little bit: one participant says a color, and the others must bring to the room an object that has that color.

Introduction of the concept of active citizenship:
The participants are invited to write each of them what they understand by this concept, after which they invite those who want to explain. At the end, the facilitator makes a short summary of the discussions.

The following questions will be, in turn, written on the Padlet, and participants must click the like button if the answer is "yes" and dislike for "no". 

After all participants have voted, each of them is invited to explain why they voted yes or no.

The questions are:
Do you think it is important to be an active citizen? Why?

Do you think that anyone can become an active citizen? Why?

Do you consider yourself an active citizen? Why?

After discussing the topic of this workshop in more detail, it is time to see what the conclusions of this session are. The facilitator encourages the participants to express their opinion about what was discussed, what they learned or what caught their attention. The order is random, but if the participants do not express their opinion, the facilitator will invite them in turn to do so.

Create a friendly and open environment. Make sure that everybody feels confortable. Since it is an online session, make sure you set the rules at the beginning (camera turned on preferably, but not mandatory, microphone turned off while not speaking) and encourage speaking and engagement.

Lack of involvement of participants due tot the online environment.

The session is designed to be facilitated online.

1. After each participant introduces themselves, they will be invited to write down one word that describes what volunteering means for them.
2. The participants will be presented the definition of volunteering, as well as the fields they can get involved into.
3. The participants will be asked about the benefits of volunteering from their perspective. A discussion will be conducted.
4. The participants will better understand the legal framework of volunteering in Romania, through a quiz.
5. The participants will learn about the host organisation, the volunteers' coordinator and the volunteering contract, through a presentation.
6. The participants will learn about the rights and responsibilities of volunteers.
 

Recap all the things explored throughout the workshop.

Q&A session, followed with one word said by each participants that describes what they learnt during the session, or how they felt.