International Training on Management and Certification of Local Volunteering

The training will instruct third-sector representatives and operators on the management of local volunteering projects and on the GloCal Recognition Certification system: during the week, participants from Italy, Europe and Turkey, will be confronted and trained on how to manage, engage and support local volunteers in their own organization. In addition, they will be coached on the functioning of GloCal Recognition Certification Platform through theoretical explanations followed by practical parts in which participants will test the system in small groups. There will be a part dedicated to the analysis of acquired skills and to the support of volunteers, both in group situations and in individual interviews. Finally, participants will have the opportunity to develop new partnerships and projects with the other participating organizations, while at the same time being able to meet representatives of some of Turkey's leading non-profits.

SUMMARY OF THE PROJECT:

“GloCal Recognition" (no. TR2015 / DG / 01 / A5-02 / 397) is one of the 12 projects selected within the Programme " "Unione Europea - Turchia Dialogo della Società Civile - V Schema di finanziamento della Società Civile" funded by the Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the European Union itself. The goal of the programme is to promote cooperation between Turkish and European civil societies.

GloCal Recognition is developing a system for the recognition of soft skills acquired during local volunteering. The system will be adapted from "Global Recognition", a platform previously created by Joint in cooperation with organizations from South America and Europe, that is, instead, aimed at the certification of international volunteering experiences. This Project will therefore foster lasting cooperation between Turkish and European NGOs and will enable youth and local organisations to add value at their work.

The main result we want to reach through GloCal Recognition is the creation of a platform translated into Italian, English and Turkish which will include:

A soft-skills Evaluation Framework and a system to issue the Certificate;

E-learning modules designed to support users in getting more understanding and awareness about their own soft-skills;

A toolkit featuring examples of non-formal education methodologies for both young people and Youth organisations, which will support them in the assessment process of the acquired skills.

The project also includes the promotion and dissemination of the platform through the web and various social media channels.

PARTICIPANTS:

Maximum of 10 participants from EU countries: they will be selected within people with a relevant and long-lasting experience in non-profit organizations working with local volunteers. Within these organizations, participants can be either volunteers or employed staff members, but the most important thing is that they need to be well acquainted with the work of their organization and be able to report to them what they’ve learned during the training.

OBJECTIVES:

To share good practices and to be trained on methodologies for the management and involvement of local volunteers; 

To test the non-formal methodologies that will be complementary to the e-learning modules, aimed at supporting both young people and organizations in using the GloCal Recognition certification system;

To gather feedback on the GloCal Certification and support System;

To provide a chance for intercultural exchange and partnership building by promoting cooperation and intercultural understanding.

RESULTS:

To increase the involved organisations’ management skills of volunteers;

To test non-formal methods to support the certification process;

To improve the GloCal Recognition certification and support System;

To increase participants' intercultural skills and to create new partnerships.