The idea of e-volunteering There is huge social power on the Internet! According to the Digital Agenda Scoreboard 2012 regular internet users - those that use the internet at least once a week – currently represent 67.5% of the population of Europe1. But they’re not only passive users – thanks to the Web 2.0 technology they can also create the Web. Every day people and communities share knowledge and skills, give advices, support each other on forums and do many different things we call:
E-volunteering E-volunteering is a volunteer work conducted via the Internet. It is often called also virtual volunteering, cyber volunteering, digital volunteering, online volunteering, but it always refers to work where an online system (accessed through a computer, a mobile device, etc.) plays a key role in recruitment, facilitating access to tasks, and conducting that tasks2. And there are plenty of activities that can be done via the Internet: free Web counseling, translating documents, researching information, editing or writing proposals, press releases, newsletter articles, forming assistance and self-help groups, moderating online discussion groups, coordinating campaigns, creating web pages, teaching on-line courses, providing expertise, designing graphics, editing videos, creating podcasts, monitoring the news, tagging photos and files, offering feedback and many, many more! Internet can be a great tool for organizations, non-profits, companies and all those active people who want to change the world for the better. Virtual activities overcome the barriers of space and time, so they are accessible for everyone. No matter where you live – in small village or in a huge city, through the Internet you can support every project you want. 1
https://ec.europa.eu/digital-agenda/sites/digital-agenda/files/score board_life_online.pdf
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http://ict4empl.wikispaces.com/Definitions+of+Internet-mediated +Volunteering
And this is why we love e-volunteering – it is a brand new kind of volunteering that is complementary to the traditional volunteering. It creates new possibilities for social actions, so people can cooperate regardless of distance and time. To show the best social projects undertaken on the Web we created the ‘Discover e-volunteering’ Competition.
‘Discover e-volunteering’ Competition ‘Discover e-volunteering’ is the only competition, both in Poland and in Europe, which aims at honoring and promoting the most interesting projects concerning the co-operation of non-governmental organizations with e-volunteers seeking to help others via the Internet. The Competition is open to any non-govermental organization from Europe which runs an e-volunteering project. Winners of the ‘Discover e-volunteering’ Competition are chosen by the International Selection Committee and Internet users via online voting. Financial awards are given for the development of the winning e-volunteering projects. Aims of the Competition: • showing innovative and interesting usage of new technologies in order to strengthen the civil society and increase the public commitment, • encouragement for individuals to undertake social activity on the Internet, • promotion and dissemination knowledge on e-volunteering, • presenting the diversity of e-volunteering projects, • creation of a database of good practices, • empowerment of the organizations that may benefit from virtual volunteering and fight social exclusion, • development of networking and experience exchange among the organizers of virtual volunteering.
The 1st edition the 1st edition of the Competition was organized in 2011, as one of the Flagship Projects of the European Year of Volunteering; it was also organized within the Polish Presidency of the Council of the European Union. The effects were amazing! We’ve received applications from 19 EU countries! The laureate of the 1st place in the Competition was Polskie Towarzystwo Programów Zdrowotnych running ‘Dawca.pl’ project – a public campaign that promotes conscious organ, bone marrow and blood donation. Its work is based mainly on the e-ducation through the website, Facebook, as well as e-learning tools. In promoting the issue Dawca.pl uses also its website, Polish first Internet transplantology tuition and world’s first application on Facebook promoting declaration of will to donate organs. The laureate of the 2nd place in the Competition is Nacionaline Moksleiviu Akademija – an initiative to help the most talented students in Lithuania to develop their skills and achieve success in education, independently of their social and economical status. In addition to the regular online learning and individual counseling, onsite sessions are organised three time a year, where students attend high-quality subject and personal development classes. There were also two ex aequo awards for the 3rd place: • Kolibri for All (L’enfant @ l’hôpital, France) – Kolibri gives sick children in hospital or children living in hard condition the opportunity to meet with outstanding men and women, like explorers, architects, etymologists, scientists, musicians, who thanks to the creative usage of new technologies stimulate their education and development. •
BrightWorks (BrightOne, the United Kingdom) – a micro-volunteering web app that allows charities and nonprofits to get projects and tasks completed for free online by a global volunteer community, in an effective, simple-to-use and easy-to-get-started way.
The 1st edition of the ‘Discover evolunteering’ Competition was organized by the Good Network Foundation and Fundacja Orange, in cooperation with the Euroepan Partners of the competition and the Intel Technology Poland Ltd. The competition was pursued under the project „Values and activities of volunteering and e-volunteering” co-financed by the European Union. The European Union was not responsible for any content generated by the project.
The 2nd edition The 1st edition showed how many good practices entered the virtual space for good, and how many good ideas still wait for implementation. For this reason, in the second edition we introduced a new grant category. Thanks to this entries might been submitted in 2 categories: I. Category for the existing e-volunteering projects, II. Category for the new corporate volunteering projects, in which we will reward ideas to start e-volunteering projects in areas where they are not already present. The application form was available offline and online in different language versions: Polish, English, French, Spanish, Slovak and Italian. The effects of the 2nd edition were amazing! A total of 72 projects from 24 countries were submitted to the competition—49 projects in the previous category and 24 in the new one. The international jury chose 13 initiatives out of them, which were then voted for online. Let’s announce the finalists!
I. Category for the existing e-volunteering projects
one-on-one contact in order to help people out with their questions, worries and concerns on substance use. Involved volunteers dedicate 3 hours per week to provide a personal, warm and tailored answer to each e-mail the helpline receives. De DrugLijn works in strict anonymity, both for the people contacting the line as for the counselors.
Organizer: vInspired Project title: Junction 49 Country: United Kingdom Website: www.junction49.co.uk Can you imagine Facebook for e-volunteers? Junction49 project comes close to the idea! Volunteers register on the website and post up their social action project idea, everything under the watchful eye of the helpdesk team. Junction49.co.uk inspires and supports young people to set up social action projects in their local community around the issues that matter to them. Throughout the project, volunteers can update their idea by adding diary entries, photos and videos describing their volunteer journey and inspiring other young people to get involved, or set up something similar in their local area. The helpdesk team monitors and moderates all content posted on Junction49 and responds to it accordingly. Any other young person from across the country can become an e-volunteer and post a comment on someone’s ‘ideas page’ offering their own advice for the project, or they may offer their support to get involved. It’s all about making a positive impact in young’s local communities!
Organizer: De DrugLijn Project title: E-mailcounselling on alcohol, drugs, pills and gambling Country: Belgium Website: http://www.druglijn.be/contact/stel-jevraag-via-e-mail.aspx Virtual assistance can bring real results! It turns out that e-mail may be the best way to ask for help and receive it. Experience of De DrugLijn speaks for itself. Originally it started as a telephone line, then it transformed into a multichannel contact centre that embraces the potential of online tools for low-threshold communication. One in two inquires at the helpline is made via the e-mail webform. In 2012 the DrugLijn will have helped more than 3000 people via e-mail! The helpline’s website has grown to become the pivotal point of all contacts. It provides not only static information, but also a range of interactive online knowledge and self-assessment tests as well as online self-help. The main focus remains on confidential
Organizer: Fundación Cibervoluntarios Project title: Cibervoluntarios (Cybervolunteers) Country: Spain Website: www.cibervoluntarios.org
We are social change agents conscious of the power of new technologies to bring about this change and empower people - born in 2001 Cybervolunteers Foundation had been pioneers in the creation of concept of cybervolunteer, not only in Spain, but also at international level. Despite the increasing level of civilization, many people still remain excluded from information society. Using new technologies, ‘Cibervoluntarious’ project helps them to empower themselves and increase their capacities and opportunities within their environment. All people have the same opportunity to access, learn and use new technologies to overcome the digital divide, eliminate social gaps and promote the knowledge society. The Cybervolunteers Foundation uses technologies from a social perspective and contributes to the elimination of other gaps through awareness, information and training online, onsite and a mix of both, satisfying the needs of each individual or social group which they work with. To reach it, they conform and adapt a variety of applications, tools and technology contents for all the needs of excluded people may have!
Organizer: Center of Technical Culture Rijeka (Centar tehničke kulture Rijeka ) Project title: Our Town - to Know It is to Love It Country: Croatia Website: http://www.ctk-rijeka.hr/hr/upoznajmo_ svoj_grad How to connect walking tours around the city with network activity involving seniors and young children at the same time? ‘Our Town - to Know It is to Love It’ seems to be a reliable answer. The project represents a mean of connecting and activating people at different ages, with special emphasis on socially excluded groups (such as seniors, children and youth).
Walking tours around Rijeka are organized monthly with the goal to familiarize the public with the rich, but often neglected, town’s cultural heritage. At the same time they are tied to journalism, photography and video production workshops, providing the attendants with the chance to use their skills in practice. Photos, reports and videos covering the walks are published in e-newspaper Rijeka-in, as well as in a specially formed e-club, a virtual platform for sharing multimedia materials as well as knowledge and experiences about Rijeka and its heritage, for all those included in the project. Participation in the virtual life of e-club motivates the members to expand on their IT skills and share information about Rijeka, which makes them to become involved in creation of a common goal - sharing knowledge of the town’s history!
Organizer: Timebank Romania Project title: Timebank Romania Country: Romania Website: www.timebank.ro Time is the alternative, more affordable currency than money! TimeBank Romania is an online platform where individuals can exchange their knowledge and skills. It’s about donating their time to teach those who are interested and in return they are taught by others as well. It’s also a place where “teachers” meet “students” and switch their roles continuously. Everybody has a an opportunity to find an appropriate teacher, expert skilled in art that he is interested in. Each member has his own profile updated with what he is capable of teaching others, as well as the skills or knowledge he is interested in gaining. They can start using their valuable potential to teach others and learn something in exchange, which makes the users producers and recipients at the same time. The mail goal of TimeBank Romania is to create an alternative learning modeled for individuals, not masses. Through the exchange of knowledge and skills, they hope to form a new community of individuals sharing the same interests and/or strengthening already existing ones.
Organizer: The Spinal Cord Paralytics Association of Turkey Project title: I am obstructed here Country: Turkey Website: www.buradaengellendim.com Have you ever wondered about the problems that people with disabilities struggle every day? Do you realize that even a badly parked car can be a huge barrier for a person in a wheelchair? Within the scope of www.buradaengellendim.com the photos of architectural barriers are taken and loaded to website by hundreds of citizens from all over Turkey! Through this project the places that are not accessible for everyone are marked. The attention of people who work in public institutions and private sector organizations is drawn and the sensitivity of non-disabled people, that are not aware of and get used to the many barriers in daily life, is increased at the same time. A country can have conscious, healthy, self-confident, talented and skilled citizens if all of its individuals can get a chance to participate in social life and if the government officials regard disabled people as indispensible part of. Thanks to ‘I am obstructed here’ project, originators make extensive effort to draw public institutions’ and private organizations’ attention. They work for eliminating outdated understanding, that imprison disabled people at home.
Organizer: Fundacja Dzieci Niczyje / Nobody’s Children Foundation Project title: E-help for children and youth Country: Poland Website: www.helpline.org.pl, www.116111.pl Making children and youth feeling safe and supported, both in the real and virtual world. Nobody’s Children Foundation operates two major projects supported by e-volunteers. The oldest project in Poland that deals with risks associated with using new technologies, Helpline.org.pl, was founded in 2007. In addition to free telephone chat it allows to talk, send messages via internet and e-mail. E-volunteers provide assistance for children and adolescents in Poland and around the world. Also receive messages from young people who left Poland and look for help and information. Second important project, founded in 2008, is ‘ 116 111’ helpline and www.116111.pl website with anonymus form.
FDN is a member of ‘Child Helpline International’ and ‘Insafe’ - european network of Safer Internet program implementers, which aims to raise awareness of young people and their education regarding the safe use of new technologies. As a representatives of both networks, members of Nobody’s Children Foundation train volunteers from partner organizations (including the Czech Republic, Hungary, Kenya, Cyprus). FDN representatives are members of the working groups, CHI - Working Group on New Communication Technologies and Data Project Group and sit in Insafe’s Advisory Committee for Helplines, actively shaping international policy on the provision of such E-helping children and young people.
Organizer: Um sem um tam Project title: Um sem um tam Country: Czech Republic Website: www.umsemumtam.cz Is it possible: professionals with enough free time to share their skills and help non-profit organizations? ‘Um sem um tam’ project demonstrates that it is! Through the web platform non-profit organizations and skilled professionals can be connected for shortterm voluntary cooperation on specific project. Description of a project states precisely what a volunteer is supposed to do, what professional skills are required and how much time the work is estimated to take. Volunteers search the database for projects which correspond to their own skills and interests. The project database is open to public. Each registered professional has a public profile page, which displays how many projects the volunteer has worked on and how many hours of voluntary work he has provided. A public profile page can also be created for a company to show how many hours the employees of the company have provided. The goal of ‘Um sem um tam’ is to fill in the gap and make it possible for non-profit organizations to find volunteers with required skills and to show people with professional skills that they can also be used for voluntary work.
Organizer: Corrigraphie Project title: Correction of documents on zCorrecteurs.fr Country: France Website: www.zcorrecteurs.fr Are you a real fan of your mother tongue? Are you focused on correct use of it in everyday life? ‘zCorrecteurs’ project’s team make the society aware of the importance of speaking and writing correctly in French. They want to help them not to make the same mistakes and become ambassadors of good French among people around. ‘zCorrecteurs’ website offers various resources linked with the French language. It also helps people, in the context of individual and group projects, to proofread documents in French voluntarily. The goal is to make documents grammatically correct, to correct orthography and conjugation in order to make people conscious of the importance to read and write properly in French. Voluntary proofreaders (who are not professionals, just fans), after each correction, make detailed comments to the author of the document presenting the main mistakes she/he has made and suggest how to avoid mistakes in the future.
II. Category for new corporate e-volunteering projects
Organizer: Baba Deda Project title: Baba-Deda Country: Russia Website: www.baba-deda.ru A project of on-line catalogue for seniors: sport activities, education and development courses! The main goal is to integrate aged retired volunteers and young people. Next step would be starting a series of webinars targeted to teach, train and develop aged people online. The webinars will be run by skilled volunteers among members of noncommercial organizations and social enterprises (art therapists, physiologists etc). The idea is an answer to a common problem of poor social integration of aged people in Russia. ‘Baba-Deda’ project aims to help and assist in integration of the retired population back to active life. Because the information about all available services and activities for 50+ people, both commercial and free of charge, is difficult to find and very fragmented, the portal ‘Baba-Deda’ aims to find, aggregate and deliver this information to all interested people. They also plan to start video and audio seminars, run by corporate e-volunteers who will play the role of e-lectors, to continue a learning process for the aged people and help them to manage some life difficulties.
To create a bridge between people in wheelchairs and volunteers in the community – one of the most important goals of ‘Do good, Ukraine’ organization project. The site ‘Equal Opportunities’, which they want to create with the support of corporate e-volunteers as professional programmers, designers, PR managers, technicians and managers, will be a single information field combining the problems and needs of people in wheelchairs as well as providing a forum for those looking to volunteer and who are willing to help with various projects. The aim of the project is to create an interactive web site that helps solve real problems by providing a forum to organize the installation of wheelchair ramps, exit systems and physical assistance to people with disabilities throughout the city. In city planning, no attention has been paid to people who use wheelchairs.
Turkey TUSEV Czech Republic Hestia
Croatia SMART Italy SPES France RockCorps
The aim is to promote living together in a neighborhood, where the population is extremely heterogeneous from the social, ethnic and economic point of view. It may also develop a sense of well-being in your own neighborhood, break isolation from the rest of the city and encourage volunteers’ involvement in the animation of their neighborhood.
Luxembourg Du Pain Pour Chaque Enfant
From 21st June to 31st July ‘Festival of Capalette’ offers a large range of activities - springboard contest, three evenings of outdoor cinema, outdoor painting workshops, reading workshops, sports and fun day for children in the garden Capelette in the open air! These events will be entirely organized and supported by volunteers, residents of the district, who wish to live together and promote the good life in their neighborhood. 2013 will be the 7th edition of the festival.
Slovakia CARDO
An idea of a local event, unique offer to people from districts having no access to free cultural events and who can’t afford a holiday.
Belgium Vlaams Steunpunt Vrijwilligerswerk
Organizer: Do good, Ukraine Project title: ‘Equal Opportunities’ – information web-resource of systematic help for people in wheelchairs Country: Ukraine Website: http://dogood.org.ua/
Organizer: Centre social de la Capelette Project title: Festival of Capelette Country: France Website: www.myspace.fr/estivalescapelette
Latvia Brivpratigais.lv
‘Ukryty Potencjał’ plans to create a blog where handmade aids for fun and therapy for children with autism would be presented. It appears that the vast majority of them can be, with a little imagination, made by own! This reduces the costs and makes a lot of fun. They want to show step-by-step description how to make the toys that will help the children develop specific skills. Corporate e-volunteers involved in this idea are psychologists, therapists and students working in the treatment centers, people who make this type of aids every day and want to share their experience with others. The project shall provide support for parents, who often become the own children therapists. The organization aims to support people threatened by a social exclusion - by giving the parents the prepared therapeutic ideas they would reduce the differences in access to the therapy caused by material status.
PARTNERSHIP Join our community of Local Partners!
Therapy for autistic children is usually very expensive and needs various types of aids. Due to this, many parents choose to provide it by themselves, but it seems to be a big challenge.
The official announcement of the winners of the Competition will take place on June 17th, 2013 in Warsaw during the ‘Discover e-volunteering. Change the WWWorld!’ Conference.
Organizer: Ukryty Potencjał Project title: Chrysalis – a blog about therapy materials Country: Poland Website: www.ukrytypotencjal.org
Ignorance of their rights do not allow them engage in social life like citizens who do not depend on wheelchairs for their mobility. ‘Equal Opportunities’ will enable each user of the site to learn about his direct rights and opportunities in the community. The project will create a real picture of the facilities available for citizens who use wheelchairs in the city, mapping out ramps and roads and means of transport. It will help create a barrier-free environment for the mobility of people in wheelchairs!
We invite all organizations from Europe to get involved in the ‘Discover e-volunteering’ Competition as our Local Partners. With your help we will be able to reach more NGOs who could benefit from the participation in the Competition, as well as create more diverse and valuable base of good practices. Contact us on: competition@e-volunteering.eu. Together we can change the WWWordl!
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inform your beneficiaries and partners on the possibility to access new funding and promotional opportunities, promote your organization on the Competition webpage, promotional materials as well as during the Final Gala, propose your candidates to the International Selection Committee, participate in the Final Gala of the Competition, which will be held in June 2013 in Warsaw, Poland - four most active partners will also receive the refund of travel an accommodation costs, receive the official acknowledgment of their involvement in the Competition.
Partner role Your role as a Partner would be basically to support us in promotion of the Competition at your regional level. We will supply all informational and promotional materials (in English, French, Spanish, Slovak and Polish), so that you can insert them on your Webpage, send to media and other organizations that cooperate with volunteers via the Internet and might be interested in joining the Competition. Partner role - optional We would be also very grateful for your help with regional organization of the Competition, like • Benefits for the Local Partner As the Competition Local Partner you will get the possibility to: • •
become the leaders of opinion on e-volunteering, as well as to join the international network of organizations active in this field, promote and support innovation: new forms of volunteering, social and citizen activity, the usage of new technologies for common good, as well as the positive social perception of the internet,
Organizers:
Europen Partners:
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cooperation with local mentors of the Competition offering assistance in translating application forms into Polish, English, French, Spanish and Czech to participants from given country/region, offering support to Competition Organisers in formal verification of applications from the Partner’s country (on request of Competition Organisers) , supervision over the regional verification of the application forms from the given country/region. presenting selected candidates to the international Selection Committee, attendance in the Final Gala of the Competition to be held in Warsaw in June, 2013 (optional) - four most active partners will also receive the refund of travel an accommodation costs.
Partner: