Outline the project environment for the suggested voluntary activities, including the local community where the project will take place (e.g. geographical, social and economical environment). If the host placement is located in a live-in community, please include the rules and conditions that apply also for the volunteer.

Skopje is the capital of the Republic of Macedonia. As largest city in the country, it is a political, economic, and cultural center of Macedonia. Skopje is situated in the south Balkans representing a connecting point with the Mediterranean. Through centuries, especially during the middle century, the traders from Skopje maintained trading relationships with the neighboring cities as well as the cities cross the Adriatic Coast. Long caravans, from all parts of Europe, Middle and Far East as well Africa, with traders and other travelers - Arabs, Jewish, Greeks, Venetians and other settled in Skopje. According to his geographical position as important crossroad through centuries, here passed different nations: Romans, Ottomans, Austro-Hungarian and Serbs. Skopje represented a place where eastern and western civilizations intersect. All of these nations has left own mark in the whole cultural heritage of the city. This influence is still present in Skopje and can be felt in language, food, music, traditions, religions and customs. There are around 20 ethnic groups, living together in Skopje, with four different religions. The main religion is Orthodox Christianity (70%). The multicultural heritage is represented in every segment of the live in Skopje: driving in a bus, nightclubbing, shopping at the grocery market, going to school…

As administrative, cultural, economic and diplomatic center Skopje is active participant in the international collaboration through activities in different areas: culture, education, touring... Skopje is organizer of different international cultural events: The festival of contemporary music Days of Macedonian Music; The May Opera Evenings; The Skopje Summer Festival; The Blues and Soul Festival; The International Student Folk Festival; The Young Open Theatre MOT; The Skopje Jazz Festival; The world Gallery of Caricature; The Autumn Festival of Music; The Golden Nightingale Festival and many others. All these events provide a platform for intercultural encounters and dialogue in different domains of life and culture and also for non-formal education activities and realizing creative and innovative EVS projects with positive impact on local society.

The current visa regime in Macedonia makes traveling and meeting with youngsters more difficult. EVS provides perfect opportunity to local youngsters to share their experiences and ideas with people from different cultural and social backgrounds and to represent their own culture and traditions.

Volunteers Centre Skopje has established good cooperation with local non-governmental and public institutions. Thus we provide to the volunteers a chance to involve in cultural and social activities, taking place in different parts of Skopje and involving different social and culture institutions operating in Macedonia.

Volunteers will be accommodated in the house with other EVS volunteers. Each volunteer will have his or her own room. Volunteers can use common kitchen and living room and bathroom. In the accommodation place there will be provided all kitchen equipment. Internet and other equipment for work will be provided in the office. Office is located in 30 minutes walking distance from house.

Proposed activities for EVS volunteers:
Please explain:
" what you can offer to volunteers in terms of Service and learning opportunities,
" what will be the role of EVS volunteers in the Host Organisation,
" the activities in which the volunteers could be involved and the activities the volunteers could create in your organisation. Please give examples of typical activities for the volunteers.

We are aiming to give our volunteers intense intercultural and creative experience and provide them a chance to meet people from different social and cultural backgrounds and to gain an experience of intercultural communication and teamwork. After completion of the service the volunteers are intended to develop their communicative and intercultural competence and realize the role and importance of non-formal learning and volunteerism.

Almost all activities of Volunteers Centre Skopje are open for EVS volunteers. In the process of preparing the grant application staff of the organization will introduce the volunteer with current projects and activities and elaborate detailed description of roles and tasks of the particular volunteer in compliance with his or her interests and backgrounds. Networking with local public and non-governmental institutions gives as chance to be flexible and help volunteers to find the areas of action, where they can realize their potential the best and gain biggest learning benefits. 

Theme Art and Culture: upon their interests and knowledge volunteers can work with children and youngsters with fewer opportunities (street children, children without parental care, children and youngsters from ethnical groups facing discrimination and social exclusion and youngsters from rural and border areas) and plan and organize workshops that aim to develop artistic and creative skills or foreign language knowledge. Workshops will take place in different areas and institutions in accordance with type and specifics of the intended activities, for example, our former volunteers were working in largest Roma settlement in Skopje and organizing juggling and dancing workshops for local children. Tasks of the volunteers under this theme include: planning the program of workshops, preparing and carrying out related promotional activities, cooperation with other local institutions, and realization of the program and evaluation of the activities.

In addition to the work on selected theme all volunteers will be involved in following activities:

Planning and evaluation activities: meetings with the mentor and staff workers of the organization to plan the work and set tasks, to exchange ideas, plans and actualities, as well as to monitor the progress of the project and to reflect on the development and intercultural learning process of the volunteer.

Assistance in current projects of the organization: the volunteers will assist in the office work and activities that are related to their EVS project. This includes updating organization website, helping to organize local and international seminars and exchanges, and participating in the promotional events of the EVS, non-formal education and volunteerism. These events might include meetings with young people at schools and universities, promotion of the project in different organizations and institutions, meeting mass media.

Cooperation with local community: involvement in other projects that are organized in cooperation among Volunteers Centre Skopje and our local partners. With aim to encourage and facilitate exchange of experiences and best practices, the volunteers will visit different non-governmental organizations working in Macedonia and represent their countries and cultures to the local communities. In the interaction with local community the volunteers will promote ideas and principles of intercultural learning and non-formal education and deliver to the local youngsters the information about priorities and opportunities of the Youth in Action Program. Bringing and exchanging experience and practices from their countries regarding the recognition of non-formal education and volunteerism is another important role that volunteers are expected to undertake in our organization and community.

Developing and realizing individual project: the volunteers will gain all support to plan and realize their own projects that corresponds with aims of the Volunteers Centre Skopje and of VOICES magazine - like organizing artistic or environmental events, culture activities, humanitarian actions and other events.

Learning activities: Volunteers Centre Skopje will provide basic technical skills training that is required for successful performance of the tasks of the volunteers. This might include journalism and design skills, media and cultural production workshops, as well as basic training in writing grant applications and project management under Youth in Action Program. The volunteers will attend Macedonian language lessons at least two times per week for their entire stay in Macedonia.

On average the volunteers will work 30-35 hours per week and have days off in accordance with EVS rules and Macedonian legislation.

Volunteers Centre Skopje offers also opportunities to participate in short-term group EVS projects, where main tasks are related to assistance in large-scale cultural events of social actions: preparing articles and reports, documenting the events in pictures or videos, assisting in communication and promotional activities or in organizing different workshops.

Within the project volunteers will interact with different international realities and cooperate in organizing educational, social and cultural activities. It will support the development of language and communication skills, teamwork and leadership skills, and help to learn new working tools and methods that might be useful in future carriers and activities of the volunteers.

Volunteer profiles and recruitment process:

Please describe the profiles of volunteers you would like to receive in your organisation. Include information on how you ensure an open and transparent recruitment process as well as the overall accessibility of EVS to all young people. Consider further information about the type of Sending Organisation you want to cooperate with. This information can help the match-making between volunteer candidates, Sending Organisations and your organisation.

From volunteers we expect positive and responsible attitudes, communication and adaptation skills and wish to work in team. We expect good will in learning, curiosity towards new cultures and the desire to maintain dialogue with people coming from cultural and social backgrounds different from the ones they belong to, even knowing that EVS experience will help to strengthen and develop those characteristics. We are going to put effort also to provide regional and gender balance and to increase involvement of volunteers coming from less advantaged areas with fewer non-formal and intercultural learning opportunities.

Concerning the recruitment of the volunteers it has to be pointed out that the activities and the structure of our association presuppose a continuous exchange among organizations from different countries. We aim to cooperate with organizations working in area of non-formal education and dealing with people in age from 16 to 30. We will appreciate partners, who wish to establish long-term cooperation in various projects and to exchange volunteers among organizations.

The information about the available placements together with selection criteria will be published on our website and sent to all our existing partners, as well as to networks of non-governmental and youth organizations. The sending organizations in cooperation with us will provide a first dialogue and selection of the volunteers on the basis of their personal motivations and attitudes.

Information on selection of the volunteers will be published on website of the host organization and all the volunteers who have applied for the project will be informed about the results and the considerations that determined the choice of the volunteers.

Candidates may send their applications to Volunteers Centre Skopje also directly. Applications should contain information about the person, his or her motivation to do EVS and to volunteer in the particular project, his or her educational and professional backgrounds, as well as information about the preferential time and length of the service.

The selected candidates will be contacted in order to receive further information about the applicant and to explain details about Volunteers Centre Skopje and the available acivities in our organization.

http://ec.europa.eu/youth/evs/aod/hei_form_en.cfm?EID=66000123501.