Project environment:

Imagina, the Youth House of Alcobendas, promotes and organises training and information activities for youth in the town aged between 14 and 30 years. As part of our policy of providing opportunities of participation in international programmes, we have been hosting EVS volunteers who support us in our work for several years. This project includes hosting 6 volunteers for 9 months (October/2008 - June2009). Volunteers will mainly participate in activities in the Youth House, but also in related institutions (Library, Refugee Hosting Centre) in Alcobendas. This gives us the opportunity of giving organistions and youth collectives and individuals first hand information and a living model of the virtues of such a training and vital experience as this one. Volunteers will, therefore, integrate in the day-to-day activities of the Youth House to collaborate in the promotion, diffusion and organisation of activities, directed mainly to youth.

Alcobendas is located to about 15 km to the north of Madrid, counts on a population of 100,000 inhabitants and a very dynamic social and economic structure. It has an important industrial and business centre which employs a lot of people of Alcobendas. Regarding services, the City Council of Alcobendas is one of most outstanding ones of the Community of Madrid, with over 1,000 public employees and a large number of social, cultural and sport services for the citizens.

The youth population of Alcobendas is undergoing a fast transformation since the past years. When we began to receive volunteers EVS, in 1997, there were very few young immigrants, and therefore, their impact upon the local population was very little. Nowadays that situation has changed. The presence of immigrants is important among youth. It is important to have this into consideration when planning intervention activities for youth. We want to take advantage of the presence in Alcobendas of EVS volunteers to promote the integration of young immigrants.

PROJECT’S DESCRIPTION

He/she will realize social cultural animation for young people between 16 and 30 in the frame of the nightly leisure time activity called “Imagina tu noche”. He/She will participate on the activities organized at Saturday evenings and will help along the week to prepare them, working always in the mentioned group.

OBJECTIVES

• To create an alternative way of enjoy Saturday nights through leisure activities where young people can express their creativity and needs avoiding bad habits related to alcohol and drugs.

• Promoting positive values an attitude among youngsters to question consumerism and ordinary patterns of enjoy leisure time at night.

• Fostering relationships among young people to cooperate together in activities promoting team work.

MAIN ACTIVITIES

• Programming: participate in the elaboration part of the program which will be organized from October till June and be present each Saturday night.

• To help the organizational part of it and put them in action. (make contacts, prepare the material and take part in the evaluations every Saturday)

• Diffusion: To prepare the advertising weekly, this means making posters, throw-aways, emails, web pages, etc.

• To work active and creative in the group of this program: help the work-out and collect the youth’s proposals.

• To take part in the evaluation process.