Project environment:
Volunteers are invited to be integrated in the team and involved in all the ongoing activities developed by the organisation. The volunteers will have the space (mental and physical) to have the chances and opportunities to integrate as a team member in the association. The office of Open Space Association is located nearly the center of Székesfehérvár.
Székesfehérvár is situated in halfway between Budapest and the Lake Balaton. The city is an important railway and highway junction. Székesfehérvár is one of Hungary's oldest historic cities that used to control certain functions on a national level. Székesfehérvár or ALBA REGIA using its mediaeval name was the cathedral seat of Saint Stephan I (Saint Stephan) and also a coronation and burial place of the Hungarian kings during the centuries of the Middle Ages.
With a population of 106 thousand Székesfehérvár is the 8th most populated city of the country. With a total area of 170.9 sq km it is the second largest county centre in the Transdanubian region. The density of population is 622-person/sq km that ranks it among the middle-sized cities of the country.
Székesfehérvár "city of county rank" is the administrative, cultural and economical centre of County Fejér. Being the county centre, it has a very important role in the life of the county attracting 38% of the population. The vicinity of the capital has huge influence not only on Székesfehérvár but also on the county. Among all the large cities in the country, Székesfehérvár is the one situated closest to the capital. The city is 60 air kilometres from the centre of Budapest. There are nearly 30 villages in its small region; on the confines of the city extended agricultural fields can be found. There are no villages within the immediate neighbourhood of the city that would form part of the city.
Székesfehérvár, which was known by the name Alba Regia in the middle ages, is one of our most ancient towns in Hungary. The town witnessed a lot of glorious events of our history over the centuries. Our kings and their relatives were crowned and buried inside the walls of this town. This was the place where the throne as well as the other symbols of the royal power were treasured, and where from faraway lands assembled for the lawful days. Walking in the centre of Székesfehérvár you can sense the unique atmosphere of the town even more nowadays. The restored ancient monuments and buildings, the street-lightning that fits the atmosphere of the town, and the stoned town square all recall the historic atmosphere of Székesfehérvár.
We surely recommend the volunteer a rendted flat or students' hostels near to the office (opportunity to choose). It would be a shared accomodation with another volunteers of other associations. We emphazise the role of absolute integration and a friendly, comfortable surroundings. So the volunteers should be open-minded, tolerante and interested in getting to know new people and cultures. We let the volunteers make their own rules and to form an own lifestyle based on compromises.

Proposed activities for EVS volunteers:
- Learning about the protection of environment and nature
- Guiding sport activities (including canoeing)
- Get to know more about young people with disabilities and fewer opportunities
- Organize several projects for them and with them
- Coordinate international events, exchanges and other projects
- Organize exhibitions, coordinateing follow-ups for projects
- Involve or create his/her own "mini projects"
- Working as a volunteer in our festivals and other programs
- Working in our office and giving information about how to be an EVS volunteer
- Taking part in outreach youth work
- Participation in the administration and management of the association
- Learning the bacis logistics tasks
- Opportunity to popularize his/her culture
We offer the volunteers all chances to integrate completely as a team member in the association. We give opportunity to learn how to organize projects and take the responsibility for it and themselves also. They will increase knowledge, skills and responsibility in a dynamic education process based on experiences
- Observer and external evaluator
- Learner
- Creative assistant
- Coordinator person/ contact person
- Logistical assistant
- Teacher
- Leader
- Volunteer
- Guide
We let her/him to find the most suitable tasks to his/her personality. During the 11 months long voluntary programme she/he can discover and get in touch with every piece of the activity of our association.. She/ He will get a change to be introduced to our philosophy. We are interested in the opinion of our volunteers so from the first moment she/he can express his/her idea, because she/he will not just observe the real activities but surely will take part in it from the beginning. Every fase of the volunteer will be based on practical tasks, so she/he will take part in work on the spot. Beside the professional work the volunteer is expected to integrate as a full member of the association, which means that he/she will be present on our team-meetings, he/she can participate in the decision making process.
Possibilities during the summer:
- Organizing and guiding integrated canoeing tours
- Learn how to be a guide
- Participating youth exchanges and festivals
- Work, teach, learn and play with people with fewer opportunities or disabilities
- Taking part of guiding international events
- Organizing evaluations, follow-ups, exhibitions
Possibilities all over the year:
- Help the daily work of the association
- Help to teach and learn languages
- Organize "language club"
- Organize and participate indoor or outdoor sport activities
- Work, teach, learn and play with people with fewer opportunities or disabilities
- Taking part in international events
- Making his/her own mini projects

Volunteer profiles and recruitment process:
Firts of all we will select volunteers after considerations of all applications. Secondly we are going to conduct an interview with the candidate on phone if possible or via e-mail / messenger, to get ahold of the personal and informal contact and to get to know better the candidates.
(Decision will be brought based on the above.)
Open Space Association gives preference to candidates with the following profile:
- Special interest in education through sport, especially water sports like canoe and kayak
- Swimming is must
- Sense of organising
- Flexibility and responsibility
- Open towards children and youth
- Open towards disabled people and people with fewer opportunities
- Creative and dynamic personality
- Motivation to learn the Hungarian language
- Sense of humour
Our aim to learn as much as possible from the hosted volunteer. We organizing a lot of activities in connection to sport, especially water sports, so the volunteer must know how to swim. For us it is preferable even the volunteer older than the age of 21 and he/she speaks a good level of English. On the other hand we suggest to the volunteers to study the Hungarian language.

Special needs (if applicable):
We have already provided a personal EVS coordinator as a human resource to support the volunteers in the personal field.
There are same proposal to accommodate and support the volunteers, who can be hosted by us.
- Make easier the orientation in Hungary by personal guiding and showing the system of the public transport
- Guarantee a developed infrastructure, where she/he can work,and twch the way of using the (office machines, computers)
- Persuade all of the workmates to respect his/her own cultural habits, costumes and find the way to make compromises ( meals, accomodation, religion)
- Weekly organise personal discussion with the EVS coordinator to share the other special needs

Risk prevention, protection and safety:
Volunteers will have a safe living and working environment, they stay in student rooms, or in a rented flat with some other volunteers from different associations. At work they have all the equipment needed to do the job properly. The mentor of the project will provide the support needed.
- A supervisor within the organisation will be available 24 hours to help both personally and professionally the volunteer. The supervisor will even help in everyday tasks
- There will be organised a training for using the public transport, getting to know the basic official institutes and their locations.
- Making the opportunity to meet more volunteers and locals and to help the integration
- Consultation with the sending organisation will be possible for the volunteer any time when it is needed.
We do not recommend anyone to volunteer in our organisation under 21.

http://ec.europa.eu/youth/evs/aod/hei_form_en.cfm?EID=36000240437