# EUR-Lex - 52012DC0781 - EN

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# 52012DC0781

**REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT, THE COUNCIL, THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL COMMITTEE AND THE COMMITTEE OF THE REGIONS on the implementation, results and overall assessment of the 2011 European Year of Volunteering /* COM/2012/0781 final */**

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REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE
EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT, THE COUNCIL, THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL COMMITTEE
AND THE COMMITTEE OF THE REGIONS

on the implementation, results and overall
assessment of the 2011 European Year of Volunteering

1.           Background:

1.1.        Introduction

In accordance
with the Decision establishing the European Year of Volunteering 2011[1], this report offers an overview
of the implementation, results and overall achievements of the European Year,
building on the conclusions of an external evaluation of the European Year[2].

In 2006, the
European Commission consulted the European Economic and Social Committee on the
future direction in the area of volunteering at the European level. One of the
main recommendations of the European Economic and Social Committee's
exploratory opinion on the role of voluntary activity in European society and
its impact of December 2006 was "to announce a Year of Volunteers, and
to publish a White Paper on voluntary activity and active citizenship in Europe at the earliest opportunity".[3]

An alliance of NGOs supporting the idea of a
European year of volunteering was set up and a civil society campaign aiming at
the designation of 2011 as the European Year of Volunteering was launched. In
2008, the European Parliament adopted a declaration[4] supporting the call for a
European Year of Volunteering 2011, and thus creating significant momentum and
high expectations.

In 2009, the
European Parliament and the Council endorsed the Commission's proposal to
designate 2011 as the European Year of Voluntary Activities Promoting Active
Citizenship (hereinafter EYV2011).

Ten years after the United Nations'
International Year of Volunteering 2001, the EYV2011 came at the right moment
to respond to expectations from civil society and to mobilise volunteering
stakeholders in the Member States around the theme of volunteering as an
expression of civic participation. It illustrated that Europeans are committed
to the values of solidarity, justice and inclusion and it showed that the European
institutions play their role in promoting volunteering.

1.2.        The European Year 2011 and
its objectives

Fully
respecting the principle of subsidiarity, the EYV2011 was designed to encourage the efforts undertaken by Member States, regional and
local authorities to create better conditions and higher visibility for
voluntary activities in the European Union, by pursuing four objectives:

·
To work towards an enabling environment for
volunteering in the EU in order to anchor volunteering as part of promoting
civic participation;

·
To empower organisers of voluntary activities to
improve the quality of voluntary activities;

·
To recognise voluntary activities;

·
To raise awareness of the value and importance
of volunteering.

2.           What did the European
Year achieve?

2.1.        Context

EYV 2011 took place against the backdrop of
the global economic crisis. This situation provided the background against
which citizens recognised the importance of community-based solidarity built on
the commitment of individual volunteers, thus becoming more receptive to the
ideas and values of volunteering and its role in fostering civic participation.

In this context, the EYV 2011 showed the
need to further develop quality volunteering in an appropriate legal framework.
Volunteering was recognised as an expression of solidarity amongst citizens
contributing to the well-being of our society and to counterbalance social
exclusion, poverty, intolerance, racism, xenophobia and injustice. In this
respect, the EYV 2011 made a natural link to the preceding 2010 European Year
for Combating Poverty and Social Exclusion.

2.2.        A firm political
commitment

The EYV 2011 acted as a catalyst for policy
changes both at European and national level. A number of important policy
documents were adopted already during the year:

The Commission
adopted a "Communication on EU Policies and Volunteering: Recognising and
Promoting Cross-border Voluntary activities in the EU"[5].

The Council,
under Polish Presidency, adopted Conclusions on the role of voluntary
activities in social policy[6]
as well as on the role of voluntary activities in sport in promoting active
citizenship[7].

In March 2012,
the European Economic and Social Committee adopted its Opinion on the
Commission Communication of September 2011[8].

In June 2012
the European Parliament adopted a "Report on recognising and promoting
cross-border voluntary activities in the European Union"[9].

At European level, a set of further measures
will facilitate volunteering in general, and cross-border volunteering in
particular:

The European Year of Active Ageing and
Intergenerational Solidarity 2012 (EY 2012) has taken up the topic of
volunteering by promoting senior volunteering. One of its key actions, the
European Seniorforce Day, invited local authorities and volunteering organisations
to find new ways of engaging senior citizens in volunteering activities.

The European Year of Citizens 2013 will build
upon the achievements of EYV 2011.

In the context of the Europe 2020 strategy
and the flagship initiatives "Youth on the Move" and "An Agenda
for New Skills and Jobs", the Commission made a proposal for a Council
Recommendation on the validation of non-formal and informal learning[10] to boost skills and competences acquired outside school through
activities like volunteering".

At a practical level, the European Skills
Passport, i.e. a new electronic folder enabling citizens to present their
skills and qualifications profiles, acquired either in formal and/or non-formal
learning, will also consequently have a volunteering dimension.

EU funding programmes in different policy
areas, such as the European Voluntary Service (EVS) of the Youth in Action
programme[11], the Europe for Citizens programme[12] and
the Grundtvig programme[13] and the future Education, Training, Youth and Sport programme
(Commission proposal "Erasmus for all")[14] will
continue targeting volunteers.

A European Voluntary Humanitarian Aid Corps (EU
Aid Volunteers) foreseen by Art
214 (5) TFEU will be set
up in 2014 following three years of preparatory measures[15].

In addition, initiatives are underway to help
mainstream volunteering into EU policies, for example the renewed EU strategy 2011-14 for Corporate Social Responsibility[16].

At the same time, the EYV 2011 acknowledged
the need for stronger engagement at national level. It is at Member States'
level that remaining obstacles impeding volunteering can be removed. The EYV
2011 showed that volunteering is an essentially local phenomenon: most
volunteers are engaged at local or regional level. However, one of the findings
of the EYV 2011 is that Member States can contribute to the development of
volunteering by opening national volunteering schemes for cross-border
volunteering.

The National Coordinating Bodies of the EYV
2011 developed into a strong network and, as a result of their cooperation,
adopted the "Warsaw Declaration for Sustainability of Action on Voluntary
Activities and Active Citizenship" at the closing conference of the
European Year in December 2011.

2.3.        Creating an enabling
environment for volunteering in Europe

Creating an enabling environment was a
particularly ambitious objective of the EYV 2011. While the importance of an
enabling environment was recognised in all Member States, views differed as to
the extent to which regulation is the solution to an improved environment.
Whereas 12 countries had a legal framework specific to the voluntary sector in
place at the beginning of the European Year (BE, CY, CZ, HU, IT, LV, LU, MT,
PL, PT, RO, ES), in 12 other Member States the voluntary sector was governed
through other existing general laws (AT, DK, EE, FI, FR, DE, GR, IE, LT, NL,
SE, UK)[17].
A specific legal framework was created for the first time in Slovakia, Slovenia and Lithuania during 2011. In Bulgaria a law on volunteering was elaborated
during 2011 and adopted in 2012. Poland adopted a new strategy on volunteering,
 Austria renewed its law on volunteering and Portugal prepared a new law to be
adopted in 2012. The idea of a European Charter for
Volunteering, built on a rights-based approach and initiated by the European
Youth Forum, was discussed during 2011.

Regarding the admission of non-EU volunteers
in the European Union, the Commission published in 2011 its first Report on the
application of the Council Directive 2004/114/EC on the conditions of admission
for third country nationals for the purpose of studies, pupil exchange,
unremunerated training or voluntary service[18].

The European Year was useful in encouraging
Member States to implement the Manual on the Measurement of Volunteer Work that
was officially endorsed by the International Labour Organisation during the
European Year.

The
ILO's Manual on the Measurement of Volunteer Work of March 2011 is intended to guide countries in
generating systematic and internationally comparable data on volunteer work via
regular supplements to labour force surveys. The objective is to improve the
knowledge base about volunteering and to establish its economic value.

Poland and Hungary were the first European countries
to implement the ILO Manual in 2011. Italy will adopt it in 2012, and Slovakia
has used its methodology for its national research France, Latvia, the Czech
Republic, Portugal, Spain and Montenegro, which is a candidate country for EU
membership, have shown interest in following suite.

2.4.        Empowering volunteering
organisations

The EYV 2011 has been a significant incentive
to empower volunteering organisations and to strengthen partnerships amongst
them. In particular, the EYV2011 Alliance played an important role in
facilitating networking and cooperation between stakeholders of the European
Year and succeeded in making heard the voice of civil society. Having a single
umbrella group with which to coordinate civil society activities and policy
inputs was an efficient way to cooperate with civil society and to reach out to
hundreds of thousands of volunteers and potential volunteers.

In the medium and longer term, the work of
the EYV2011 Alliance working groups which led to the elaboration of a civil
society Policy Agenda on Volunteering in Europe (P.A.V.E) can be expected to be
effective in improving the quality of volunteer management.

The EYV 2011 Alliance was set up in 2007
as an open, informal group of European networks active in volunteering to work together on the promotion and implementation of EYV 2011. The network grew from 24 networks in July 2010 to 39
networks in December 2011[19], representing around 2,000 direct
member and partner organisations throughout Europe and beyond.

The objectives of the EYV 2011 Alliance included
the development of a Policy
Agenda on Volunteering in Europe (P.A.V.E.) which
was officially submitted to the European Commission at the EYV2011 closing
conference in December 2011. The preparatory work took place largely in the
framework of six working
groups that met five times during 2011. P.A.V.E. provides policy
recommendations by the volunteering stakeholder community for a more efficient
and effective policy framework in Europe to support and promote volunteers.

2.5.        Recognising voluntary
activity

The recognition of voluntary activities was
perceived as an important objective of the EYV2011. This was reflected through
a high number of award schemes and ceremonies developed throughout the EU to
recognise and thank the volunteers. For example, the Netherlands organised a
"Week of Applause" and Romania, Hungary, Ireland and Slovenia held national award ceremonies for the recognition of volunteers.

The
first thematic conference of the European Year was dedicated to the theme of
recognition and existing mechanisms for promoting the validation of the skills
and competences that can be gained in the course of a volunteering activity.
The European Qualifications Framework, Europass and the Youthpass are examples
of useful instruments at European level in this context.

2.6.        Awareness-raising on the
value of volunteering

Raising awareness about the value of volunteering
was recognised as an important objective of EYV 2011 at European level and in
the Member States. The European communication campaign and the national
campaigns contributed to meeting this objective. In many Member States, the
European campaign helped complement existing awareness raising activities by
providing additional resources.

Beyond this, the EYV 2011 generated wide
written and electronic press coverage.

3.           European Year 2011:
implementation and key activities

In 2011, a total budget of € 7.700 million supported activities at European level and in the 27
EU Member States.

A separate budget of € 2.994 million for
preparatory actions had been available in 2010 to develop an information and
communication campaign for the EYV2011 and to set up the coordination structure
bringing together the main stakeholders at European level.

3.1.        Implementation of EYV 2011
in Member States

In order to organise its participation in the
European Year, each Member State designated a National Coordination Body (NCB),
the range of which showed the diversity of volunteering traditions in the
Member States.

NCBs were granted a total of € 3.549 million
to coordinate national EYV2011 activities in line with a national work
programme developed by each NCB and approved by the European Commission. In
each country, the amount received had to be matched by at least 20% of
co-funding; some countries provided more than the requested minimum.

In the Member States, many activities took
place at national, regional and local level, including:

·
Awareness-raising activities (communication
campaigns, visibility events, competitions and award ceremonies, websites,
leaflets, promotional items, media work, social networking, etc.);

·
Debates (conferences, seminars, meetings, etc.);

·
Expertise-related activities (research, studies,
publications, etc.).

The national communication campaigns had a
good impact as they were tailored to national circumstances. Cooperation with
the Representation Offices of the Commission in the Member States and with the
Europe Direct Network helped reaching out to a broader public. The Year
complemented existing national programmes and activities in the area of
volunteering by providing funding and helped giving them a European dimension.

Many examples of good practice and innovative
actions have been collected at national and at local level (see annex 1 for
examples of good practice in the Member States).

3.2.        European Flagship Projects

A call for proposals for flagship initiatives
was launched in October 2010, and a total of 33 projects were selected in March
2011 to promote networking and innovation in the field of volunteering. This
corresponds to one project per country in fourteen Member States, while two
projects obtained funding in France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Malta, Spain, Poland and the UK and three in Portugal.

The budget allocated
to the co-financing of flagship projects was €1.964 million. The
Commission's co-financing was limited to a maximum of 60% of a project’s
total eligible costs.

Priority was given to
projects testing and developing new and innovative schemes and building
long-term partnerships between civil society organisations and public sector
bodies involved in volunteering. In addition, some themes were prioritised,
i.e. employer-supported volunteering, mobility schemes in volunteering for
people of all ages with a special focus on young people, social exclusion, and
senior volunteering (see annex 2 for examples of
successful flagship projects).

A
number of innovative approaches to volunteering were introduced through the
European flagship projects and spread through the partnerships that have been
established through the call for proposals. However, the potential of the
flagship projects was not always fully exploited in terms of results
dissemination.

3.3.        Awareness-raising at EU
level

Awareness of the Year amongst relevant
stakeholders and the general public was promoted by means of a series of
actions.

These actions consisted of four blocks:

The EYV2011 Tour:

A one year road-show, called the EYV Tour,
through the capitals of all Member States was organised. National Coordinating
Bodies were requested to liaise with the local volunteer community and develop
the programme of activities for the tour stop in their country. The idea behind
was to offer a moment in the spotlight for local and national volunteering
work, as well as a platform for networking and exchange of best practices among
national stakeholders.

The EYV Tour was more successful in
some countries than in others. Success factors appear to have been a high level
of commitment on the part of both national and city authorities, a feeling of
empowerment on the part of the voluntary sector, a central location and outdoor
activities to attract visitors. Complementarity with showcasing other EU
programmes, e.g. Youth in Action and Grundtvig and cooperation with the
Commission Representations and the Europe Direct Networks underlined the
European dimension.

The EYV2011 conferences:

The Media Launch of the EYV 2011 took place
in Brussels in December 2010, and four EU-level thematic conferences were
organised during 2011.

On 8 January 2011, the European Year was
officially launched in Budapest by the Vice-President of the European
Commission, Viviane Reding, at a half-day conference. The Conference targeted
mainly policy-makers on the theme of 'recognition of volunteering'. Staffan
Nilsson, President of the European Economic and Social Committee attended the
event.

On 23 and 24 May 2011, a two-day thematic
conference co-organised with the European Economic and Social Committee was
held in Brussels with the aim of tackling various issues in volunteering from
the viewpoint of the individual volunteer. This conference was attended by the
President of the European Parliament, Jerzy Buzek, Vice-President of the
European Commission Viviane Reding and Staffan Nilsson, President of the
European Economic and Social Committee.

On 3 and 4 November 2011, a 11⁄2-day conference
on the theme 'Empowering volunteering organisations' took place in Athens, with
the participation of Vice-President Viviane Reding and Commissioner Maria
Damanaki focusing on the 'quality of volunteering'.

The closing conference of EYV 2011 was held
on 2 and 3 December 2011 in Warsaw. This policy-oriented conference, with the
participation of Commissioner Kristalina Georgieva, set the scene for
policy development and continued action at EU, national and regional levels,
aiming at improving the situation for volunteering in the years to come.

These thematic conferences were very
well received by the participants. According to surveys conducted after the
four conferences, a large majority of participants felt that the European
conferences had been worthwhile or very worthwhile, and their networking effect
was felt to have been important.

The EYV2011 website:

The official website of the EYV2011
communication activities (www.europa.eu/volunteering)
was designed to be interactive, participative and to build a sense of
community. Content was provided - and uploaded - by the relays (see below), by
volunteers sharing their personal stories and by NCBs. Some more generic
information on volunteering, some media extracts, reports and photos on the
EYV2011 Tour were also available on the site.

The website attracted a large number of
visitors, however the evaluation pointed out that its design could have been
done in a way to make the website more user friendly.

The EYV2011 relay:

One young volunteer reporter per Member State was selected to produce video material and text on the implementation of EYV 2011
in another Member State. The videos were uploaded on the EYV 2011 website, and
a short compilation film of extracts of the resulting videos was produced.

The
EYV 2011 relay reports were highly visited by website users, but
could, according to the evaluation, have been more closely integrated with the
other activities of the European Year.

3.4.        EYV 2011 Alliance

In 2010, an action grant
of € 400,000 was allocated to the EYV2011 Alliance, a coordinating structure
that brought together key European networks and organisations active in the
area of volunteering. Website: www.eyv2011.eu.

In line with a work plan
approved by the Commission, the EYV2011 Alliance undertook to complement the
Commission's information and communication activities by carrying out
activities specifically aimed at engaging volunteers and civil society
organisations and by coordinating six working groups whose work culminated in
the production of a "Policy Agenda on Volunteering in Europe"
(P.A.V.E), a key contribution to the European Year by civil society.

4.           Conclusions

The European Year of Volunteering has had a
positive impact on the world of volunteering, both at European and at national
level. The objectives and activities of the Year were relevant, and the
targeted, results-oriented approach was successful in reaching the objectives
in all Member States, even though the impact varied according to specific
national situations.

The European Year created and catalysed
changes in the volunteering environment at European and national level and led
to the adoption or modification of volunteering strategies and legislation in
some Member States. It empowered organisers to improve quality, and to focus
attention on areas such as corporate volunteering and volunteering as a
non-formal learning experience. It increased the recognition of volunteering
through a wide range of initiatives and raised awareness of volunteering and
its value to society through the media and the European communication campaign.
The national activities had a valuable multiplier effect for these EU-level
activities.

The European Year contributed above all to
the development of networks and new initiatives. It complemented existing
activities and it highlighted the European dimension of volunteering.

The EYV 2011 left a legacy in the
continuation of activities and structures which were put in place during 2011
and in the adoption of good practices that will bring changes in the years to
come.

The EYV 2011 triggered the adoption of five
EU policy documents dealing with volunteering in the European Union, i.e. a
Commission Communication, two sets of Council Conclusions, an Opinion of the
European Economic and Social Committee and a Report of the European Parliament[20].

The European Year of Active Ageing 2012 has
ensured some continuity with EYV 2011 through some specific actions.
Sustainability will be assured through synergies with the European Year of
Citizens 2013. By organising a series of European years on themes related to
citizenship focussing on different aspects (European Year for Combating Poverty
and Social Exclusion 2010, European Year of Volunteering 2011, European Year of
Active Ageing and Intergenerational Solidarity 2012 and European Year of
Citizens 2013) the Commission contributes to exploring the concept of civic
engagement in its different dimensions.

ANNEX

ANNNEX 1: The EYV 2011 in figures

·
27 Member States involved;

·
4 EU high visibility events (Budapest, Brussels, Athens and Warsaw);

·
A number of visibility events hosted by European
institutions, such as the 2nd Volunteering Convention and stakeholder
conference organised by the European Youth Forum and hosted by the European
Economic and Social Committee and the European Parliament and the Forum
"Regional and local authorities in action during the EYV 2011"
organised by the Committee of the Regions;

·
Four public hearings on volunteering organised
by the European Economic and Social Committee;

·
Many national, regional and local activities
promoted by national coordinating bodies or civil society in all 27 Member
States;

·
A total budget of € 6.021 million for the
activities implemented in the Member States;

·
An average national co-funding rate of 41.04 %
for national activities of the European Year through national budgets;

·
A total budget of € 3.274 million for the
European Flagship Projects;

·
An average co-funding rate of 40.99 % for the
European Flagship Projects;

·
Total budget of € 10.694 million (EU budget) + €
2.471 million (national budget) + € 1.342 million (co-funding flagship
projects), i.e. a total budget of € 14.507 million;

·
More than 56,000 visitors of the EYV 2011 Tour;

·
950 workshops and debates on volunteering issues
and 261 cultural performances organised during the EYV 2011 Tour;

·
1,660 organisations participating in the EYV
2011 Tour;

·
Thousands of printed/online articles on the
European Year and the EYV 2011 Tour;

·
366,172 unique visitors on the EYV 2011 website,
and 1.556 million pages have been visited;

·
More than 3,880 pictures uploaded to the EYV
2011 website;

·
More than 420 videos uploaded to the EYV 2011
website;

·
The EYV2011 video clips viewed more than 26,000
times;

·
27 Written reports + daily chronicles,
pictures and videos from EYV 2011 relay reporters in all Member States;

·
More than 1.2 million on-line visitors of
the relay reports.

·
2 175 527 volunteer hours registered on the
website of the EYV 2011 Alliance www.eyv2011.eu.

ANNEX 2:      Activities in Member
States: examples of good practice

Austria

On 17 and 18 June, volunteering organisations across Austria organised for the first time a National Day of Volunteering under the title "Tag
der freiwilligen Überraschungen". The idea was to have a day of open
doors showing voluntary activities taking place in Austria and inviting
interested citizens to join the efforts and to commit themselves. A database
was created enabling interested citizens to find a volunteering opportunity
according to their specific interests or in their neighbourhood. More than 600
events took place across the country and more than 10,000 citizens participated
in the activities.

Belgium

On 15 November 2011, volunteers from the three communities
of Belgium met representatives of the Belgian Royal Family. In his Christmas
message 2011, the King thanked the volunteers for their engagement. An
exhibition portraying 52 volunteers travelled through the French-speaking
community of Belgium and 76,000 trees (one for each inhabitant) were planted by
volunteers in the German-speaking community.

Bulgaria

The ministry of Physical Education and Sports and the
State Agency for Bulgarians Abroad organised a conference in Bansko with the
participation of 250 children of the Bulgarian communities in Macedonia, Serbia, Albania, Romania, Moldova and Ukraine. At this occasion, a Forest of Volunteering was planted in Bansko.

Cyprus

The EYV
Tour stop in Nicosia between 4 and 6 of April 2011 was opened by Ms Elsie
Christofia, the First Lady of the Republic of Cyprus. Volunteer organisations
presented their experience and activities in areas such as sports, youth, drug
prevention, road safety, senior citizen’s assistance. Municipalities showed
examples of how to help the others and what a great experience volunteering can
be. Visitors had the chance to get a first aid course on the spot or to learn
to express basic things by sign language.

Czech Republic

In the Czech Republic, a new website about
volunteering was launched in January 2011 and became the national website for
all voluntary organizations. In November 2011, a database listing voluntary
opportunities was added to this website enabling organizations to publish advertisements
and volunteers to search for voluntary organizations. EYV 2011 also provided
the occasion for a publication presenting twenty-two portraits of individual
volunteers: young, elderly, men, women, college or high-school graduates,
people from big cities or from the country. The publication was produced in
Czech and in English.

Denmark

The Danish EYV Tour took place from 1 to 3
August in a tent located in the Axel Torv square in Copenhagen under the motto "The
many faces of volunteering" with the aim of highlighting the
diversity of volunteering in Denmark. Volunteering organisations had the
opportunity to present their projects and activities. More than 28
organisations participated. A photo exhibition, music performances, a foot
soccer competition, a fashion show and first aid demonstrations took place to
attract visitors, and a marketplace for organisations was built up inside the
tent.

Estonia

In Estonia, a two-month pilot program for
employee volunteering in the corporate and public sector was developed to send
volunteers from five companies and five ministries to 20 non-governmental
organisations. The program was aimed at promoting the cooperation between three
sectors: volunteers, NGOs and public sector. As a result, 28 volunteers
committed an estimated 160-226 hours of volunteer work. In addition, NGOs
learned how to engage professionals and employees became more aware of
volunteering and its benefits. A follow-up program will be coordinated by NENO
(Network of Estonian Non-profit Organisations) in a bit different form and
funded by the Estonian Ministry of the Interior.

Finland

EYV2011's www.tuntitili.fi website includes a search engine suitable
for finding volunteering opportunities. More than 120 organisations from
different sectors took part in the creation of the engine's database which
gives visitors the opportunity to leave their personal contact information and
to mention how much time they are willing to volunteer in a given project. By
December 2011, more than 99,000 hours were committed. The search engine was
advertised in magazines, libraries and social media.

France

In France, the project "Action de
sensibilisation des jeunes" was developed to raise young people's
awareness for the theme of volunteering and to mobilise them. This project was
coordinated by a group of associations and representatives of French
ministries. A group of young ambassadors who are themselves volunteers was
trained to discuss with pupils and students about volunteering. The ministries
sent a letter to school directors asking them to invite these ambassadors to
their schools. A guide for teachers and school directors as well as a leaflet
for different age groups were distributed in the schools. Approximately 10,000
young people were reached by the project.

Germany

The international project „Sieben
Brücken, die verbinden" took place in five European countries (Denmark, Poland, Czech Republic, Austria and Germany) with very different definitions and traditions
of volunteering. It was developed by the Social Academy of Potsdam AWO SANO in
cooperation with the Federal Ministry for Family Affairs, Senior Citizens,
Women and Youth. On the German side, the project involved volunteering
stakeholders from Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Brandenburg, Saxony and Bavaria. The aim of the project was to allow participants to meet in a European context, to
learn from each other and to discuss the role civic engagement plays in each
participating country.

Greece

In Greece, it was decided to combine non-formal
education with the formal educational system by producing an educational manual
on volunteering targeting students in secondary schools. The idea behind was to
foster a new culture of volunteering from an early stage of young people’s
development. The manual will be made available online and distributed in
schools. It will contain general information on volunteering, its character,
what volunteering is and what it is not, its benefits and disadvantages,
motives for volunteering, the history of volunteering, volunteering stories,
existing volunteering programs and concrete explanations on how to plan and
organise a voluntary activity in the classroom. It will contain photos and a
cartoon.

Hungary

The big waste collecting initiative “TeSzedd!
Volunteer for a clean Hungary”, one of the most visible activities
of the EYV 2011 in Hungary, was organised by the Ministry of Public
Administration and Justice and the Ministry of Rural Development. More than
160,000 participants registered through the webpage. On 21 May 2011,
several groups of local volunteers cleaned their environment with the
assistance of a network of county coordinators. Individuals, civil
organisations, companies, ministries, local governments, and institutions
joined the campaign in a total of 1,500 locations all around Hungary. As a result, thousands of tons of waste were collected. A countrywide campaign on
TV, radio, newspapers, and the social media was organised to announce the
“TeSzedd!” waste collecting event.

Ireland

The Irish NCB along with more than 20 Volunteer
Centres co-ordinated the National Day of Volunteering on 30 September
2011. The flagship event for this day was a national 'knit-a-thon' where
thousands of volunteers across the country knitted scarves, hats and mittens
for charity organisations. Schools across the country got involved by
fundraising and hands-on volunteering projects. More than 10,000 volunteers
took part in the project across the country. Staff from businesses all over Ireland gave time and energy in volunteering projects nationwide. Five Presidential
candidates participated in an event in Dublin. The National Day of volunteering
was extensively covered in print, broadcast and online media.

Italy

In the framework of the EYV 2011 and the celebrations
for the 150th Anniversary of Italy’s Unity, the project CSVnet
aimed at the national coordination of the service centres for volunteering by
developing a participative process that led to the creation of a Manifesto
for the promotion of youth volunteering and the organisation of a
visibility event of young people. The project and the study "When young
people participate" promoted
by CSVnet and the National Youth Forum showed that the way young people relate
to school, work and volunteering has undergone constant change and that
therefore it is crucial to involve young people when designing and implementing
volunteering actions for young people.

Latvia

One of the successful Latvian initiatives of EYV 2011
was the setting up of virtual “meeting platforms" promoting
volunteering to foster cooperation among volunteers and “volunteer work
suppliers”. As a result of an open call for project proposals, four NGO’s
projects were supported with the aim to develop and promote communication
platforms encouraging volunteering and motivating various groups of society, in
particular young people to volunteer. The project provided the opportunity for
national and local institutions to choose volunteers as well as for volunteers
to find a volunteer placement. The virtual volunteering placement database will
continue after 2011.

Lithuania

A showcasing Lithuanian example promoting voluntary
activities at regional level was the competition “Capital of voluntary
activities”. Five cities (Birzai, Alytus, Kedainiai, Siauliai and Palanga)
were selected to be the Capital of voluntary activities for one month. During
the project, hundreds of events took place in which thousands of people
participated. Activities varied from city to city ranging from charity actions
and concerts to sport events, environmental protection actions, art
competitions, animals' rights protection to reading fairy tales for children in
public parks and establishing local volunteer centres. The activities brought
together representatives of local authorities, businesses and local people
around a common theme.

Luxembourg

In Luxembourg, the "Fête du Bénévolat"
celebrated in Schengen was a very successful cross-border event. Thanks to the
participation of French and German partners it reflected the European character
of the year. The aim was to thank the volunteers for their engagement for
society. Highlights of the day were performances by fire-brigades and rescue
workers, music performances and games for children.

Malta

The European Tour of the EYV2011 had its last stop in Malta from 28 November to 5 December. For this purpose, a tent was set up in the Old Bus
Terminus in Valletta. The Malta Council for the Voluntary Sector made 15 stands
available for local volunteering organisations to give them the opportunity to
showcase their activities. Each day of the Tour was dedicated to a particular
theme, namely environment, animal welfare, arts and culture, youth, sport,
social and humanitarian assistance and health.

Netherlands

Dutch municipalities were invited to grant an award to
excellent voluntary activities in four categories, i.e. the Passion Award
for the individual or organisation that most put their heart and soul into
their volunteer work, the Innovation Award for the most innovative
individual or organisation, the Engagement Award for the individual or
organisation that achieved the best results in getting people engaged and the Competence
Award for the individual or organisation that did most in terms of talent
development. Based on the selection at local and regional level, a national
award ceremony was organised at the closing event of the EYV 2011 on 7 December
in Amsterdam in the presence of Princess Margriet of the Netherlands.

Poland

The International Labour Organisation, the European
Volunteer Measurement Project and the Polish Ministry of Labour and Social Policy hosted a workshop for labour statistics
officials and civil society representatives on 28-29 September in Warsaw. The
aim of the workshop was to connect statistics offices with
civil society groups, to provide them with training on the methodology in the
new ILO Manual on
the Measurement of Volunteer Work, to discuss the possibility for the implementation of
the ILO Manual in EU Member States and to share practice among countries
starting or considering the implementation of the Manual. Poland's Central Statistical
Office has already
implemented the ILO Manual.

Portugal

On 23 and 24 May,
the Portuguese National Coordinating Body for the EYV 2011 organised a Seminar
under the theme "Volunteering in the Mediterranean - A
Cultural Identity" with the participation of experts from
France, Greece, Italy, Malta, Portugal and Spain, representing different universities and being as well in
charge of volunteering infrastructures and voluntary organisations. The
objective of the seminar was to focus on the cultural identity of volunteers
(values and concepts) and the organisation of volunteering in each country
as well as the exchange of good practice. At the closing session a debate on "Volunteering
in times of crisis: impact and challenges", was proposed by
Professor Rogério Roque Amaro.

Slovakia

The Slovak road show “Caravana” extended the
idea of the EYV 2011 Tour to five municipalities of Slovak regions: Košice,
Prešov, Žilina, Nitra and Komárno giving citizens in towns outside of Bratislava the opportunity to find out about the European Year and its objectives as well
as about opportunities for volunteering in their region. Many local and
regional NGOs presented their activities by the mean of stands, pictures,
photos and videos and discussed with citizens on voluntary opportunities. Dance and music performances were organised by local cultural and art groups,
games and presents given to children, contests held about the EU and the EYV,
and information spread about
EU institutions, programmes, initiatives and contact points. Caravana
contributed to the networking between NGOs, policy makers, local authorities
and the population and to bridge gaps between the capital and the remote areas.

Slovenia

In Slovenia, it was also decided not to restrict the
EYV Tour to the capital, but to organise a Slovenian Volunteering Tour in 20
different towns of the country in order to widely promote volunteering and to
encourage engagement in voluntary activities. Volunteering fairs were organised
to give the volunteering organisations the opportunity to present their work.
Round tables, panel discussions and debates covered different themes, in
particular youth volunteering, corporate volunteering and raising the awareness
of public administration on the importance of volunteering. All in all, around
400 volunteering organisations participated in the events. The Slovenian Tour
was widely reported in national and regional media and received positive
feedback from the general public.

Spain

Within the context of the EYV 2011 Tour stop in Madrid, the intergenerational game "Dale color al mundo" was organised
between Colleges and Secondary Schools and centres for elderly people in the
autonomous community of Madrid. The idea behind was to develop a methodology
bringing together young and elderly people to discover the social values of
volunteering. In the first phase of the competition, games were organised in
parallel for groups of young people and for groups of elderly. In the second
phase, the conclusions of the young and the elderly were put together leading
to common conclusions. The project was developed in cooperation with the Office
of the European Parliament in Spain. It was largely reported by the Spanish
media including national television.

Romania

The Romanian National Gala for the Recognition of
Volunteers and Volunteering Projects took place on 12 December 2011 at the
Howard Johnson Grand Plaza Hotel in Bucharest. The event was organised by the
NCB, Volum Federation and the National Agency for Community
Programmes in Education and Training. The awarding process was
structured into 22 categories, based on a transparent system of nominations of
volunteers and volunteer projects for activities implemented during 2011. The
organizers received more than 200 proposals and half were preselected and
invited to the ceremony. An independent jury was formed to select the winner. A
„Portrait of a Volunteer” brochure was published describing the finalists and
their rewarded activities. The event was well covered by the media.

Sweden

Some 100,000 people visited the annual Göteborg Book Fair (22-25
September), where the Swedish NCB shared an exhibition stand with the European
Commission and the European Parliament. Some 250 people stayed and listened to
interviews with seven famous Swedish authors who shared their experience on
what motivated them when volunteering. The Book Fair proved to be an
opportunity to show a different perspective of these authors. It allowed the
National Board for Youth Affairs to join forces with the European Commission
and European Parliament to make a broad public pay attention to the European
Year of Volunteering.

United Kingdom

As part of the UK national work programme for EYV11,
Volunteering England (VE) was commissioned to identify, develop and share good
practice in Employer-Supported Volunteering (ESV). In this context, VE
set up an online ‘hub’ providing information on ESV, for example case studies,
recent research and a comprehensive list of both well-established and less
well-known ESV consultants and brokers. VE asked three Volunteer Centres (local
organisations providing volunteering infrastructure support) to try six new
methods of increasing employer supported volunteering. VE managed to reach over
500,000 people across all sectors while using individual Volunteer Centres to
pilot new schemes and ideas in more depth. 23 events were organised for a total
of 1,700 delegates.

ANNEX 3:      European flagship
projects: Examples of good practice

The €1.964 million allocated to the 33 flagship projects to cover until
60% of the total eligible costs in 23 Member States dealt with several areas of
the volunteering sector. The activities concerned six different topics, divided
as follows:

·
eleven projects which developed information,
promotion and research (surveys, setting of quality standards, creative
competitions to produce audio-visual material) on volunteering to share best
practices, draw greater interest from the public and deepen knowledge on the issue.

·
six projects targeting youngsters (in order to
send them abroad to volunteer, to strengthen their awareness and motivation to
engage socially and to participate in voluntary activities) or to persuade
elder people to spend more time with younger generations.

·
five projects on promoting 'dynamic communities
through committed citizens', supporting the integration of migrants and
disadvantaged people in local communities and shedding light on the social role
of volunteering, both for the community and the environment;

·
four projects on social services (prevention of
'dangerous behaviours' and support of volunteering for social integration
purposes) and volunteering in the field of health care;

·
four projects focused on research, exchange and
dissemination of technology, with a focus on spreading its use among
volunteers;

·
three projects on employee volunteering.

EXAMPLES
OF INITIATIVES FROM FLAGSHIP PROJECTS

European night without accident – 15 October 2011 Volunteers are deeply involved in social activities aimed at preventing dangerous behaviours: the 'European Night without Accident' was a flagship project coordinated by the Responsible Young Drivers Foundation, Belgium throughout the 27 EU Member States during the night of 15 to 16 October 2011. 1,000 volunteers aged 18-29 engaged to raise awareness among young fellow drivers to drive safely, staying away from drugs and alcohol. Applying a relaxed, informal and peer-based approach, the thousand volunteers were present in 200 nightclubs all across the EU. They installed so-called 'awareness booths' at the entrance of the club, asking the 'Saturday Night Fever' youngsters to take up a challenge: to blow into the breathalyzer before hitting the road and commit to remain sober the whole evening as sign of their commitment. The designated drivers, just before leaving the nightclub, were encouraged to undergo another alcohol test and/or drug test to make sure they would drive safely back home, setting a virtuous example for their friends and peers.

'Digital technology at the service of volunteering and social inclusion' Coordinated by the 'Banco Informatico, Tecnologico e Biomedico' and ran in partnership with four associations and a provincial institution in Italy, this flagship project contributed to broaden digital access for a considerable amount of social projects. The partners joined their efforts to collect 'outdated' technological devices, mainly out of date computers and medical tools which would have been thrown away, and to use them for upgrading digital knowledge in voluntary organisations and among disadvantaged people. This initiative has guaranteed better digital instruments to a considerable amount of associations and the improvement of 'digital skills' through specific trainings to people who mistrusted or rarely dealt with computers, and it favoured the overall dissemination of digital technology in the 'non-profit sector'.

Movement of volunteer for parks Coordinated by the Cell of Alternative Youth Activities and involving four partner organisations from Greece and Cyprus including a Ministry, this project motivated people of any age potentially interested to engage socially and to support volunteering for greener areas. The initiatives, i.e. conferences, workshops and research were meant to raise awareness on the benefits of volunteer actions in urban parks and on the quality of environment. The project provided some new scientific background knowledge in the field of volunteering for urban and suburban green space and parks, adding up to its contribution to the fight against climate change, especially in terms of communication and awareness raising.

'Serve the city' 'Serve the city' is a Portuguese project directed at homeless people and socially marginalized groups: five associations worked throughout the year to 'serve' disadvantaged groups in Lisbon offering their time. The volunteers organized several community dinners, wherein thanks to the informal, innovative and welcoming setting, they offered the unique opportunity to these people to develop long-term relationships, including emotional, psychological, spiritual and practical support. Differently from regular meals offered by churches and other associations, where people may feel ashamed or uninvolved at the human level, 'Serve the city' brought community dinners to the marginalized and homeless people gathering every evening in public places waiting for the food given by different organizations. Therefore, the potential improvements on the side of the volunteering organizations concerning communication and organisational skills were combined with an added value for the lives of the target groups.

Broadcasting and its role in promoting volunteering Three associations (from the UK and the Netherlands) led by the British CSV (Community Service Volunteers) partnered with the BBC, the internationally renowned broadcaster, to attract new partners and create a stronger volunteering network to share ideas and experiences on how to reach the public through the broadcast media. The most original contribution of the project comes from the attempt to promote volunteering through broadcasting at a European scale. In a two-days conference organized in September 2011, delegates from many EU countries discussed how to put into action the best strategies to step up efforts to increase visibility and overall active participation of potential volunteers. At the core of the debate were strategies to enable countries where there is little or no tradition of either social action broadcasting and/or volunteering to face the strongest barriers to make people aware of volunteering and finally motivate them to be engaged socially. To favour this process, the findings of the conference have been shown in the 20th Annual Volonteurope Conference, which took place in Edinburgh, 20-23 October 2011.

Volunteer! ...through road safety The aim of the project “Volunteer! ...through road safety”, run by "Open Youth", Bulgaria together with two Belgian associations, a Bulgarian municipality and the Bulgarian Ministry of Health, is to test an approach to develop a European model of making an informed choice on whether to organize a one-time volunteer action or a full-scale volunteer campaign, given different circumstances and desired effect, built on peer-to-peer communication and promoting civic participation. The result of the project is a unique methodology that is easily transferable on European level, based on real findings. The project addresses not only the question “What is it to be a volunteer?”, but also gives concrete answers to the more important ones: “Why be a volunteer?” and “How to be a volunteer?” Among other things, the project produced three Cartoon short movies (of respectively 29, 51 and 50 seconds' duration, with themes: What? Why? How?) to pass on the volunteer message in a funny and unusual way. They can be seen on the website of the project: http://roadsafetyvolunteers.open-youth.org/index.php?lang=en

Values and activities of volunteering and e-volunteering The project run by the Polish "Good Network Foundation" together with three Polish associations and a municipality institution consists of two complimentary activities: a) the ‘Key values of volunteering’ campaign which promotes various forms of volunteering and raises awareness of the value of volunteering in order to overcome the narrow and negative image of volunteering in Poland b) a European competition ‘Discover e-volunteering’ organised at European scale and focused on promoting one specific form of volunteering the e-volunteering (volunteering via Internet). The project aims at raising awareness of the value of the volunteering, promoting the variety of voluntary activities and encouraging civil society to benefit from new types of volunteering (especially e-volunteering) in order to empower them, fight social exclusion and improve the quality of volunteering itself. The project includes also a research on various forms and values of volunteering and a collection of real stories from volunteers as an interactive and innovative way of filming and promoting volunteer stories: users of the project's website (www.tojestwolontariat.pl) can upload their short movies.

[1]               Council Decision N° 37/2010/EC on the European Year
of Voluntary Activities Promoting Active Citizenship, (2011) of 27 November
2009, OJ L 17, 22.1.2010, p. 43-49.

[2]               Evaluation of the European Year of Volunteering 2011,
Deloitte, June 2012.

[3]               Opinion of the European Economic and Social Committee
on Voluntary activity: its role in European society and its impact;
SOC/243-EESC 1575/2006.

[4]               Written Declaration on announcing 2011 as the
European Year of Volunteering, of 9.4.2008.

[5]               Communication on EU Policies
and volunteering: Recognising and Promoting Cross-Border Voluntary Activities
in the EU", COM(2011) 568 final of 20.09.2011.

[6]               Council Conclusions on the
role of voluntary activities in social policy of 3 October 2011;

[7]               Council Conclusions on the
role of voluntary activities in sport in promoting active citizenship of 28 and
29.11.2011;

[8]               Opinion of the European Economic and Social Committee
on the "Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament, the
Council, the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the
Regions – Communication on EU Policies and Volunteering: Recognising and
Promoting Cross-Border voluntary activities in the EU" of 28 March 2012,
SOC 431-CESE 824/2012;

[9]               Report on recognising and promoting cross-border voluntary
activities in the EU" of 12 June 2012, European Parliament,
A7-0166/2012/P7_TA(2°12)0236;

[10]             COM(2012)485 of 5.9.2012.

[11]             Decision N° 1719/2006/EC of the
European Parliament and of the Council of 15.11.2006, OJ L 327, 24.11.2006, p.
30-44;

[12]             Decision N° 1904/2006/EC of the European Parliament
and of the Council of 12.12.2006, OJ L 378, 27.12.2006, p. 32-40;

[13]             Decision N° 1720/2006/EC of the
European Parliament and of the Council of 15.11.2006, OJ L 327, 24.11.2006, p.
45ff.

[14]             Erasmus for all: The EU Programme
for Education, Training, Youth and Sport, COM (2011)787 final of 23.11.2011.

[15]             COM(2012)514 of 19.09.2012.

[16]             A renewed EU strategy 2011-14 for Corporate
Social Responsibility, COM(2011) 681 final of
25.10.2011.

[17]             Volunteering in the European Union, Study by the
European Commission – DG EAC, GHK, 2010.

[18]             Report from the Commission to the European Parliament
and the Council on the application of the Council Directive 2004/114/EC on the
conditions of admission for third country nationals for the purpose of studies,
pupil exchange, unremunerated training or voluntary service, COM (2011) 587
final of 28.09.2011.

[19]             AGE, AEVSO, AVSO, Caritas
Europe, COFACE, CVA, CSR Europe, ENGAGE, Erasmus Student Network, Euclid
Network, Eurodiaconia, EAPN, CEDAG, ENGSO, ENGSO Youth, ESAN, AEGEE, CEV, YFJ,
ICYE, ISGF, Johanniter International, MHE, Red Cross, Social Platform, SOLIDAR,
ALDA, CESES, EUCIS-LLL, EFIL, FEBA, EURAG, EJJO, ENNA, IPPF EN, ISCA, WAGGS,
WOSM, Volonteurope.

[20]             For references see footnotes
5-9.