European Solidarity Corps: Volunteering Teams in High Priority Areas

Objectives

• Activities by Volunteering Teams in High-Priority Areas will aim to:
  • address clearly defined unmet societal challenges in the area of “relief for persons fleeing armed conflicts and other victims of natural or man-made disasters” and/or “fostering positive learning experiences and outcomes for young people with fewer opportunities”; promote solidarity across the participating countries; enable the young people to gain skills and competences which are useful for their personal, educational, social and professional development;
  • provide tangible benefits to the communities within which the activities are carried out;
  • ensure a direct contact between the participant and the beneficiaries of the solidarity-related activities, to enable the participant to gain skills that are useful for their educational and social development;
  • reach out to young people with fewer opportunities, including refugees, asylum seekers and migrants;
  • promote diversity, intercultural and inter-religious dialogue – and the EU values of human dignity, freedom, equality and respect for human rights, including the rights of persons belonging to minorities – as well as projects enhancing media literacy, critical thinking and a sense of initiative among young people;
  • reinforce the capacities and international scope of the participating organisations;
  • raise young volunteers’ awareness and understanding of other cultures and countries, offering them the opportunity to build networks of international contacts, to actively participate in society and to develop a sense of European citizenship and identity.

Priorities

• Relief for Persons Fleeing Armed Conflicts and Other Victims of Natural or Man-made Disasters: The Corps can add significant value by contributing to the provision of relief and assistance to those whose lives, livelihoods and communities have been disrupted by the natural or man-made disasters, including armed conflicts.
• Fostering Positive Learning Experiences and Outcomes for Young People with fewer opportunities: The Corps can provide significant value by assisting children and young people from disadvantaged backgrounds or otherwise vulnerable groups with the attainment of adequate learning achievements.
• Promoting Waste Management and Recycling Solutions: The Corps can provide significant value by promoting activities intended to raise awareness about environmental issues and stress the importance of waste segregation and recycling techniques.

Funding Information

• The maximum EU grant per project is 400,000 EUR.
• Duration: 12, 24 or 36 months (extensions are possible, if duly justified and through an amendment).

Eligible Activities

• The following activities are supported:
  • Volunteering Teams: Volunteering Teams are full-time non-remunerated solidarity activities that should bring together groups of minimum 5 participants to volunteer together for a period between 2 weeks and 2 months (up to 59 days, excluding travel days).
  • Complementary activities: Complementary activities are relevant side activities designed to add value and augment the results of the project as well as to strengthen its impact on the local, regional, and/or European level.
  • Preparatory Visits: Preparatory visits are visits to the venue of the volunteering activities before they start. They should ensure high quality of activities involving young people with fewer opportunities or when the visit is necessary for the implementation of an activity with a strong inclusion dimension.

Eligibility Criteria

• Eligible participating organisations:
  • Any public or private entity, whether non-profit or profit making, local, regional, national or international, legally established in an EU Member State, a third country associated to the Programme or a third country not associated to the Programme or any international organisation.
  • Participating organisations (support or host role) must hold a valid volunteering Quality Label at the application deadline and during the entire duration of the project.
• Eligible participants:
  • Young people between 18 and 30 years45 who are legally residing in an EU Member State, a third country associated to the Programme or a third country not associated to the Programme and have registered in the European Solidarity Corps Portal.

For more information, visit European Commission.