GET STARTED ON
Start date: Jan 1, 2015,
End date: Aug 31, 2016
PROJECT
FINISHED
The Itaca Cooperative Società Cooperativa Sociale ONLUS, a non-profit organization, which was set up on June 29th 1992, is a type A) Social Cooperative in accordance with Law 381/91, and employs about 1500 people. It has its headquarters in the Autonomous Region of Friuli Venezia Giulia in Vicolo Selvatico, 16 in Pordenone, but it covers the areas of Friuli Venezia Giulia, part of Veneto and Trentino-Alto Adige.
The “casa Ricchieri” Community in Pordenone, via Ricchieri nr. 2, is a residential community in the mental health sector which employs 9 workers and offers a residential and social-rehabilitation service for people with psychiatric problems. The service is always open and the community is only 500 m. from the cooperative’s administrative offices.
This service concentrates on taking in and getting to know people in difficulty, their background, and the people who are key to them. Paths are also mapped out to overcome problematics based on individual needs and capabilities. Family members, friends and significant figures are involved whenever possible along with the cooperation of the public Health Authority. In essence, we take great care to put in motion every possible resource required to reach these objectives, by giving access to all the resources provided by Itaca and the district as a whole.
We are looking for one volunteer. If the volunteers are going to be able to handle the project and the tasks, they will have to demonstrate motivation and an attitude for interpersonal relationships and team work, the willingness to learn, a patient and flexible personality, curiosity, pragmatism, and sensitivity. The volunteers must be willing to share accommodation with other Europeans (even if living space and independence is guaranteed) and be willing to be part of a multicultural environment. The project is guaranteed to be equally accessible to all young people without exception. The elements in the profile are not used to judge the volunteers, but merely to select the ones with the best characteristics for the projects both from the point of view of personal attitude and shared goals.
The activities will be realized in special settings where users are able to develop their creativity through many different ways of artistic expression, like:
• painting workshop,
• reading and writing workshop,
• cinetherapy,
• shortfilm workshop,
• photo workshop.
Workshops are not dedicated only to the users of Casa Ricchieri; workshops are also open to everyone who is interested in, like friends, citizens from the local community, etc.
The users who will attend a workshop will be chosen according to their interests and motivations. Through this workshop, users will keep up their creativity, concentration and psychosocial well-being.
The volunteer will enter in an expert equipe and will live an important educational experience with the intent to support and involve the users. Through the EVS experience, the volunteer will get in touch with the local community and contribute to improve it. In fact, voluntary activities can contribute to integrate user’s rights and promote their active participation in the society; voluntary activities will increase youth’s tolerance and reduce prejudice against mental diseases, too.
The volunteers will be placed in a work group of experienced professionals who are constantly supervised by a coordinator. The volunteer’s weekly activities will be organized on the basis of about 35-38 hours per week. The volunteers will be properly accompanied during their work experience and will share the aims and objectives, styles of intervention and communication models of the work team in which they have been placed. After an initial phase in which the volunteers will be encouraged to observe, listen and pay attention to the relational dynamics, they will begin a more active phase. Once the relationship has been consolidated, the volunteers will take part in individual activities and projects that will enable them to interact with the team, the users and the local Community.
European volunteers represent the European citizens and future workers, undoubtedly giving the volunteers a certain experience that is often and interesting first approach towards a working environment and to an environment different of origins.
It activates an enriching contrast contributing to the creation of a European citizenship, encouraging dialogue, intercultural comparison and solidarity.
The activities held will also accomplish the following results for Itaca: increase the ability to operate at a European level, quality improvement within European Voluntary project management, further effective activities for local community welfare