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SUMMARY
The United Nations has designated 2011 as International Year of
Volunteers + 10. This Initiative provides a framework to capitalize on
IYV+10 to motivate individuals, organizations, service institutions,
schools, universities, government agencies, and socially responsible
businesses throughout the Arab World to work together to strengthen and
improve volunteering in the region.
BASIC OBJECTIVES OF THE INITIATIVE
COMPONENTS OF THE INITIATIVE
VOLUNTEERING: Clarification of the Term
PARTNERS FOR THE INITIATIVE
FIRST IAVE REGIONAL CONFERENCE FOR THE ARAB NATIONS - 2010
INITIATOR AND COORDINATOR OF THE INITIATIVE
BASIC OBJECTIVES OF THE INITIATIVE
§Bring
together key people in volunteerism in the Arab World to share
knowledge, experiences, and needs regarding volunteering in the region.
§Provide
basic training, as well as orientation to other training opportunities
available, with the goal of expanding and improving the core of
specialists in volunteerism in the Arab World, drawing on Arab cultural
traditions and experiences, as well as expertise from within the region
and worldwide.
§Develop
effective service programs for elementary, intermediate, and secondary
schools, technical schools, and universities that foster a culture of
volunteering.
§Provide
funding opportunities for those who would develop major sustainable
volunteer development projects in their countries in 2011.
§Provide
information, models, support, and advocacy for the development of
national volunteer policies in countries of the region.
§Develop
mechanisms for networking, resource development, sharing, collaboration,
and mutual support among those who promote volunteering in the region
that will last long after 2011.
COMPONENTS OF THE INITIATIVE
§The
public launching of the Initiative, probably mid-January 2010 after
establishing an advisory board for the Initiative, recruiting initial
partners and sponsors, and setting a basic schedule and framework.
§An
initial training and sharing conference (preferably September 2010).
§A
training workshop in summer 2010 for educational specialists, to develop
Learning to CARE teams in different Arab countries to train schools in
how to develop effective school service programs.
§The
funding and follow-up of initiatives to promote and develop volunteer
programs in poorer Arab countries (to be proposed within two months of
the conference, planned in 2010 and 2011, and implemented throughout
2011).
§A
series of web seminars to allow interactive networking and support
throughout the Initiative period.
§The
collection of available resources (books, videos, government documents)
to support volunteerism in the region.
§The
translation into Arabic and cultural adaptation of selected resources.
§The
development of culturally authentic children’s book, videos, and other
materials in Arabic to help support a culture of volunteering in the
region.
§The
development of an online clearinghouse in Arabic to make resources
easily available online.
§The
collection and evaluation of previous research and the development and
implementation of new research on volunteerism across the region.
§A
second conference in 2011 (IYV+10), ideally around the date of December
5 (International Volunteer Day) in which Arab countries share what they
have done since the first conference to promote volunteering, and to
determine next steps in the development of volunteering in the region.
VOLUNTEERING: Clarification of the Term
Volunteering, as presented here, has three criteria:
The work is done for good- for the benefit of
society.
The person does it for free
(without financial compensation for the services provided).
The person freely chooses to do it
(not required or coerced).
This is different from most UN Volunteering, Peace Corps, and other
programs that give cost-of-living stipends to “volunteers”. While a few
people can be full-time volunteers according to these criteria, in most
cases, this kind of volunteering is part-time, and done alongside of
one’s work or studies (after work/school, weekends, holidays, and
vacations). It is an integral part of citizenship and civic engagement,
and can either be done within existing institutions or as new
initiatives to address a social need.
This includes volunteering for:
§Service
institutions (hospitals, schools, elderly homes, institutions for those
with disabilities, museums, orphanages, concert halls, etc.)
§Voluntary
organizations that serve a diversity of causes
§Government
agencies (municipalities, ministries of health, environment, education,
etc.)
§Emergency
preparedness and relief
§Special
initiatives to serve a short term need
With very few exceptions, people of all ages, abilities, and social
circumstances can volunteer, given appropriate opportunities to do so,
including:
§Youth,
through their schools and youth organizations, and through family
volunteering
§Working
people through corporate volunteering (volunteering of staff and their
families promoted and facilitated by companies)
§People
who are not employed
§Elderly
and retired people
§People
with disabilities
What is seriously lacking in the region is:
§Awareness
of more professional approaches to volunteering.
§Government
policies to support and encourage volunteering, and to remove existing
constraints.
§A
core of specialists who can provide training and consultation to
institutions and organizations that wish to establish effective
volunteer programs or improve programs that already exist.
§Opportunities
to share expertise, resources, and experiences (conferences, webinars,
workshops, websites).
§Written
and audio-visual materials in Arabic to support volunteer programs:
§Training
materials
§Workbooks/textbooks
for youth
§Manuals
– how-to guides on different types of volunteering
§Books,
videos, and other materials for children to develop a spirit of
volunteering
PARTNERS FOR THE INITIATIVE
A wide variety of partners are needed to provide the expertise,
contacts, experience, and resources to make this Initiative a reality.
1) Association for Volunteer Services (AVS)
The Association for Volunteer Services is the coordinating partner of
this Initiative. AVS was established to promote, facilitate, and improve
volunteering and community service throughout Lebanon and beyond. It has
had 10 years of experience in developing programs and providing
consulting and training on all aspects of volunteerism, not only in
Lebanon, but also in Egypt, Kuwait, the UAE, and Syria. Its President
and Director, Dr. Patricia Nabti, is the initiator and coordinator of
this Initiative and is the Regional Representative of the International
Association for Volunteer Effort (IAVE) for the Arab Nations
(2009-2011). AVS has been the National Representative of IAVE in Lebanon
since 2003.
2) The International Association for Volunteer Effort (IAVE)
The International Association for Volunteer Effort is a primary partner
in the Initiative, providing it with international recognition and
credibility. IAVE was created in 1970 by a small group of people from
throughout the world who shared a common vision of how volunteers can
contribute:
To the solution of human and social problems, and
To the development of bridges of understanding among people of all
nations.
They recognized the importance of international exchange of information,
best practices and mutual support as a way of encouraging and
strengthening volunteering worldwide. IAVE is the only international
organization with the mission to promote, celebrate, and strengthen
volunteerism worldwide. IAVE holds regional conferences in different
regions of the world. AVS plans to host the first IAVE Regional
Conference for the Arab World in Lebanon in 2010 as part of this
Initiative, and to end the Initiative with the 2nd IAVE Regional
Conference for the Arab World in December 2011 in another country in the
region. The IAVE Youth Office in Catalonia is actively collaborating on
the Initiative, particularly in terms of its youth-related components.
3) Other Program Partners
We seek a broad spectrum of other partners (both regional and
international) who are integrally involved with content and are active
participants in Initiative programs (attending conferences and
trainings, contributing their expertise, sharing their experiences,
developing resources, suggesting and recruiting participants, and
establishing their own volunteer initiatives within the larger regional
Initiative).
4) Sponsoring Partner(s):
Ideally the primary sponsoring partner(s) should be indigenous to the
Arab World, have broad representation in the region, be highly respected
for the quality and integrity of its/their programs, and be committed to
improving Arab society through sharing, collaboration, mutual support,
and active and positive civic engagement. With the broad scope of the
Initiative, it is unlikely that one sponsor can fund the whole
Initiative. So we are seeking a number of sponsoring partners who could
choose one or more major elements of it, such as: seed money to start
the Initiative, the 2010 Conference, the coordination of funding for
Arab initiatives, the development of resources, and/or the 2011
Conference.
5) Other sponsors
The Initiative will need many other sponsors from within the region
and beyond who will provide monetary and in-kind contributions. These
might include embassies, businesses, foundations, government agencies,
and non-governmental organizations.
FIRST IAVE
REGIONAL CONFERENCE FOR THE ARAB NATIONS - 2010
Objectives of the Conference:
§Bring
together those who have expertise in volunteering and those who want to
develop volunteer initiatives in their own countries
§Provide
orientation to the scope of the Initiative and of volunteerism, in
general
§Share
ideas, experiences, and expertise that can help achieve the objectives
of the Initiative
§Provide
basic training on volunteerism
§Introduce
available funding opportunities
§Orient
participants to the various facilities available to stay connected over
the course of the Initiative
When: Not finalized – most likely in September 2010
Where: Not finalized – venues ranging from hotels to university
campuses are being considered.
Invitees:
§Volunteer
centers, unions, NGOs, websites, and other institutions which promote
volunteering in the Arab World
§Government
agencies interested in promoting volunteering for and from their
agencies
§National
Volunteer Committees/Councils in the Arab World
§Companies
engaged in corporate volunteering (or considering it)
§IAVE
members
§Individuals
in NGOs or government agencies in any Arab country who are likely to
have the ability, commitment, and position to develop programs or
institutions to promote volunteering their own country or across the
Arab region.
Language: Arabic – with simultaneous translation into English and
possibly French
Possible Workshops:
§Developing
a Volunteer Center
§Service-Learning
§Education,
Volunteering, and Community Service
§Developing
a University Center for Civic Engagement/Volunteering/Philanthropy
§Corporate
Volunteering
§Family
Volunteering
§Volunteering
of the Retired and Elderly
§Volunteering
of those with Disabilities
§Government
Agencies – volunteering for and from these agencies
§Volunteering
of Diaspora Residents Visiting their Home Country
§Global
Youth Service Days
§Studies
of Volunteering in the Arab World; past and future research
§Developing
National Committees on Volunteering – what they are doing, can do
§National
Volunteer Policies
§Volunteer
Planning for National Emergency Preparedness Programs
§Training
in Volunteer Recruitment/Volunteer Management
§IT
and Social Networking to Promote Volunteering
§Preparing
for International Year of Volunteers + 10 (2011)
Presentations by Participants: The conference committee would
invite people throughout the Arab World to propose presentations and
then evaluate them to allow the best to be presented. The conference
will encourage different formats, both conventional and unconventional.
Special Youth Program: A special youth conference for young
volunteer leaders (15-30) in the different countries (usually this is
done for 1-3 days just before the main conference so that the youth can
participate in the main conference, share their ideas and enthusiasm,
and learn from the adults). Sessions might include:
§Sharing
experiences
§Who
volunteers? why? how? rights and responsibilities
§Global
Youth Service Days
§Discussion
of problems of youth volunteering in the Arab World
§Some
actual volunteer project(s)
§Recommendations
to the main conference
Publication displays: Display of different resources on
volunteering/community service/service learning (mainly from the US,
Canada, England) – in English and French – and whatever is available in
Arabic.
Films: Ongoing showing of relevant films.
Exhibition: Posters on volunteering from around the world.
Display area: A space for participants to display or distribute
their pamphlets, posters, etc.
Fieldtrips: At IAVE International Conferences they have
fieldtrips to volunteer programs throughout the country – one bus (small
or large) to each area – with NGOs or volunteer centers hosting them.
We would need to see who might host such fieldtrips in Lebanon. These
would combine sight-seeing with introduction to local volunteer
programs.
Funding: Participants would pay a registration fee. Sponsors are
needed for monetary and in-kind contributions. Hopefully there would be
a scholarship fund to allow participants from poorer Arab countries to
attend.
Food: At IAVE conferences, there is always a banquet dinner with
speeches of very important people from the host country and abroad, and
cultural performances, either from participating countries or just from
the host country. Other meals (mainly lunches and dinners) have been
handled differently at different IAVE conferences – sometimes being paid
for as part of registration, and then catered; sometimes people taking
care of it themselves if there are restaurants close by. Sometimes a
sponsor hosts a meal.
Cultural Trip: There could be a special sightseeing and cultural
trip as well, maybe as an option before or after the conference.
Staff and Volunteers: This is definitely a very major project and
would need funding for staff, enlarged office space, equipment and
supplies for planning and preparation – and onsite work. Funds would be
needed to hire a professional conference organizer. The conference would
also need a lot of volunteers – trained and organized ahead of time.
Post-Conference Funding Opportunities: Funding sources would be
lined up so that participants from poorer Arab countries would be given
the opportunity to present a proposal within 2-3 months after the
conference to undertake a major volunteer development project in their
country to be implemented in 2011.
Follow-up Support: A series of “webinars” would be held online in
Arabic to provide further training in specific areas of volunteering. In
addition, participants would be provided with information about
specialists that can provide training and consulting specific to their
needs. These would include specialists from both within the region and
outside it.
Follow-up Conference: A second regional conference in 2011 would
provide an opportunity for countries of the region to share the
developments that have taken place in the field of volunteerism in their
countries since the 2010 conference, be given increased training, and
discuss what still needs to be done to promote, facilitate, and improve
volunteering in the region.
Website/Resources: In the interim between the two conferences
resources would be developed and made available to those who wish to
improve volunteerism in their countries. This would hopefully be
sustained beyond the two conferences. Existing websites would be
reviewed to see if they can be supported and enhanced to serve this need
or whether a new website would need to be constructed specifically for
this purpose.
INITIATOR AND COORDINATOR OF THE INITIATIVE
Patricia Nabti, Ph.D.
Director, Association for Volunteer Services
Representative of the Arab Nations (2009-2012) for the
International Association for Volunteer Effort/IAVE
961-1-449470 961-3-757098
pnabti@avs.org.lb
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