Senior Volunteering Exchange Network Research results in 2009 Partner meeting in Vienna 30 November – 3 December 2009
Effects of trans-national exchange of senior volunteers on participating organisations Methodology: Qualitative interviews –Conducted at the conference in Lleida –Complemented at the conference in Vienna Key issues: –Impact on the management and philosophy of organisations –Impact on existing exchange offers –European dimension –Intersectional dimension –Benefits of being partner in the SEVEN network
Interview partners Formal Educational Institution: University Lancaster, UK Public Institution: Municipality of Ferrara: International Relations Office, IT Non Governmental Organisations: Wiener Hilfswerk, AT Senior Initiative Center, LT Bulgarian Red Cross Federazione Chiese Evangeliche, IT UNAREC, FR Internationale Jugendgemeinschaftsdienste, DE International Network: Alliance of the European Voluntary Service Organisations
Impact on the philosophy and the objectives of organisations New work approaches: –Inter-cultural learning in youth exchange programmes is added by inter-generational learning –Short-term exchanges for seniors are considered as an additional offer by youth exchange organisations –Volunteering is used as a tool to promote active citizenship in the sense of bottom-up democracy in former Soviet countries
Impacts on existing exchange offers Adaption of exchange offers to the needs of senior volunteers –Reduced working hours: Some organisations say working hours depend on the job, others try to modify them according to the age of volunteers –Accommodation: Single person or 2 persons, no groups –Social inclusion: Some organisations connect seniors with local senior initiatives, others focus on inter-generational teams Additional considerations for the exchange of senior volunteers –Preparation concept: Need for a different organisation and contents –Long-term volunteering: Pre-visit before placement
European and intersectional dimension The SEVEN network strengthened the European dimension in the work of organisations –Newcomers in the exchange of senior volunteers are now planning or preparing trans-national exchanges –Active citizenship is considered a part of a European strategy to strengthen democracy The SEVEN network contributed to bridging gaps between the sectors of youth volunteering and seniors initiatives
Benefits of being part of the SEVEN network The interviewed organisations -Benefit through the provision of manuals and the exchange of experiences -Feel encouraged to start trans-national exchanges -Strenghten their networks -Consider the training of volunteers as very useful -Gain new ideas for networking on a local, national and international level Some organisations with long-term experience would appreciate their expertise being more demanded