Good practices: Fostering the active participation of volunteers with disabilities

We work to get the FULL INCLUSION OF DISSABILITY PEOPLE in all the areas of society through the DEFENSE AND PROMOTION OF THEIR RIGHTS, of the demand of SOCIAL CHANGE, of empowerment and coordination of ASSOCIATIONS and SERVICES delivery that meet their NEEDS AND EXPECTATIONS An CONSOLIDATED associative movement and widely RECOGNIZED by general society, for its values and leadership in SEARCH OF NEW work METHODOLOGIES with disability people and in EXCELLENCE SERVICES headed to the same.  RIGHT DEFENSE, avoiding posts avoiding sentimental and care messages.  SOLIDARITY, SOCIAL INVOLVEMENT AND COOPERATION  CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT AND INNOVATION  TRANSPARENCY OF OPERATION MANAGEMENT  INTERNAL DEMOCRACY  PROFESSIONALISM and guidance to the user VisionMision Values

COGAMI is part of: COGAMI includes a total of 52 organisations divided into: Direct members Indirected members CEEH – European Confederation for the Employment of People with Disabilities

ENTITIES MEMBERS OF AUTONOMOUS AREA Asociación Galega de Hemofilia Asociación de Centros Especiais de Emprego sen Ánimo de Lucro Direct Members PROVINCIAL FEDERATIONS REGIONAL ASSOCIATIONS ArzúaCabana Bergantiños Mos Monforte de Lemos Muros Lugo OurensePontevedraPobra do CaramiñalDubra

OURENSE CARBALLIÑO ALLARIZ   PONTEVEDRA MOS VIGO A ESTRADA SILLEDA PONTEAREAS TUI CUNTIS VILAGARCIA O GROVE TOMIÑO         RIBADEO MONFORTE LUGO  A CORUÑA FERROL CARIÑO CABANA DUBRA TEO ARZÚA MUROS NOIA A POBRA AS PONTES NARÓN SANTIAGO COGAMI offices Provincial Federations  Autonomous entities  Associations                                

The Volunteering Network of COGAMI started working in Since then, it fosters the development of social civil participation in programmed activities with the mission of achieving inclusion for people with disabilities in their communities. VOLUNTEERING NETWORK OF COGAMI

-TO PREVENT, ADDRESS AND CHANGE / ELIMINATE SITUATIONS OF SOCIAL EXCLUSION -To create awareness specially of public bodies. -To foster social participation. -To encourage the creation of social networks. -To train and increase the development of social skills. -To favour participation and social inclusion. -To favour access to resources in the community and environment of each person. OBJECTIVES

1.Accompanying and supporting people with disabilities:  Inside and outside the home,  Leisure activities: holiday programme, swimming pool, cinema, theatre, etc…  Sports activities, therapeutic swimming, adapted sailing, etc.  Cultural visits, outings, etc.  Participation in activities organised by the public administration: Xuventude.net, XIV Congreso Estatal de Voluntariado, etc…  Educational support.  Support to integration, paperwork and social integration.  Support in handicraft workshops, strengthening of social skills... PROGRAMMES:

2. Awareness regarding disability:  Talks to prevent spinal-cord lesions.  Talks to create awareness regarding an appropriate attitude towards people with disabilities, universal accessibility, etc... PROGRAMMES:

1.Training:  Basic training for volunteers  Specific training for volunteering in the field of disability  Training of volunteer managers  Complementary training and others, demand based. PROGRAMMES:

STATISTICAL DATA Of the total volunteers, 14% are people with disabilities

Experience of a volunteer: THE PROCESS: OF BEING A VOLUNTEER…. OF LIVING AS A VOLUNTEER

1. I DO NOT TRUST MYSELF… WHAT CAN I DO? I HAVE NO IDEA… UNCERTAINTY SCARED OF NOT DOING THINGS RIGHT DOUBTS, QUESTIONS... A MESS

2. ACCEPTANCE THEY ACCEPT ME... I MUST DO SOMETHING RIGHT INTEGRATION IN THE GROUP... I THINK IT IS POSSIBLE I KNOW THE PROFESSIONAL TEAM I START FEELING GOOD I START ASKING QUESTIONS I ACT NATURALLY

3. I KNOW THE PEOPLE I WORK WITH I HAVE SKILLS AND DIFFICULTIES. I KNOW THEIR TECHNOLOGY BASED SUPPORT PRODUCTS. I “SNEAK INTO” ALL THE ACTIVITIES I CAN WITH THEM.

4. I AM ONE WITH THE GROUP FULL INTEGRATION I TAKE PART IN THE DAILY ACTIVITIES OF THE CLASS. THE WHOLE PROFESSIONAL TEAM SEEMS ME AS ACTIVE PART OF THE ACTIVITIES.

EUROPEAN PROJECTS WE HAVE TAKEN PART IN It has also been very active in transnational activities for the past 20 years, being involved in youth exchanges with volunteers support, and in projects dealing with volunteering, such as In…Outdoor, co-funded by Youth Programme. It has experience in Leonardo-funded projects with a focus on Tele-training (Delfos, Mestre, Infordis), Telework (Teamnet) and production of innovative training packages and certification (Pace and Dmfer).

Project DELFOS ( ). Aimed at allowing access to training of people with severe disabilities. Implemented all accross Galicia. Project NODUS ( ). Aimed at training people with severe disability in order to see the possibility of providing employment related to telework or in jobs dealing with the use of computer tools and multimedia. The distance training was provided through the Delfos System. Implemented all accross Galicia. Project TRAVEMA ( ). Consisted on researching possible ways to integrate people with disability in activities related to the ecological recycling of vehicles, in agreement with the new regulations stated by the UE. Implemented in the area of Santiago, capital of Galicia. Project PROACTIVE ( ). Focused on researching and proposing new methodologies that help to improve the transition from education/training to employment of people with disability who do not succeed in school. JAKOBUS WEG, to carry out an exchange of trainers and trainees with entities from Germany, France and Luxembourg that work for the integration of excluded collectives.

PROJECTO CIRCE (2008). Its objective is to develop the effective quality of training systems to enable access to training to all interested individuals. Through this project and in the whole of 2008 we developed the professional profiles of “Technician in Information and Support to Independent Life and Agent for the Encouragement of Corporate Social Responsibility”. Project MARINA (2006). The topic of this project is to add value to cultural heritage linked to traditional fishing and the coastal environment through direct contact in a context that brings together “ideal” conditions to remain in time.

Project ACTIVE ( ). To develop a flexible, adaptable and accredited training programme at European level for volunteer training for people working with people with disabilities. The development of the training programme shall follow an exclusive design in order to ensure that it includes the needs of volunteers, of people with disabilities and of the volunteer service delivery organisations. Project “ONE WORLD FOR ALL” (2009). TO SHARE GOOD PRACTICES FOR THE INCLUSION OF YOUNG PEOPLE AT A DISADVANTAGE. The main goal of this project is the exchange of good practices aimed at the inclusion of young people with less opportunities: HIV positive youngsters, young people with disabilities, unemployed youth, young immigrants. The work is to be undertaken by NGOs working in formal education for young people in Italy, Greece, Spain, Mozambique, Brazil and Mexico. Project “Power in equality: Towards the empowerment of girls with disabilities” (2011). This is a transnational multilateral youth exchange programme of 6 days in Santiago de Compostela (Spain) in which 25 young people, both girls and boys, with and without disabilities, took part. The participants came from Spain, Greece, Portugal and Ireland. A series of activities around formal and non formal learning were developed to encourage the participation of youth with less opportunities involved in the project, thus fostering their personal and social development

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