Project dates: 21st of May 2020 – 20th of May 2021

Project place: Nicosia, Cyprus 

Deadline for applying: 21st April 2020

 

 

 

ABOUT THE PROJECT 

The 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are a blueprint that has been adopted by all United Nations Member States to better issues like poverty and climate crisis by 2030.

“The Sustainable Development Goals set by the United Nations General Assembly are the blueprint to achieve a better and more sustainable future for all. They address the global challenges we face, including those related to poverty, inequality, climate, environmental degradation, prosperity, peace and justice. Of course, the above cannot be achieved if we do not include young people in this process and if we do not act based on the needs and deficiencies of each societal context. In the case of Cyprus, there is a lack of awareness for what the SDGs are and their importance. For that exact reason, our project aims to involve young people in promoting and raising social awareness about the SDGs in the community of Cyprus based on the local reality that the volunteers will have to live in and learn about. The project’s objectives are to educate and inform young people and the local community about SDGs through the implementation of various workshops, public interventions and creative activities. Through our actions which they will be oriented around youth and based on non-formal education and experiential learning, we will not only present ways with which an individual, a group of young people or a community could act upon the achievement of SDGs but we will also encourage young people to become active citizens and find ways to engage democratically in the policy-making of sustainable development. We will emphasize on the comprehension of the challenges we face both on a local and global level in order to empower youth to be more cognizant about the future of the local, European and International society which they live in and act upon their civil rights.”

The project aims to encourage young people to learn and act upon current issues regarding society. One of our objectives is to promote education for sustainable development which is knowledge our volunteers will pass on when organizing different events for the society, engaging in solidarity activities and promoting volunteerism.

 

 

ACTIVITIES

Each activity will tackle the challenges of the SDGs and since we are a youth organisation, the main target group of our project will be the young people of Cyprus. For instance, for each category of SDGs we will raise awareness through the organisation with various workshops like upcycling, recycling intercultural communication, human rights, advocacy, peacebuilding, gender equality, inclusion, etc. Moreover, we organize educational seminars, open discussions, debates, conferences and public interventions on environmental, economic and social issues on a local, European and International level, always along with the UN’s agenda and curriculum. All our activities will be implemented on a collaborative basis between local stakeholders, for instance public and private bodies like Universities/Schools and Non-Governmental organizations dealing with similar topics, representatives of European/International organizations, Municipalities, etc. A successful sustainable development agenda requires partnerships; thus, we are going to establish local collaborations with the civil society of Cyprus to promote advocacy towards an effective change. We already have an established cooperation with Caritas Cyprus where the volunteers will spend some time, as one of their main activities throughout the project, to learn more about the local reality of Cyprus on issues like migration, human rights and inclusion and to implement activities which will tackle some of the SDGs based on the needs of the R-NEET people they will be working with.

 

 

WORKING HOURS

ESC must be full-time service for the volunteer. Her/his project activities (including language and other training activities relating to the project) should take up at least 30 and not more than 38 hours per week (around 7 hours per day). If they will work more than 35 hour per week, they will recover the hours in the same month. In case of working in the weekend for a day, they have the right to take a day off in the same month. The volunteer is entitled to two consecutive free days per week (weekend) and two days of holiday per month.

 

 

LANGUAGE SUPPORT 

All volunteers will be provided with a language support: there will be one Greek lesson every week for 2 hours. Furthermore, the volunteers will be enrolled in the OLS (online linguistic support) platform to have extra material to work with to enhance their Greek language learning. We recommend that all volunteers take advantage of this opportunity because it will help establish a better communication with the locals.

 

 

VOLUNTEER’S PROFILE

  • Competencies and motivation to work with people coming from different backgrounds, willing to learn new things and eager to learn about different cultures.
  • Preferably be over 20 years old, open-minded towards multiple working methods, different languages, mentalities and be interested to create new experiences in an inter-cultural environment.
  • They should also show that they are able to support themselves financially throughout the period that the project is being carried out.
  • We do not require any qualifications like educational achievements or knowledge upon specific experiences. We only require basic English-speaking language knowledge.
  • Ideally we are looking for volunteers who have a passion about sustainability and are familiar with the SDGs.

Volunteers will be chosen regardless of their ethnic group, religion, sexual orientation or political opinion and we will ensure that there is a gender balance.

 

 

ACCOMMODATION and FINANCES:

The accommodation will be at a house close to the city center of Nicosia. Four of the volunteers will share an apartment in Gevgelis Street and the other three will share an apartment in Stasinou Street. Both are very close to YEU office. 5 volunteers will have their own bedroom, two will have to share one, everybody will share the common areas such as the kitchen facilities, bathroom and living room.

Every volunteer will receive 130 Euros for food allowance and 5 Euros a day for pocket money (270€/285€ monthly). The accommodation will be provided by YEU Cyprus. The volunteers are requested to be very careful on electricity and water bills. A maximum allowance of 75 Euros will be provided for Electricity and Water bills per month for each house. In case that amount is exceeded, the volunteers will be requested to provide the extra costs.

Travel costs will be reimbursed up to 275 EUR according to Erasmus+ rules.

 

 

HOW TO APPLY? 

Send your CV, Motivational letter and Application form to sending@cid.mk stating in the subject: Application for ESC Project – YAS!