By Raluca Marin

Histoty of volunteeringValues such as solidarity and mutual

assistance appeared in 1920 as an antidote against World War I’s hatred and terror. That summer, a group of volunteers from Austria, England, Germany and Switzerland – some of them ex-soldiers and so, ex- enemies – started to reconstruct a village near Verdun, which was destroyed in the battled which ended the lives of more than a million people. Volunteering Program ONU.

From that first international volunteering camp the word of the first volunteering movement spread around, of the organization known as S.C.I. – Service Civil International, to which soon joined young brothers and sisters, due to the spreading of volunteering in 1920 and 1930. At the same time, it was noticed that it represents a way of bounding new friendships, among young people of different European countries. In 1934, S.C.I. sent four young volunteers to work with the pour ones in India – a group of pioneers who were the ancestors of British Volunteering Program, Peace Corp of USA, German Development Service and others, who in turn preceded

Why to be a volunteer? to have fun to make new friends to learn new things and to form

new skills to return a part of what you

received from others to feel useful to be a part of a prestigious

organization, part of a team to help the unlucky ones to accomplish something to have a responsibility to understand the problems of the

community you live in

Types of volunteering• Natural reservation – repairing paths,

cleaning wells and springs, planting trees.

• People with learning problems

• People with mental health problems

• Working with older people

• Homeless people

• People with physical disabilities

• People with HIV/Aids/drugs

The responsibilities of a volunteer• be convinced • be sure• be loyal • say what you• be willing to learn• learn all you can• accept the supervision• be trustworthy• be a good teammate

Non-governmental organizationNGOs are

defined by the World Bank as "private organizations that pursue activities to relieve suffering, promote the interests of the poor, protect the environment, provide basic social services, or undertake community development".

Types of NGOsNon-governmental organizations are a

heterogeneous group. A long list of acronyms has developed around the term "NGO“:

• BINGO, short for Business-friendly International NGO or Big International NGO;

• CSO, short for civil society organization;• DONGO: Donor Organized NGO;• ENGO: short for environmental NGO, such as Greenpeace

and WWF;• TANGO: short for technical assistance NGO;• TNGO: short for transnational NGO;• GSO: Grassroots Support Organization• MANGO: short for market advocacy NGO• NGDO: non-governmental development organization; and the list continues.

Romanian NGOs

• Animal protection association “Second chance” – RM Vâlcea;

• Green Cross Romanial• “Feed the children” association;• “Together for you” association;• National association Against Corruption, Abuse and for

Human Rights – Neamţ;• Development of human potential association

OMNIMIND;• Pro – Vita association for born and unborn children;• “Equal Chances”association