Yekaterinburg, Russia - A webinar on volunteerism entitled “Values work” took place in Yekaterinburg on April 14. The hosts, leaders of the site about self-development and the training campaign “SoStudent.ru” and UPF activists, Tatyana Terchaninova and Sergei Skvortsov, shared their experiences and outcomes on how to organize and conduct a values-based volunteer project.
In the first part of the seminar, the participants discussed the issue, “What is value-oriented volunteerism?” The guide on developing a volunteerism infrastructure produced by UN Volunteers, states: “The fundamental ideas about volunteerism values influence the principles and methods that are used for promoting volunteerism and recruiting volunteers as well as for guiding and encouraging them.” Accepting this, the hosts stated that those who are interested in volunteering should acquaint themselves with existing projects and use this information to create their own statements.
In her first presentation, Tatyana Turchaninova formulated the vision of the webinar hosts on the above-mentioned issues; then she guided participants through interactive exercises that stimulated them to reflect on and formulate their individual visions of volunteerism values.
In the second part of the webinar, Evgeny Skvortsov brought up the theme about creating a team. In the presentation “How to create a team based on values,” he presented to the audience a method of involving new participants in volunteer projects in understanding the main values shared by each volunteer, including opportunities to express their life goals and develop professionally. He gave suggestions about team-building and creating environments conducive to personal growth and a sense of shared responsibility.
Participation in volunteer projects can help young people develop their leadership potential and cultivate a spirit of sense of responsibility for their community and nation.
The participants in the webinar on values were mostly young people who are carrying out their own volunteer initiatives. Comments afterwards indicate that the information received during the webinar will help them developing their future activity.
Videos of the webinar [In Russian}: