Long-term experience in Montenegro - 2024/2025

THE YOUTH CENTER
Don Bosko centar is an organization based in Podgorica, engaged in youth work.
The main goal for our organisation is to offer educational and fun programmes to children and young adults, in order to give them the possibility to spend free time doing something useful and creative instead of spending time in the streets where they are unsupervised.
Non-formal education is used at our center, where our youngsters acquire skills and knowledge through different activities.
The preventive system is used at our center which offers the youngster previous warning, in a way that the educator can still speak to him in the language of the heart, whether during the time of his education, or later.
Our center is open to everyone aged between 7 and 18 yrs, regardless of ethnic or religious affiliation but our target group usually consists of children coming from socially vulnerable families, who live in Konik, which is one of the poorest areas in Podgorica. Also, we have significant number of Roma population.
We offer different types of daily programmes as well as programmes during winter and summer school break.
We have the following:

• Social&Youth Circus
• School tutoring
• Carpenter workshop
• Sports Activities
• Creative workshops
• Games
• Musical workshop
• Excursions
• Educational workshop
• SportKAT league
• Camping
• Sports tournaments

Through all these activities our visitors develop their talents and potentials, they improve existing and acquire new knowledge.
Sports activities and games stimulate their physical growth.
In the past we have organized different preventive and social programmes indicating the risks of using drugs or other vice.
We are also active on European and international level. We are supporting and hosting ESC accredited organisation, and we encourage our youngsters to participate in training courses, seminars, youth exchanges, study visits organized within Erasmus plus and other youth programmes.

ROLE OF THE VOLUNTEER
Activity start date is 1. September 2024 and activity end date is 30. July 2025.
Main tasks of volunteer will include the following:

• Involved in the activities of the Youth centre:
• Social and Youth circus (www.donbosko.me/cirkus)
• Educational and creative workshops (different topics, making crafts)
• Socializing in the play-room area
• Sports activities (to stimulate physical growth, to develop healthy habits)
• Winter and summer oratories (workshops during school breaks)
• Activities in nature (camping, work actions, excursions)
• Work in the office
• International exchanges

The volunteer will work 30 hours per week. We are expecting from our volunteer to be active, to share the ideas, to use his/her talents, to interact with the others and to join the local community activities together with other volunteers.
He/she will be encouraged to develop and carry on his/her own project.
He/she will:

• Develop his/her own project;
• Work and live in a foreign country, in a multicultural environment;
• Become independent and develop self-confidence;
• Develop and/or improve social skills and organizational skills;
• Develop responsibility and tolerance, etc.

PROFILE OF THE VOLUNTEER
As the volunteer will be mostly active in Social and Youth circus, we expect him/her to have certain circus skills.
It is desirable for the volunteer to know something of the following because he/she will lead the trainings with our local trainers/coaches:

• juggling
• balance
• floor acrobatics
• aerial acrobatics

The volunteer should have a good knowledge of English language.
He/she should be a motivated, open-minded young person aged between 18 and 30 years, willing to engage in social and volunteering activities, able to work in a multicultural environment, able to work individually as well as in a team.

WORKING HOURS AND DAYS OFF
Volunteer will work 6 hours per day, 5 days per week. He/She will usually be free on weekends, because our activities are held during working days. Activities can be held in the morning as well as in the afternoon.
He/She also gets 2 days off per month, and he/she can have a vacation depending on the current situation in the centre. This will be agreed based on his/her wishes with the project team.

VOLUNTEER ALLOWANCE
The volunteer will receive a pocket money of 90 EUR per month.

HOW TO APPLY
We are always searching for willing volunteers to join us. To apply simply send an email to: [email protected] Until 1st of May 2024
Inside this email please tell us a bit about yourself and what motivates you to come join us. Finally attach a CV (Curriculum Vitae) to the email and send it. You can be sure that your information will not be shared without your consent and will only be used for the application process

FOOD AND ACCOMODATION
Volunteer will have lunch in our organization or he/she will receive money for the food. This will be agreed with the volunteer upon his/her arrival. Volunteer will live in a flat with another international volunteer. During entire service there will be two volunteers at the same time. Volunteer’s appartment will be very close to the Youth center, it is around 15 minutes walking distance. Also, the city center is just 25 minutes walking from his/her place.

TRAVEL
Travel costs from volunteer’s country of origin to Montenegro are 100% covered by the project.

If you are interested, you can write to [email protected]