The project was focused on people at the beginning of their retirement. They received clearer options for organizing their free time in a meaningful way. At the same time, these people were able to consider volunteering as an option for shaping their retirement in a purposeful way. The same group of people became aware of their competences and learned how their competences fit with options to engage in volunteering. Finally, they found counsellors at the beginning of retirement to guide them in the process of identifying competences and deciding on volunteering. These counsellors were the second target group of the project. The counsellors were qualified for the tasks of competence assessment and counselling on voluntary services and were be able to use appropriate tools. These tools were developed and tested during the project implementation. Organisations that coordinate voluntary work were networked with senior citizens' organisations and educational institutions. These two target groups had a benefit from the project.
The background of the CONVOLUT-project is the demographic change and the associated health consequences for the individual and the socio-economic challenges for society. Because of the so-called baby boomers, the number of people retiring will increase most in the period up to 2035 (European Commission 2012: 3), which is why it made sense to make the skills of these people available to society and to improve their own lives. There were also not enough opportunities and infrastructures for counselling that brings together individual competences identification and suitability for volunteering. CONVOLUT aimed to create target-oriented counselling materials, such as the specific adapted ProfilPASS in Preparation for Retirement, to initiate self-reflection regarding the competences and knowledge of people at the beginning of their retirement and to make them aware of their own potential. In a second step, they received orientation and support in choosing a voluntary activity that is suitable for them and their competences. By motivating people to take up voluntary work, the project supported the EU's Active Ageing policy by helping people of retirement age to lead active and self-determined lives and contribute to society.