Our project aimed to reach the following goals: - raise awareness on the significance of volunteering in tackling social isolation amongst youth; - support the work of youth and volunteering organisations to involve young volunteers; - recognise and select innovative, effective, and transferable practices: - provide organisations all over EU with information on best practices and opportunities within volunteering; - identify the needs of youth to start volunteering and their needs for volunteer assistance; - develop a methodology for establishment of volunteering programmes and participatory approaches, and mentoring standards for working with lonely youth; - empower national and regional volunteering centres and networks to offer support to NGOs in the field of loneliness; - gain better understanding of volunteering as an opportunity for personal growth, development, acquiring competencies, professional development and strengthening social networks amongst young people; - actively advocate for youth volunteering and volunteering assistance for young people on all levels; - raise awareness on needs of youth and opportunities to adopt measures encouraging systemic development of volunteering and its infrastructure.
The project represents a response to the growing hardship among youth, resulting from isolation and loneliness, particularly visible during and after the Covid-19 pandemic. The partners' own experience as well as national-level research had demonstrated the potential positive impact of volunteering. All partners are active in the field of inclusive volunteering, youth volunteering and work with youth with fewer opportunities. We wanted to pay more attention to youth, especially as young people were expected to provide solidarity and sacrifice during the pandemic to the benefit of the vulnerable, while their hardship and eventual consequences in years to come were largely ignored. The situation was worse for those who do not have a safe home environment and whose economic status had worsened due to the pandemic. The project addressed the needs of youth facing the consequences of the increase in loneliness and social isolation, particularly volunteering and youth organisations that are accessible to youth and can thus provide adequate support through volunteering activities. Additionally, an initiative to implement systemic support for volunteering as a means to alleviate loneliness amongst youth was addressed to the policy makers.