EVS Experience Part I

This post talk about the first months of my EVS experience!

November and December was a important cultural and new place adaptation period. I needed learn about the Chinese culture and living in Beijing. This is the biggest city I have ever lived and I had to learn many things like understand the transportation system, places to eat, the supermarket, places to buy.

Together this, in the first weeks the main activity was get to know the NGO I have been working, the staff and the China social reality reading, having conversations, making visits, and starting to think: What can I do?

The Zigen Association for Rural Education and Development in China was founded in 1988. The NGO mission is to initiate and facilitate projects addressing unmet basic needs, particularly education and primary health care for women and children in rural China, as well as preservation of the environment and local cultures. The main Zigen projects are Basic School Education, Adult Education, Health Care, Migrant Workers Community, Environmentally-Sound Technologies, and Rural Village Development. Zigen is headquartered in Beijing, but act in different parts of China (To more details visit http://www.zigen.org).

During the one week Training, I learned more about the EurAsiAmerica and the EVS Program. New possibilities to the EVS experience have been opened and I could change good ideas about my activities with Bertrand. We visited the Great Wall and we had a great time. We get to know more about Chinese culture and presented our (Italian and French) to CANGO staff.

With a improved activities proposal, I started to do my main activities in the Migrant Workers Community Center: planning and conduction Volunteers Trainee in Psychosocial topics; technical volunteers support; psychosocial support to children; staff support; and participation in the Cultural Group activities.

We had the opportunity to participate in some conferences:

- The Second China-EU Social Ecology and Legal Comparison Forum. 14-15.11.2012, Beijing;

- Northeast Asia CSO Consultation on CSO Partnership for Development Effectiveness, 26.11.2012, Beijing;

- International Conference on Gender Equality and Corporate Social Responsability Enhancing Business Competitiveness. UN Woman, 27.11.2012, Beijing;

- Volunteering Expo 2012. Celebration, Inspiration, Action. 18-19.12.2012, Beijing.

In the next post I will talk about the activities and the news!