ESC: ESCeering #4

Mladinski center Zagorje ob Savi (MC ZOS) is a community of tolerant, open, creative and inclusive people that provides young people of the Zagorje ob Savi municipality a safe space to learn, develop, grow and express themselves through the regular programme activitiies that we create together with them using the methods of non-formal learning. By connecting and cooperating, the organisation builds bridges between people (in the local community and in the world). Youth center is a public body that was established in 2010 and employs 4 regular, 3 project employees and some external coworkers. It is situated in an older, renovated building, just ten minute walk from the center, right next to primary school, kindergarten, gym, football field and a pond. It has a hall, daily centre, multifunctional room for events, music room, offices, balconies and some other facilities.It usually hosts 3 ESC volunteers and around 20 local volunteers and other supporters. Our main target group is youth between 15 and 30 years, but the organization closely works also with kids and elders from the local communities that we include in our regular activities. Opening hours od MC ZOS are from Monday-Thursday from 8 am to 4 pm, on Fridays from 8 am to 9 pm, ocasionally also over the weekend and in the afternoons in case of special events or workshops. Main activities: - organisation and implementation of workshops, events and activities, based on non-formal learning, - developing youth work and volunteering in the local community, - cooperation with local and other organisations, - representing youth in local, regional and other levels, - encouraging and supporting youth to use their skills and actively participate in the community, - hosting daily centre, - developing street work. Purposes of MC ZOS (reasons to do what MC ZOS does): - encouraging youth to believe in themselves, - care that the young person is heard, accepted and respected, - raising awareness among youth that MC ZOS is here for them, - that we all grow and develop, - making sense of life (to young people) and life value (which we believe are important to us, guide us). We run different programmes, such as Eurodesk, “UNICEF Varne točke”, “Spominčica”. From the beginning, we continuously run projects of EU programmes Youth in Action, Erasmus+ and European Solidarity Corps, besides also some other funds. From 2016-2021 we ran a 5-years-long project Večgeneracijski center Zasavje (multigenerational centre) that empowered vulnerable groups in the local community. Regarding volunteering in ESC and previous EVS projects, we regularly hosted 2 to 3 volunteers in a certain period (international and national), besides we are currently the leading organisation for two local primary schools and a centre for people with disabilities. Over the years we hosted 2 group EVS projects, as well as we regularly send our young people to volunteering projects abroad. We try to include ESC volunteers in all activities of the organisation, such as youth, culture, art, sports, health, community, civic, international and intergenerational cooperation. They support the hosting organisations and we encourage them to create and perform their own projects. We support their learning process and participation in the community and promote their work through ESC. Volunteers learn mainly management of their work, they plan and implement activities for different target groups and on different topics. They learn to cooperate in a team, promote their work and represent their programme, organisation, and country. Each volunteer brings her_his uniqueness into the hosting organisation and the local community.