ESC: Volunteer for BJMK-musical youth centre in Latvia

Bērnu un jauniešu mūzikas klubs (Children and Youth Music Club, acronym “BJMK”) was founded in 2004 as a cultural NGO representing the interests of local young people. Its original aim was to popularise music and to give children and young people an opportunity to make music and to study popular instruments as one of the best alternatives for their free time. Music, culture and education remain our main fields of expertise, but we have widened our aims to encompass social inclusion, supporting target groups with fewer opportunities, promoting musical education as a career, and educating new youth workers. Since 2004, at least 2500 local and about 200 foreign young people have benefitted from our organisation’s daily life and the range of different activities that we offer. Our target group is mainly 13-20 year-olds, but also children from the age of 4, families, the local community and young people from European countries. In 2006, we began to apply, organise and take part in “Youth in Action” projects, and since then we have been active in Erasmus + and European Solidarity Corps. Besides these programmes, we regularly apply for state programme projects, regional projects and projects supported by the local municipality. In 2008, the main members of the organisation created a music school programme, “Rockmusic”, and there is now the added possibility of studying popular music professionally. BJMK regularly organises concerts, musical summer camps for children, masterclasses, musical outreach in the schools of Jelgava, and a variety of other activities for members of the organisation and the local society. BJMK has many years’ experience in music education, through both formal and non-formal approaches. Each year there are about 200–300 children, young people and adults taking music classes and being involved in the organisation’s daily life. Several different music education programmes have been developed and implemented. Since 2006, our NGO has participated and implemented regional, national and international projects connected to music education, non-formal education, public society and social inclusion. We have experience organising musical events and helping young people to develop their skills. Many of the young people who have started their life as musicians in our organisation or have had co-operation with our organisation in the field of music, have achieved remarkable results, as solo artists and band-members. Since 2007, we have been active in the “Youth in Action” programme, pursuing youth initiatives, youth exchanges, and hosting volunteers. In 2014, we began to take part in Erasmus+ projects, and from 2019 also joined up with the European Solidarity Corps programme. In 2014-2015, we held a year-long project to decrease social exclusion, through music. Over the past few years, we have regularly organised group volunteering projects within Erasmus+ and the European Solidarity Corps, hosting 30 young people from different European countries, and will do so again in July-August 2021. High quality music education, social inclusiveness, non-discrimination, a safe and supportive environment, group events, outreach and European solidarity are all at the heart of what we do and how we operate as an organisation.