The 1st phase will take place from July 12th to 18th, 2024. During this phase, young people will be invited to do an intense volunteering experience, in small groups, in different social organizations from Brazil and other Latin American countries. Educating based on this paradigm means enriching the formation of young people who, upon returning home to their community, will be able to act as multipliers of change and promote a culture of unity in all areas of civil, economic, cultural, and political life.
This phase aims to strengthen youth leadership. It also aims to foster the creation of networks and alliances with Latin America to develop tools and mechanisms to improve youth leadership through volunteer work. This experience will be done in partnership with the international volunteer program MilONGa (www.milongaproject.org) and UNIRedes, an entity that brings together more than 50 organizations, initiatives, and social movements from 12 countries in Latin America and the Caribbean that promote transformational action in several fields (art and culture, environment, democratic governance, education, work, etc) through the proactiveness of everyone involved.
According to its Charter of Principles from 2014, UNIRedes is a “network that seeks to be a presence that overcomes barriers, that consoles, enlivens and encourages all people to get along and work together to make justice and unity in the world more visible and concrete”.
Participation in the 1st Phase of Genfest covers the schedule from July 12th to 18th, 2024. This amount will be the contribution to the Civil Society Organization where the volunteer will participate.
What is included in the 1st Phase:
Minimum of 3 meals a day during the entire period of the 1st Phase.
What is not included in the 1st Phase:
Founded in October 1986 by the Italian priest Renato Chiera, Casa do Menor São Miguel Arcanjo (CMSMA) emerged to mitigate the high rate of child and adolescent murders in the Baixada Fluminense, Metropolitan Region of Rio de Janeiro. CMSMA develops programs for the reception, human, personal, professional, and spiritual formation of children and adolescents in situations of personal risk and social vulnerability. The goal is family and social reintegration, fostering the protagonism of children and youth. Approximately 5,000 children and young people are assisted each year. Some of the activities carried out include: Access to art and culture: through workshops in capoeira, percussion, sports, swimming, dance, and circus. Professional qualification and integration into the job market: courses in gastronomy, baking, hairdressing, auto mechanics, general mechanics, electrical work, information technology, administrative assistantship, metalworking, graphic design, photography, human resources, and administration.
The Voluntary Action Center – NAV – was officially established in 1991, focusing on education, health, social development, and community engagement through activities with families in partnership with the school. Our goal is to improve the quality of families and communities, with a focus on education, health, social development, and community engagement. Approximately 135 children and adolescents are directly served, and in addition, we have 55 families in the Estiva Community and 35 families in the surrounding areas, reaching a total of around 305 people. The youth will carry out social and educational training roles, creating training activities for the community. They will maintain direct contact with the young, children, and elderly in the community, providing moments of leisure, learning, and social transformation.
The history of AFAGO-SP begins in 1978 as a response to Chiara Lubich’s call to the youth of the Focolare Movement to “die for one’s own people.” The main projects developed by AFAGO-SP include: Solidarity Project: Daily assistance to 283 children, adolescents, and young people aged 6 to 17 years and 11 months, through socio-educational activities, professional training workshops, sports workshops, and the provision of two meals per day for each participant. Mutirão Project: Renovation of housing or construction of an additional room for families served in the Solidarity Project and Families of the Vila Aparecida Community and its surroundings. Through socio-educational activities, intercultural and sports workshops, professional training, complete meals, and housing renovation, we generate changes that have an impact on the lives of thousands of families in collaboration with the community to which it belongs. This strengthens the group and inspires individuals who dream of a world where love and peace are the rule, not the exception. Collaborating to spread a culture of solidarity, peace, and mutual respect.
The Association Our Lady Queen of Peace (ANSPAZ) was born 35 years ago. We are a religious social organization dedicated to the education, social rehabilitation, and spiritual well-being of individuals in vulnerable situations. The fundamental motivation behind our work is the “Appeal to Respect for the Person,” involving over 600 people in a wide range of activities, currently spread across various service units. ANSPAZ’s mission is to care for and educate children, adolescents, and other individuals in need or at risk, including those struggling with substance dependence. This is achieved through social, educational, and cultural initiatives, ensuring the realization of rights and the exercise of citizenship. Approximately 150 individuals are served on a daily basis.
The Mapear – Association Mobilizing Friends for Love – is a Civil Society Organization (CSO) that celebrated its 7th year of activity in 2022, serving over 70 children and adolescents along with their families. Our work is guided by the three pillars that underpin the concept of permaculture (reconnection with oneself, with others, and with nature). OBJECTIVE: Mapear aims to provide participants with the exercise of citizenship through experiences that promote autonomy, leadership, and awareness of oneself and the world around them. This includes the empowerment that leads to the autonomy of individuals and the community. Sustainability is a key focus, ensuring that actions are socially responsible, environmentally viable, and economically feasible. We offer the following Workshops/Services: Dance Graphic Arts Capoeira Pedagogical Activities Circus Music Environmental Education Breaking (dance style) Psychosocial Support These workshops are designed for children and young people aged 5 to 17, guided by specialized educators in their respective fields who provide theoretical and technical support. They take place Monday to Friday, during school breaks, from 8 am to 5 pm.
The Association for Support to Family, Group, and Community was established in 1994. It originated in response to a special call from Chiara Lubich, the founder of the Focolare Movement, initially addressed to the youth in 1977 to “die for one’s own people.” Operating as a non-profit philanthropic civil society organization, it serves 85 children and adolescents (ages 6 to 14) in situations of risk and social vulnerability. The mission is to promote fundamental and universal rights for children and adolescents in situations of risk and social vulnerability, such as health, education, nutrition, sports, culture, leisure, and family coexistence. The organization supports them in building a more solid future, guided by values of fraternity, dialogue, peace, and mutual respect.
We are a small community within the Focolare Movement, located on the southern coast of the state of São Paulo in the city of Peruíbe (SP), surrounded by the Atlantic Forest and the sea. Our community shares the same mission as the Focolare Movement: to live the Charism of Unity by building fraternal relationships, reaching out to the excluded, the new generations, and caring for the environment. Situated within the Jureia-Itatins Ecological Station on the southern coast of São Paulo, we are a local initiative that welcomes young people dedicated to environmental and social causes, providing an opportunity for in-depth exploration of integral ecology, including the possibility of trails and local knowledge. The Jureia-Itatins Ecological Station spans 84,425 hectares and is recognized as one of the best-preserved and protected stretches of the Atlantic Forest in Brazil. It boasts a highly diverse flora and fauna, featuring a significant number of rare species and various regional endemics.
The Community Service (SERCOM) is a non-profit civil social organization founded in 1980 by members of the Focolare Movement. Its main objective is to improve the quality of life for families in the 12 rural communities in the municipality of Itapecuru Mirim. Most of these communities are quilombolas with strong traditions of Afro-Brazilian culture. Currently, SERCOM’s work focuses primarily on the local school in the Literacy Project, at the health center with voluntary care for children, and on community strengthening and development through activities involving families in general. Young people can engage in activities based on the Literacy Project, including playful activities, theater, reading and literature, recreation, sports, art and creativity, and immersion in the vegetable cultivation activities of the local cooperative.
The Social Work Our Lady of Glory (Fazenda da Esperança) emerged in 1970 in a parish in the city of Guaratinguetá (SP) with the aim of assisting people in vulnerable situations. In 2007, the visit of Pope Benedict XVI marked a new direction in the history of the institution. Fazenda da Esperança is a therapeutic community that has been operating since 1983 in the recovery process of individuals seeking liberation from their addictions, especially alcohol and drugs. Its welcoming method encompasses three decisive aspects: Work as a pedagogical process, Living together as a family, and Spirituality to find the meaning of life. The Fazenda has more than 150 units spread across 25 countries. In Brazil, it is present in all states where thousands of people are assisted monthly. The young participants in the 1st phase of Genfest will be welcomed in units where about 350 recovering individuals live, providing them with the opportunity to have an immersive experience in the life of the Fazenda.
The Santa Maria School provides Basic Education (Elementary School – Early and Late Years) for 302 children and adolescents. The school stands out for its innovative methodology, carrying out projects for human development, knowledge, and social integration through Education for Peace and the Art of Love, as a complement to the school curriculum. Santa Maria School also develops a musicality project through the Orchestra Talents in the Service of Peace – OTSP (an activity conducted outside of regular class hours) and the Zero Waste Project (promoting Environmental Education, assisting in self-sustainability, and fostering ecological awareness). All educational activities are carried out by a team that emphasizes mutual love and fraternity among peoples as the primary reference for human development. Thus, the Santa Maria School contributes to transforming lives through the Art of Love, fostering actions of understanding for a united world.
The AACA was established in 1991 and legally constituted as a non-profit philanthropic NGO. The Association is located in one of the most violent neighborhoods in the metropolitan area of Recife. Its objective is to address numerous social issues such as a high illiteracy rate, hunger, alcoholism, drug trafficking, marginalization, and the sexual exploitation of children and adolescents. AACA engages in cultural activities (folk dance, capoeira, theater), sports (soccer), computer literacy, academic reinforcement, and citizenship education (environment, health, rights, and duties), promoting universal values such as solidarity and fraternity. These programs aim to ensure fundamental and universal rights for children and adolescents lacking resources, with a focus on their integral development within their natural family, the group to which they belong, and the community.
In this year of 2023, we celebrate nine years of Focolare on the Hill. The Massif of Morro da Cruz encompasses an area occupied by an estimated population of 25 thousand people, totaling around six thousand families distributed in 17 communities. Living on the hill, we respond to the specificity of our Charism: fraternity. We are immersed in the harshest realities of the lives of the impoverished, and paradoxically, this allows us to see the beauty of this territory. A distinctive feature of our experience is the geographical proximity to the people we encounter very frequently (in relationships with people, visits to homes, bars, institutions, etc.), both in the chapel, welcoming people and organizing liturgy, and also in situations that come to us, requiring our attention, action, and listening. Being open to the youth in this reality makes us realize how important this interaction is for them, touching on the social cause that becomes “real.” Building universal fraternity from the reality of the impoverished, learning from the reality of the periphery how to concretely respond to the challenges of the present times.
The history of SERMIG began in 1964 in the city of Turin, northern Italy, when Ernesto Olivero, driven by the desire to end hunger and social injustices worldwide, founded the Servizio Missionario Giovani – SERMIG, along with some friends who shared the same ideal. Since then, SERMIG has operated in 140 countries, engaging in humanitarian actions. The presence of SERMIG in Brazil was established in 1990, located in the traditional neighborhood of Mooca in São Paulo. Today, SERMIG hosts a total of 1,400 people at the Complex of Services and Attention to People in Street Situations, with 250 spots available during the day and 1,150 spots available at night. The facilities for reception include dormitories, bathrooms, a dining hall, industrial kitchen, laundry, storage, bakery, library, game and reading rooms, a sports court, and an amphitheater. Activities include: Welcoming people in street situations Social promotion activities and professional training.
The institute was founded in 2009 with the aim of contributing to the process of eradicating poverty in rural settlements by developing actions that generate social, economic, and environmental development, with a special focus on communion and solidarity factors. We work directly with three rural peasant communities (around 200 families) who, after a long period of struggle, gained possession of the land where they now work, produce, and take care of their families. The youth will immerse themselves in the lives of these rural communities that value agroecology and act as agents of change. It will be a direct connection with nature and the rich traditions of these communities.
The CEU brings together non-profit entities that engage in activities guided by Christian spiritual principles, open to an inter-religious perspective, and address people’s social needs. The focus includes recovery from substance addiction, care for children and youth at risk, support for adults and children with HIV, organizing events, educational and cultural activities, counseling, and spiritual gatherings. The CEU’s activities also involve providing support for girls and young victims of sexual abuse or exploitation, the reintegration of individuals released from the penal system with assistance for inmates and their families, and the social reintegration of homeless individuals. Activities to be carried out with the youth: Community interaction and various activities with children and adolescents in different communities Work at the social center and visits to vulnerable communities in the vicinity Street outreach in squares and health services at institutions.
Established in September 1972, the Society Movement of the Focolare (SMF) is a civil, charitable/philanthropic association, non-profit, and social assistance organization. Our primary objective is to reduce social inequalities. SMF supports projects and individuals through the development of practical actions to transform the reality of communities in situations of social vulnerability. This is achieved by creating strategies for strengthening social bonds, community development, and promoting a culture of universal fraternity and ethics of care. Currently, SMF carries out 8 Social Projects where young people can engage in volunteer work: Quilombo do Carmo Social Center; Jardim Margarida Social Center; Shelter for Homeless People (PSR); Milonga – volunteer program; EJMU (School of Youth for a United World); Spreading Cares – Taking care of those who care; Generation of Future – Insights into the world of work; Women’s and Men’s Futsal at the Jardim Margarida facilities.
The Day Center for People with Disabilities was established to facilitate the socialization, self-esteem, and autonomy of young adults with disabilities. The focus is on promoting dignity and quality of life, fostering interaction between the institution, individuals with intellectual disabilities, and their families. Our mission is to support adults with disabilities and their families through guidance and the provision of socio-assistance services and public policies, with a priority on improving their quality of life and advocating for their rights. Currently, we provide assistance to 56 individuals. We engage in daily activities aimed at stimulating individuals with disabilities for socialization and autonomy, and the participation of young people will be highly valuable.
The youth will be involved in social projects developed in the riverside communities of the Amazon, specifically on the islands of Abaetetuba. These projects address the issues of sexual abuse, trafficking, and the exploitation of children and adolescents, aiming to ensure the principle of the comprehensive protection of children and adolescents and their rights. The young individuals will accompany the actions and initiatives carried out by the parish Caritas with this objective. It will be a hands-on experience, a firsthand involvement, and a deep immersion into the community.
The Center is a non-profit civil society organization recognized as having Public Utility status. The target audience includes children and adolescents aged 4 to 17, as well as their families. We provide socio-educational, leisure, and sports activities, academic support, citizenship workshops, as well as lectures, training sessions, meetings, and home visits. Additionally, we offer Psychopedagogical, Psychological, and Social Support, socio-educational activities, supporting families by providing entertainment and leisure options with the aim of promoting human development and preparing individuals for life. For the young volunteers from Genfest, we offer the opportunity for interaction with the riverside population, engagement in activities with children, and involvement with individuals experiencing homelessness.
The Fazenda da Esperança “Transfiguration of the Lord,” inaugurated on February 4, 2023, is the newest unit of the Fazenda da Esperança Institution. The mission of Fazenda da Esperança is to welcome individuals facing exclusion and social risks, with a primary focus on those struggling with substance abuse and alcoholism. The goal is to restore human dignity by providing human and spiritual formation, incorporating various therapeutic interventions, including daily work for personal sustenance. To support the self-sustainability of those welcomed, various work activities are currently undertaken, such as the production of biscuits and bread, as well as the cultivation of various vegetables. The young volunteer will be involved in the activities described above.
The community develops projects through music, assistance with food, and shelter for vulnerable individuals. They strive to keep alive the origins and ancestry of their people, contributing to instilling hope and dignity in the youth, children, and adults. The community offers young participants of Genfest an immersive experience in communities facing challenging social situations in different neighborhoods of Salvador, such as Quilombo dos Macacos and Comunidade Trindade. There will be a Cultural Visit to the city of Salvador, exploring places like Pelourinho, the Historic Center, and the Life and Work of Saint Dulce of the Poor.
The Asces-Unita is a community-based University Center located in Caruaru, PE, with significant experience in education and academic training for both young and adult learners. The university has been developing the project: Asces-Unita towards Genfest. It provides young Genfest volunteers with the opportunity to engage in the practical aspects of university extension projects in various areas, including environmental, social, legal, health, etc.
The Focolare Movement South will partner with the Missionary Sisters of Christ Resurrected who support a Social Project aimed at addressing the needs of the local community. It is an impoverished community where these Sisters, with the collaboration of professionals from various fields, assist residents in self-management. Through Solidarity Economy, a cooperative was established where women work on recycling kitchen oil for the production of ecological soap, cleaning products, and candles. Additionally, a vegetable garden was created to provide food, employment, and income for the residents. The program aims to strengthen family and community bonds, providing socio-educational support to families facing high vulnerability. Currently, around 90 individuals benefit from these projects.
Fraternity in Unity Project (supported by the Focolare Movement): Welcoming migrants and refugees from Venezuela, Cuba, and Haiti. Junta Mais NGO (partner organization): Providing after-school activities for children in situations of vulnerability.
The city of Sorocaba has a social project called “Solidarity Bakery,” where not only bread is produced for donation but also homemade soap is made using used oil. Deepen the concept and practice of integral ecology. Contribute to helping young people find in Genfest an impetus to be agents of change in their local reality. Young participants will have the opportunity to experience the Solidarity Bakery, soap making, and visit the communities that receive the products.
The Mureru Eco Amazon Institute – MEAI, founded in 2016, is a civil association with a socio-environmental, cultural, educational, and philanthropic character, focusing on environmental conservation and sustainable development; promoting environmental education; protecting traditional populations; and ensuring human rights. MEAI primarily operates in the field of Educommunication, aiming at leadership development and youth empowerment. It also works on training teachers, children, and youth to think and act globally and locally, contributing to the environmental sustainability of the Amazon and the planet. Currently, the institute coordinates two projects: Water School Tapajós Transformative Territory.
The Gen Verde International Performing Arts Group is a musical ensemble composed of 19 artists from 14 countries. It is evident that the group’s strength lies in its internationality and cultural richness, characteristics that bring an original touch to their music. The aim of Gen Verde is to give voice to the people of our time, to different cultures, and to the history of humanity, moving with effort, but inevitably, towards fraternity. Start Now Workshop Project Start Now is an artistic and musical project created to promote peace and dialogue. It aims to foster cultural intelligence, openness, and respect for diversity through artistic-experiential learning. The goal of this project is to help participants discover and develop their own talents by engaging in various artistic workshops, overcoming insecurities, and recognizing the ability and courage to be themselves. The program includes singing, dancing, theater, and percussion workshops; a performance by the Gen Verde group, for which young participants will have been prepared to showcase their talents; and a concluding evaluation moment for the project.
Profavi is turning 25 this year and welcomes children and teenagers in situations of social vulnerability. The institution’s mission is to welcome and support children and teenagers in situations of social vulnerability.
The volunteer program consists of playing, talking and telling stories with the children.
The João de Tito Institute is a CSO (Civil Society Organization), which takes care of People with Disabilities at all ages and types of Disabilities: people bedridden in their homes, people with visual impairments, Down’s, wheelchair users and autistic people. The Institute serves people in need of psychological, physiotherapy, speech therapy, nutritional and medical assistance, as well as spiritual support.
Activities for volunteers: Visit families, listen to people with disabilities and, if possible, do some educational or recreational activities.
The Casa de Maria Social Work was born in 2022 from the dream of a volunteer from the Focolare Movement with the aim of serving homeless people in the city of São Gonçalo.
Today we are around 60 volunteers at Casa de Maria who help with donations of supplies, cooking and distributing, every Saturday, breakfast and an average of 130 hot meals. Meals are prepared in our kitchen, which is fully equipped.
We also have a clothing bazaar sold at an affordable price. The amount raised goes towards funding Casa de Maria. We also promote the “Solidarity Shower” project, which distributes clean clothes, towels and personal hygiene products. The main objective is to provide food, clothing, hygiene materials, affection and support to people living on the streets. We also receive people who have a roof over their heads, but live in poverty.
Possible activities of young Genfest volunteers: Help with all the activities carried out at Casa de Maria, namely: preparing food (food and breakfast) for homeless people served by the social work, assembling warm dishes, distributing food on site and on the streets (always under the supervision of an adult volunteer), take care of the maintenance of the house, help organize the solidarity shower and also at the charity bazaar. We also plan to have training moments on solidarity focused on the culture of fraternity.
Lar Mãe da Providência Santa Maria Maior Charity Association. The Mãe da Providência Association was born in 2000 from a Catholic prayer group that, seeing the needs around them, felt God’s call to donate to the poor, helping families and welcoming the abandoned, gradually several people joined the group.
Our mission is to restore dignity, offer better living conditions, health and well-being for people who are homeless and/or abandoned, without family or resources, in addition to helping families in need in the region.
Genfest volunteers can help us with cleaning, organizing and maintaining the entity’s internal and external spaces. Assist with preparation and distribution at 3 meal times. Searching, sorting and organizing donations, and activities with those receiving care.
Irmãs Minimas da Paixão de N.S.J.CA: Obra Social Santa Luzia is a branch of Cáritas Diocesana de Colatina. It is a Community Center – Basic Social Protection. We welcome children and teenagers from 6 to 15 years old.
THE SOCIAL PROJECT “ESPAÇO DA ALEGRIA” aims to promote and monitor children and teenagers in situations of personal and social vulnerability, as well as support their families in their educational performance, providing an alternative space for prevention and development that contributes to quality of life, through activities that encourage the formation of human values and enable people to exercise citizenship, and comprehensive training.
The program for Genfest volunteers consists of collaborating in Social Work activities with children and teenagers, visiting families, the sick and, if possible, participating at some point with the community in rural areas.
Irmãs Minimas da Paixão de N.S.J.CA are a Congregation of Italian origin, whose charisma is the reception of the most vulnerable children and the support of their families. In 1985, 3 Italian sisters arrived in Rio de Janeiro directly to the Favela do Terreirão in Recreio dos Bandeirantes, where they began pastoral work of presence, catechesis and welcoming children and teens and monitoring families in the community, which continues to this day. The solidarity network has grown and strengthened over the years.
Together with volunteers and the local community, we developed a customer service, school support, leisure, IT, crafts and support workshops and visits to families in the community.
The program for Genfest volunteers: work with children and teenagers and visits to families
NGO REDI (Restoration and Ecodevelopment of the Itabapoana River Hydrographic Basin). REDI is a socio-environmental CSO created during the 2020 pandemic period with the mission of restoring and eco-developing the Itabapoana River hydrographic basin, while fostering socio-environmentally fair economic development in the region. The objective is to promote comprehensive care for the Itabapoana basin, through critical environmental education, social mobilization, promotion of agroecological practices and solidarity economy, ecotourism and good living and the restoration and conservation of our biodiversity.
Program for young Genfest volunteers:
1. Reception of participants at the 1st Itabapoana Hydrographic Basin Forum, promoted by the institution, mediation of moments at this same meeting and participation in the event, taking place between the 10th and 13th of July.
2. Participation and conduction of a tourist visit promoted by the CSO on 07/13;
3. Participation in the production and management of native Atlantic Forest seedlings in an CSO partner nursery from the 15th to the 18th of July;
4. Participation in incursions to collect seeds in areas of Atlantic Forest remnants in the region between the 15th and 18th of July;
5. Participation in the organization of a fair to promote the local solidarity economy on 07/18.
Alimenta La Solidaridad: is a non-governmental organization that was created in 2016 to contain the food crisis that affected the most vulnerable in the country. We started by opening soup kitchens in communities, managing to establish relationships of trust with our beneficiaries. Now, together with them, we developed 8 programs based on community organizing.
The objective is to: Design and implement community programs aimed at improving the well-being and development of the most vulnerable in Venezuela. We create spaces for meeting, participation and opportunities for growth so that each citizen becomes a transformative agent in their community, to reach their maximum potential and break the generational cycle of inequality.
A ACNS was born on December 20, 1988. It is a non-profit association. Our mission is to contribute to the prevention and resolution of the consequences of poverty, especially those produced by child abandonment in children and adolescents, accompanying the family, along with their community, in discovering their development possibilities. Various services are offered, including workshops in non-formal education, artistic workshops (music, theater, drawing, and painting), sports, computer science, sewing, weaving, yoga, dance, and academic support for elementary, secondary, and university entrance preparation. The Casa del Niño has a dining room where children up to 14 years old have breakfast, lunch, and snacks. The Adult Primary School and the Program.
Community of Rosario – The Focolare Community of the city of Rosario, develops peace education work at the Sacred Heart and Mary Mother of the Church schools. The work is carried out within the Living Peace International project. The young Genfest volunteers will develop various childcare activities as well as socio-environmental activities promoted by the project.
Since 1986, Team TEPEYAC, in response to its mission, has been attempting to walk alongside Indigenous Communities in the search for alternative development solutions for the area, especially for the Wichi Indigenous communities. Thanks to the commitment and will of the team, it has been possible to manage projects and agreements that have allowed us to grow not only materially but also in the quality of life of the communities and their reality, strengthening self-management and community organization, contributing to the construction of a more just society based on the diversity of peoples and cultures, where Human Rights and, in particular, the rights of Indigenous Peoples are realized. Accompany and promote the sustainable development of Indigenous Communities. Revalue Indigenous Cultures. Strengthen the social and community organization of Indigenous Communities.
We work by respecting the local reality through dialogue and promoting the active participation of the involved sectors through areas such as education, justice, and social promotion, so that they become protagonists of their own development. We conduct workshops for the literacy of 40 children and 25 adults.
The foundation’s mission is to welcome impoverished, sick, or socially emergent children and families. Currently, over 100 families and more than 250 boys and girls live in our center. Our main challenge remains in building and strengthening intra-family bonds and connections among community families, always respecting their culture and the context in which they develop. This is achieved through socio-educational awareness programs, ensuring a dignified life while respecting their rights and facilitating access to new opportunities so that they can have a better quality of life in the future.
We are a shelter for young people in critical situations. Operating for four years, our model is based on the spirituality of unity and addiction recovery programs. Our mission is to rehabilitate young people for a life with more human dignity. The program includes work in the garden and carpentry.
It is a Civil Association founded in 2014. It promotes initiatives on various fronts of social action with a focus on fraternity and the promotion of human dignity and the integral development of the communities where it operates. Its initiatives are oriented towards themes such as child custody, ecology and community development, prevention and rehabilitation of dependencies, promotion of citizenship, international volunteering, among others.
The institution was created to shelter elderly individuals who are alone, sick, and abandoned. The home provides tangible love to all those who have lived without knowing any signs of affection. We, the volunteers, want to change this reality of sadness, pain, and abandonment. The mission is to care for, attend to, and accompany any elderly person in need, making them feel the warmth of a family. The youth can assist in transporting the elderly for activities, as well as in distributing food to beneficiaries at their homes.
Pata Pila is an NGO that has been working since 2015 to address issues affecting the lives of families in situations of extreme and structural poverty in Argentina. Today, we have interdisciplinary teams of professionals living and working in indigenous communities in the province of Salta, as well as in neighborhoods and peripheral settlements in the provinces of Mendoza, Entre Ríos, and Buenos Aires. We implement programs to protect early childhood, combat malnutrition, empower and strengthen the social economy, integrate families into the public-private system, actively working to restore the right to health, identity, decent housing, and access to clean water. In the Malnutrition Care and Prevention Program, we combat malnutrition in children under 5 years old. A team of interdisciplinary professionals closely monitors the health status of each child in the program.
The Mercy Alliance in Venezuela is involved in two social projects aimed at children facing malnutrition. A total of 160 children are assisted, receiving lunch, snacks, as well as human and spiritual formation, and academic reinforcement from Monday to Friday.
SCHEDULE FAQ
You can participate in the 1st Phase of Genfest from July 12th to 18th, 2024. In this experience, you will have the opportunity to get actively involved in volunteer activities in more than 35 Civil Society Organizations in several countries, including Brazil, Argentina, Bolivia, Mexico, Peru, and Venezuela.
You can find more information about the list of partner organizations in the 1st Phase of Genfest by clicking here. Additional details about places or the number of vacancies can be found on the registration platform.
You will be responsible for the round-trip transportation from your starting point to the Civil Society Organization in which you will participate during the 1st Phase of Genfest.
The 1st Phase finishes on July 18th. From this day onwards participants that will go to Aparecida – SP, for the 2nd Phase can travel to participate in the program that starts on July 19th in the afternoon.
