The European VolunTrek project took part in the 8th Caritas Training Week, which took place in Évora from 15 to 18 September, under the theme ‘A synodal network that transforms’.
The Training Week brought together staff and volunteers from different levels of the Caritas network, promoting the development of participants’ skills, the exchange of experiences, the sharing of good practices and joint reflection on the current challenges facing social work. The event also sought to strengthen Caritas’s capacity to respond to society’s needs in an increasingly innovative, collaborative and transformative way.
It was within this context of learning, volunteer capacity-building and cooperation that the VolunTrek project was presented to participants.
VolunTrek brings together organisations from Portugal, Spain, Poland and Serbia to develop a toolkit designed to support social and educational organisations in the preparation, management and supervision of adult volunteers.
The toolkit aims to strengthen the skills of both organisations and the volunteers themselves, with a particular focus on the social, emotional and intercultural dimensions. It also includes guidelines for developing in-person, online and hybrid volunteering experiences.
The presentation of VolunTrek was therefore particularly well aligned with the objectives of the Cáritas Training Week: to empower people and organisations, encourage the sharing of best practice and develop solutions best suited to today’s social challenges.
Taking part in the meeting provided an important opportunity to raise awareness of the project within the Caritas network, promote new opportunities for collaboration and gather input for the development of a European methodology capable of improving the quality of adult volunteering.
The VolunTrek project is co-funded by the European Union and runs from July 2025 to July 2027.