Supporting Melbourne’s youth
Opportunities to get training, learn new skills and meet new people, and the personal satisfaction of lending a helping hand, have been just some of the rewards of volunteering at the Ethnic Youth Council.
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Volunteering case study transcript (English)
Hi. My name is Abdo and I volunteer at the Ethnic Youth Council, EYC.
What do you do?
I do many small things. We have fortnightly meetings where we get together to plan activities for the diverse youth that live in Melbourne. We represent specific issues to these groups of youth at different forums and conferences.
We also run training…we work with other agencies to run training for them free of charge. Yeah, so these are some of the things we do.
How did you get involved?
The way I got involved…I used to go with my friends to this community meeting and one day this person came and she told us about this great idea that she wanted to set up this specific group or council for young people.
She wanted to get young people from different cultural and linguistic backgrounds to be part of this and I have always been interested to volunteer and try and have a contribution in such things. So I attended the meetings and liked what they were trying to come up with and I have been attending since then. That’s how it happened.
Do you need any specific skills or knowledge to do your role?
No, I don’t think so because I believe we all have special skills that we can apply in one way or another…so…I don’t think (so), really. I guess with the EYC…I guess with myself being from a culturally and linguistically diverse group…I guess I was capable of using my experiences.
And also using that to contribute to the group and sharing that with the group and also wanting to help other youth from culturally diverse (backgrounds) to have these opportunities.
What is the most challenging thing about your volunteering role?
What’s challenging about volunteering? I guess it’s not really that challenging. There is no challenge because, you know, the fact that you are wanting to be a part of this means that it’s something you enjoy and something you like doing.
So it’s really rewarding and I guess you also come across some challenges. But you have to look at the positives that you gain from that. I think there are more positives.
For example, there’s a lot of opportunities (that are a) big part of this. I know some people who have got employment opportunities. You get training opportunities where you don’t have to pay. You expand your social networks. You meet a lot of important people and you also learn a lot of things. And you get to go to a lot of places.
And also for me personally it’s the satisfaction that I want to help people and the fact that I want to make a contribution and use my experiences to achieve something positive and do something positive for those that will be in my situation down the track.
Do you have any advice for others?
I guess it can be intimidating at the start, being part of something. But what I would say is don’t be too scared. Don’t give it up too quickly if you find it challenging at the start and if you find something challenging try to talk to other members or other people. You will definitely be able to find help.
Think about why you want to do it and think about the impact that you will have on the people you will come across, I guess.
And also most importantly for me it is the personal satisfaction that you gain from what you do. At the end it makes you feel good from the inside and nothing compares to that.
And, as I said before, think about what you will achieve being part of this employment opportunity meeting a lot of people. Just think of all those things which are really great.