Author(s): Valentin Cosmin Blândul / Language(s): English
Issue: 4/2021
In many countries in the European Union, but also outside it, volunteering is one of the most important activities, being practiced by a growing number of people. The motivation to get involved in volunteer activities is extremely diverse and includes arguments related to the need to know other people, to gain experience in a certain field, to solve a problem facing the community or even the person concerned, to spend their free time in a useful, pleasant and even fun way, etc. Unfortunately, in Romania the subject of volunteering is quite little addressed, and a relatively small number of people are really involved in this phenomenon. The explanations could come, on the one hand, from the communist history of the country, in which volunteering was associated with"patriotic work", and this with the obligatory debt to the ruling party, and on the other hand, from the current modest economic situation of Romania, the preoccupation of many people being oriented towards the activities that bring financial income and less towards the charitable acts. However, generational exchange could bring young people to understand that money is important, but not an end in itself, and voluntary involvement in an activity can bring much more consistent benefits in the medium and long term. Therefore, in this study, we will analyze some of the most important volunteer activities through which students and their teachers can get involved in the development of the communities in which they live.
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