The registration for the V Volunteer Meeting of Avilés closes on Tuesday, June 10 at 3:00 p.m.
Jun 05, 2025
Last days to formalize the registration for the V Volunteer Meeting of Avilés, which will take place next Thursday, June 12, at the University Services Center. Aimed at technical staff, representatives of entities, volunteers, and all those interested in volunteering, registration can be done until June 10 at 3:00 p.m.
Attendance to the meeting is free, but due to capacity reasons, prior registration is essential, which can be done through the website avilesvoluntariado.org or by calling the phone number of the Municipal Volunteer Office, 985 129 098. Participants will receive a certificate of attendance.
The «V Volunteer Meeting of Avilés» is an annual event where volunteers, representatives, and technical staff from entities, associations, and Public Administrations participate. It is organized by the Department of Citizen Participation, through the Municipal Volunteer Office, with the collaboration of the Volunteer Platform of Asturias.
The event is conceived as a learning space, where ideas are exchanged, and knowledge is shared, a space that promotes reflection and encounter among people from different fields and with different perspectives on volunteering.
It has been held in Avilés since 2021, and each edition addresses a specific theme related to volunteer action. In this fifth meeting, under the heading «Volunteering and Unwanted Loneliness,» the idea of volunteering as an effective tool in the fight against this widespread social issue in our time: unwanted loneliness, will be explored.
It is structured in two separate sessions, so interested individuals can choose to participate in one or both sessions, depending on their interests and availability.
The morning session (9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.) is more technical and will feature, after the institutional opening, a keynote address given by Elisa Sala Mozos, a researcher and social consultant with extensive professional experience in the field of unwanted loneliness.
This will be followed by a round table where Good Practices experiences on volunteering programs in the field of unwanted loneliness will be presented. The table will include representatives, technical staff, and volunteer personnel from five entities: Caritas, Red Cross, Grandes Amigos, FAMPA, and ONCE.
- «Social Network for the Elderly: Enrédate» program by the Red Cross. Ms. Nuria Vázquez Rodríguez, program manager.
- «Young and Elderly: generations that support each other» project by Caritas. Ms. Bárbara Fernández Bango, Responsible for the Young Volunteer Project in Asturias; Ms. Pilar Sancho Suárez, Responsible for the Elderly Project in Caritas Oviedo, and Mr. Alfonso Suárez Escobedo, young volunteer of the project.
- «Always by Your Side» program by ONCE. Ms. Virginia Corredera De Lucas, Head of Social Services at ONCE.
- Programs of the «Grandes Amigos» Foundation. Ms. Sara Ruiz, Responsible for Social Development in Cantabria.
- «Caring by Accompanying» program by FAMPA (Federation of Associations of the Elderly of the Principality of Asturias) Ms. Eva Mª Paredes, Manager of FAMPA.
It will conclude with a participatory dynamics where measures to minimize the impact of unwanted loneliness through volunteering, with the necessary collaboration between Local Administrations and volunteer entities, will be discussed.
The afternoon session (4:00 p.m. to 6:30 p.m.) is eminently practical. Three entities belonging to the Local Volunteer Board of Avilés, ASICAS, Red Cross, and ONCE, will conduct workshops aimed at showing the different aspects of unwanted loneliness and the important role that entities and volunteers can play in addressing this issue.
- Workshop 1: Red Cross: «In good company: what do you know about unwanted loneliness?»
- Workshop 2: ASICAS: «Stroke and Unwanted Loneliness»
- Workshop 3: ONCE: «Put yourself in their shoes: how does a visually impaired person feel in a situation of loneliness?»
Exhibition of the Poster Contest «Voluntad.es… what sets you apart»
Simultaneously with the meeting, there will be a retrospective exhibition of the Poster Contest «Voluntad.es… what sets you apart.» It consists of the exhibition of the posters awarded in this annual contest, aimed at students aged 14 to 18 in Secondary Education, Baccalaureate, and Vocational Training throughout Asturias. It is organized by the Department of Social Rights and Welfare and the Network of Volunteer Centers and Social Participation of Asturias, and has become a space for creativity, social commitment, and collective learning.
The exhibition can be visited in the hall of the Casa de Cultura between June 9 and 12.
