Author: minna

Welcome all Maailmanvaihto’s friends to our outdoor activity on Saturday 21st of September! 🍂

We will organise the activity simultaneously in Lahti and in Seinäjoki. The plan is to meet at Lahden matkakeskus (in Lahti) and at S-market Jouppi (in Seinäjoki) at 12 pm. It’s good to check the weather beforehand and take enough clothing in case of wind, cold or rain. 🌞

The idea of the activity is to have a relaxing and energizing, around three hour nature walk around Lahden urheilukeskus (in Lahti) and Jouppilanvuori (in Seinäjoki). In addition we get to know each other! You can have snacks with you and Maailmanvaihto will also provide some. ✨

We welcome to the activity all Maailmanvaihto’s volunteers and Buddies as well as other friends of our NGO. Come and bring your friends, too! In the gathering, we will follow Maailmanvaihto’s guidelines for safer spaces.

If you would be interested to join or have further questions on the accessibility of the routes, for example, please contact buddies@maailmanvaihto.fi

Maailmanvaihto office will be closed on Friday 21st of June. We wish you all a sunny Midsummer Weekend!

Dear people of Maailmanvaihto and our friends, Pride is here again! Join us to celebrate the culmination of Pride Month and Helsinki Pride Week with the joyful and colorful Pride parade and the park picnic on Saturday 29 June 2024! Together, let’s show our support for the rainbow community by marching proudly for equality, diversity and sexual and gender minority rights.

The themes of the year are peace and hope – two things we also want to promote in Maailmanvaihto’s activities. Through Maailmanvaihto, young people from all over the world interact with new cultures and meet people through international volunteering. We want to encourage global responsibility, peace and the building of a more equal world through intercultural learning.

For us, caring and inclusiveness are important values that help create safer spaces for all. We want our work to be increasingly sensitive to gender and sexual diversity. Come as you are and if you wish, take a friend with you!

What? Helsinki Pride is the largest human rights and cultural event in Finland. June is the official Pride month, culminating in Helsinki Pride week from 24–30 June 2024, with the traditional parade and Kaivopuisto picnic on Saturday 29 June. Read more on the Helsinki Pride Community website: https://pride.fi/en/.

Where and when? The parade starts from the Senate Square. We will meet on the side of the square, in front of the main entrance of the National Library (Unioninkatu 36) at 12. We will join at the end of the parade. Most probably, it will take some time for the parade to get going, so it is advisable to consider the weather conditions!

The parade route: Senate Square > Aleksanterinkatu > Mannerheimintie > Pohjois- Esplanadi > Fabianinkatu > Eteläinen Makasiinikatu > Kasarminkatu > Neitsytpolku > Kaivopuisto Park. The route of the parade is about 2,8 km long. On the website of Helsinki Pride, you can find instructions and accessibility information.

The picnic will take place in Kaivopuisto park, where the parade ends. There we will settle down together after the walk to relax and enjoy snacks together. If you wish, you too can bring a small vegetarian dish or drink to share. We will bring a small blanket, but bringing your own blanket or mat is also recommended.

Please note that Maailmanvaihto cannot cover travel costs to the event for the participants. Stay tuned for more info and see you then!

Join us! Welcome people of Maailmanvaihto and friends of our organization! If you would like to join us, we hope you will let us know in advance at harjoittelija@maailmanvaihto.fi so we know who to expect.

If you cannot find us, you can call or text our office intern Ilona: +358 50 346 0965. Please note, though, that it is expected that many people will join the parade and the picnic in general, due to which the connection and the audibility may be weak.

Are you looking for a volunteer activity for the summer? Do you live in Finland? Are you passionate about camp life and cooking for groups? Join the team of the on-arrival training camp!

Maailmanvaihto will organise an on-arrival training camp from 22 to 28 August 2024 for young people coming to Finland from abroad for volunteering. The camp will be held at Metsäpirtti camping centre in Tuusula. We are now looking for enthusiastic kitchen team members to join us. The kitchen team prepares the daily meals for the participants.

At this Maailmanvaihto training camp, you will get to know volunteers from all over the world and see how the camp is built. At the heart of the camp are intercultural learning and conflict resolution. We will also learn about cultures and society in Finland. The camp language is English.

We provide bus transport to the camp from Helsinki. For camp team members arriving from other parts of Finland, we will reimburse the cost of travel by the cheapest public transport. The camp will be organised by Maailmanvaihto’s Programme Coordinator, the office team volunteer and interns, 2–3 volunteer camp instructors, the kitchen team leader, and 4–5 kitchen team members. The tasks of the kitchen team members at the camp are voluntary activities and a certificate will be issued if desired.

We are looking for committed individuals who share the values and mission of Maailmanvaihto. Our values are global responsibility, intercultural learning, and equality. Caring and inclusivity, reliability and responsibility, and transparency are important principles in our work. Read more about the operating principles of Maailmanvaihto

We try to organise a planning and briefing meeting for kitchen team members before the camp. The kitchen leader informs the team members about practical matters. The camp follows Maailmanvaihto’s guidelines for safer spaces.

To become a kitchen team member

• We expect kitchen team members to have basic cooking skills, but no specific cooking skills are required. The most important thing is responsibility and motivation to cook for a large group over several days.

How to get involved

• Send us a free-form application stating that you are applying to the kitchen team and why you are interested in working in this voluntary position at the camp. We will put together a team as and when suitable participants are found.
• Please send your application to Mari Takalo, the organisation’s secretary, at hosting@maailmanvaihto.fi. Mari will be happy to provide more information, e.g. on accessibility, by email and phone: 044 318 0888.

We look forward to hearing from you, join us to create an unforgettable camp experience!

Maailmanvaihto’s Spring Picnic! 🌸

Welcome to a picnic brunch, all friends of Maailmanvaihto, on Sunday 26 May.

We will meet at 11.30–13.30 in Helsinki in Kalasatamanpuisto park (near the seafront and the street called Parrulaituri), near the World Village Festival (https://maailmakylassa.fi/en/in-english/).

Maailmanvaihto will provide coffee and tea and small vegetarian snacks, but you are welcome to bring food to share. Picnic blankets and placemats are also welcome. (Unfortunately, in case of heavy rain, the gathering will be cancelled.)

Put it in your diary already and join us for a nice Sunday day at the festival and Helsinki Spring! 🌞

Further information on Kalasatamanpuisto: https://www.myhelsinki.fi/see-and-do/sights/kalasatamanpuisto-park

If you have questions, please don’t hesitate to contact us. You can reach us at tiedottaja@maailmanvaihto.fi.