The European Network on Independent Living (ENIL) is looking for a 6 – 9 months European Solidarity Corps volunteer.
ENIL is an NGO run by and for disabled people. Our main goals are to promote the right of all disabled people to live independently and to be included in the community.
As a European Solidarity Corps (ESC) volunteer, you will work in the ENIL Brussels office and gain experience in advocating for changes in European laws and policies, as part of a small international team. While volunteering for ENIL, you will also learn more about disability rights and Independent Living.
A regular working week is 35 hours from Monday to Friday from 09:00h – 17:00h. These hours are flexible and can be adjusted depending on the access needs of the volunteer. If ENIL organises an event or has to attend a meeting, there can be occasional need for work to be carried out during the late afternoon or during the weekend. The hours worked during the weekends or evenings can be recuperated as free hours during the weeks following the event.
General tasks will include participating in ENIL (staff) meetings and the daily running of the office.
Within the first month of the ESC programme, ENIL will give you the chance to learn more about all aspects of its work. After this introductory period, staff will together with you identify how you can best contribute to ENIL’s work based on your interests and preferences. For example, if you have excellent writing skills, you may be given responsibility to develop articles for the Newsletter or website, new publications or policy statements.
Depending on your skills and interests, your day to day tasks may include:
- Supporting the staff with organising campaigns (in particular, the Independent Living Day on 5 May)
- Contributing to ENIL’s advocacy work (by supporting ENIL’s work to build new alliances after the EU elections and following-up EU initiatives like the new regulation on EU Funds or sessions of UN Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, etc.)
- Planning and organising events, such as study visits, workshops, hearings in the European Parliament etc.
- Attending and reporting on external meetings/events (e.g. EP hearings, during the first months accompanied by ENIL staff member)
- Desk based research and drafting of texts to contribute to written materials, such as fact sheets, toolkits, manuals
- Contributing to the work of the ENIL Youth Network
- Writing articles for the monthly Newsletter
- Posting on the ENIL website, Facebook pages and Twitter
You will always be working together with a responsible member of the ENIL staff and will not have sole responsibility for your work.
We expect you to have a positive can-do attitude and basic computer skills. As the working language at ENIL is English, a good knowledge of the English language is essential. You have to be older than 18 and younger than 31 on the first day of your placement and cannot be in paid employment to be accepted in the ESC program.
If you want to make a difference and contribute to creating an inclusive society, you could be the person ENIL is looking for!
Place of the European Solidarity Corps volunteer period: Brussels, Belgium
Start of the European Solidarity Corps volunteer period: March 2020, duration min. 6 months to max. 9 months by mutual agreement based on preference and available budget.
Expenses and access needs information: PLEASE READ THIS INFORMATION VERY CAREFULLY
- The volunteer selected will not need to use their own money to participate in the European Solidarity Corps programme. Travel, accommodation and some pocket money are covered by the program, as well as extra costs for special needs/personal assistance for disabled people.
- The pocket money should not be used for food and travel costs. These will be covered separately (for more information on the different European Solidarity Corps responsibilities see https://europa.eu/youth/solidarity/faq_en).
- Once the volunteer is selected, ENIL will contact them to find out their access needs (if any) and will then apply for funding for the project based on their needs.
- It is important to be clear about your access needs and potential extra cost (e.g. price of visa) you might have, so this can be taken into account in the ENIL- Solidarity Corps
- Young people from countries outside the European Union can take part in the ESC programme (for a list of eligible countries, please see the Solidarity Corps website). However, please note that the application process for a visa to volunteer in Belgium can take some time. While ENIL will do everything it can to get you to Brussels as fast as possible, a long visa application process might shorten your ESC period in Brussels.
- Young people in the UK should note that, while they can apply for ESC, depending on the outcome of Brexit, they may not be able to go ahead with their placement.
- ENIL will provide support in making the practical arrangements to meet volunteers’ access needs e.g. find accessible accommodation and (budget for) personal assistants. Volunteers are expected to play an active role in this process.
- Once a budget has been drafted, it is sent off to the ESC Agency for approval. It should be approved by the end of December.
- ENIL will do its best to secure funding to cover all access needs, but it is up to the ESC agency as to what will be covered.
- The project is not confirmed to go ahead until the budget is approved. Therefore, there is a very small chance the project will not go ahead. However, ENIL will do its utmost to ensure that this doesn’t happen.
- Brussels is a very inaccessible city and it is difficult for disabled people to use the public transport to get around. ENIL will do everything possible to make sure the volunteer can travel to the ENIL office comfortably. Because it is impossible to make an inaccessible system completely accessible, this will also require some commitment, flexibility, and active involvement of the volunteer.
- The volunteer must be committed to the mission and principles of the European Solidarity Corps (see: https://europa.eu/youth/solidarity/mission_en)
Application:
- Send your CV and a short motivational letter before 08/08/2019 to Frank Sioen at enilesc.applications@gmail.com.
- Register in the ESC database (https://europa.eu/youth/solidarity/register/check_en). This can also be done after you are selected, but needs to be completed before the start of the ENIL- ESC project.
- Based on the experience from the last year, we expect a high number of applications, so please take into account that competition for the ESC position will be high. Only shortlisted applicants will be contacted by 16/08/2019. (We strongly encourage disabled people to apply).
More information: www.enil.eu and https://www.facebook.com/ENILsecretaria/
