Volunteering with Traper@s de Emaús Murcia

Start: Sep. 2026

End: Jul. 2027

There will be several tasks assigned to the participant. The volunteer will be involved in several areas of activity within the hosting organization, with their main role focused on supporting the circular bookstore “Libros Traperos”. The volunteer will work on a split-shift schedule, with activities taking place both in the morning and afternoon depending on the needs of each area.

1. Main Activity: Support at the Circular Bookstore “Libros Traperos”: The bookstore is a central project of the organization, and the volunteer’s primary responsibilities will include:

· Sorting and classification of donated materials: Selection, care, organization, and recycling of books donated to the project.

· Customer service: Providing information to the public about the organization’s mission and values.

· Basic retail tasks: Operating the cash register, handling payments (cash and card), and managing simple documentation.

· E-commerce support: Maintaining databases, assisting with online customer service, managing orders and shipments, taking product photos, and supporting website upkeep.

· Online communication: Creating content for social media, taking basic photos and videos, engaging with followers, and using basic graphic design tools (e.g., Canva).

· Event support: Assisting in the organization of bookstore-related events, including setup, hospitality, signage, and attendee support.

· Publisher and distributor relations: Helping with basic distribution tasks and communication with authors, publishers, and partner organizations.

2. Communication and Awareness Area: In addition to their main bookstore responsibilities, the volunteer may support the organization’s awareness-raising efforts, such as:

· Assisting in guided tours of the facilities.

· Participating in fairs and awareness stands, typically held in the mornings or as full-day events.

· Engaging in talks and debates about the activities of Traperos de Emaús and the importance of social responsibility in combating exclusion.

3. Complementary Areas of Participation: While not central to the volunteer’s role, there may be opportunities to get involved in other organizational areas, including:

· Support for people in vulnerable situations: Participating in activities aimed at supporting people experiencing social exclusion, homelessness, mental health challenges, former prisoners, and other vulnerable groups. These activities may include workshops, leisure and community participation initiatives, awareness-raising actions, accompaniment, and other interventions designed to promote social inclusion and wellbeing.

· Community support: Assisting the technical team in supporting community members in their path toward autonomy through basic training (e.g., reading, writing), and help with everyday tasks (e.g., cleaning, cooking, gardening, leisure activities).

· Youth outreach and mobility: Promoting European mobility programmes among young people in the Region of Murcia and users of the organization.

· ESC programme promotion: Participating in presentations and workshops about the European Solidarity Corps in youth organizations, high schools, and the University of Murcia.

· Content creation: Developing monthly updates and content that reflect the volunteer’s activities within the organization, contributing to the dissemination of project results.

Our volunteering project seeks to promote the values promoted by the EU and the CES Program, such as solidarity, equality, justice, respect, fight against exclusion and xenophobia, etc.

Practical arrangements: The schedule of the volunteer activities will be between 30 and 38 hours per week. The volunteer will work max. 38 hours on 5 days per week.

Holidays: According to the rules of ESC, volunteers must have 2 working days off per month.

Accommodation: The volunteers will live in a room in a shared flat located in the city of Murcia together with other volunteers. The room and the flat will be fully equipped, and electricity, water, gas and internet will be covered by the lead organization (till the amount of 30€ per volunteer).

Pocket money: The volunteer will receive the monthly rate foreseen by the Spanish NA, 186€ per month.

Food: The volunteer will receive 184€ for food every month.

Local transport: Every volunteer will have a chance to choose a bike or bus card provided by the hosting organization if it is needed.

Language support: The volunteer is entitled to receive language support with an online platform, as stated on the ESC programme guide.

Medical insurance: The volunteer will be covered by a private insurance that will cover all the expenses not covered by the public health system (health, accident and civil liability insurance).

Travel costs: The volunteer will receive financial support for travel from his/her country to Spain and from Spain to his/her country once the project is completed, up to a maximum amount established by the European Commission according to the distance band.

Visa and residence permit fees: The volunteer will receive financial support for visa arrangements (if required).

Deposit: The volunteer will have to make a 370€ deposit that will be reimbursed once the project is ended and the volunteer leaves tidy, clean, and with no damage in the private room and common areas, and if the volunteer doesn’t leave the project without a justified reason before it ends.

Anyone interested after reading the info above, fill in this form: https://b24-hiozxe.bitrix24site.ru/crm_form_ebkcc/

This project is aimed at young people between 18 and 30 years old who have not participated in any European volunteering project (EVS or ESC) before. We will give priority to the selection of young people with fewer opportunities.

The selection will be made based on the attitude, the willingness to participate, the motivation and the commitment to the values of the project rather than knowledge and skills of the candidates .

We value the responsibility, the spirit of initiative, the patience and the ability to step back from interpersonal conflicts in order to deal with them more effectively, and the enthusiasm and willingness to participate in the different activities offered.

No young person willing to participate in our project will be excluded for any reason (economic difficulties; social or geographical obstacles; cultural or ideological differences; sexual orientation, age, ethnicity, gender and gender identity, etc.).

Traperos de Emaús Region de Murcia is a non-profit association, with more than 25 years of experience in the Region of Murcia and registered as a Social Services Center. We belong to the international Emmaus movement, which is present in 41 countries and brings together some 425 groups worldwide. Since its establishment in Murcia, it has developed the activity of collection, reuse and recycling of objects and materials from the garbage, being pioneers and specialists in the door-to-door household collection of bulky goods, in the management focused on the preparation for reuse and in the sale of second-hand items recovered. In 2005, he created the insertion company Traperos Recicla, which provides work to people at risk or in a situation of exclusion, who begin their reintegration process.

Traperos de Emmaus is a secular collective, in which there is freedom of belief and expression. The aim of the organization is to participate in the construction of a fairer and egalitarian society, bringing a personal commitment to personal, social and professional growth, developing ways of working that are more compatible with life and the environment and analyzing and denouncing situations of injustice.

The overall objective of the Association’s Programme is to foster the personal, social and employment recovery process of people suffering from social exclusion, in high-risk situations and/or those who are particularly vulnerable. This is achieved through comprehensive individualized processes, flexible strategies using innovative and personalized training and insertion in the workplace.

The Association’s staff comes from different areas: social workers, health workers, environmental technicians, psychologists, technicians, etc. We are a group of 50 people at risk of exclusion, those who are already excluded and the people who help them in their recovery process. The technical team is composed of 15 people responsible for coordinating the different areas of the Association. The volunteer will support the team in the different activities carried out.

The people enrolled in this programme are people at risk of social exclusion or people with special difficulties, many of them in situations of vulnerability as a result of the socio-economic crisis. Some participating groups include: homeless people, young people at risk of social exclusion, Roma, people released from prison, people with drug and alcohol addiction problems and victims of other addictions in rehabilitation, victims of domestic violence, single parents with children, people with employment and training deficiencies, long-term unemployed, people with great difficulty in finding employment, people with physical and/or mental disabilities, people with mental health problems and other illnesses.