This time I’d like to present what my project is about. This is an overview made for on-arrival training for volunteers, and I will describe a bit more.
The organization cares also about our learning. We have an opportunity to study Czech language twice per week for 2,5 hours in Brno (a reason to get to the city!) and participate in two mandatory trainings organized by Czech National Agency for some volunteers from the whole country (new friends!). As KM provides programmes for children/students about ecotechnologies, they are so nice to educate also us sometimes separately. E.g. our coordinator was very glad to have enough time to make with us some experiments about efficiency of different light bulbs. Amazing experience was a staff retreat in January, in a little wooden house in the forest, close to a ski slope, with no electricity and water (no problem - made from snow!). I was afraid I would miss winter while staying in Czech republic, but this was a gift for me - snow level over one metre! And such a challenge - going back with a full backpack on skies through the forest.
In times, when KM is not overwhelmed with outdoor programmes, we get opportunities also to help in other related places - e.g in Scout institute in Brno or in forest kindergarten who rent one of KM’s rooms (the only my childhood musical instrument playing knowledge - xylophone - was used for creating atmosphere in an Advent event!). There are many organizations, connected to nature and environment, around, so we have visited an NGO “Veronica” in a village Hostětín, where they produce apple juice, and helped in their office in Brno to sell Christmas trees and in a biomarket. We have also visited and helped in one of the ecogardens en Brno and went to check bird nest boxes in parks of Brno with the organization “Hnutí Brontosaurus”. Sometimes we cooperate with other volunteers and participate their events, e.g. Living library, presenting our countries in schools. As KM is also a scout center, once we traveled to Prague, to present it in the big (rover) scout meeting called Miquik, visiting an ecocenter “Toulcův dvůr” on the way.
We also have opportunity to realise our own ideas, it is called a "personal mini-project" in volunteering projects. For example, in November I organized an event, Latvian hike, dedicated to 100 years anniversary of Latvia. The hike was in the shape of Latvia's border, and I shared interesting facts about nature on the way and about Latvian culture (including sklandrauši! - local food). As you see, volunteers are not bored in KM, and we definitely cannot complain about routine. Our coordinator warned us about possible winter depression but we are desperately trying to find out how it is possible to get it here. :D
