With the Ria de Aveiro as our backdrop, we sat down for a coffee in the Rossio with Sebastiano and Lana, two young volunteers currently in Aveiro through the European Solidarity Corps, as part of the “Solidarity Superheroes”.

“Solidarity Superheroes” is a project developed within the “Volunteering Activities” of the European Solidarity Corps, an initiative of the European Commission that enables young people aged 18 to 30 to take part in socially impactful actions in other countries. For the volunteers, it is an opportunity to learn, grow and contribute. For the communities that welcome them, it is an invitation to share, host and build something together.

Sebastiano Poli, 26, is from Florence, Italy. Recently graduated in Law, he had been looking for opportunities offered by the European Commission when he came across Agora Aveiro’s volunteering offer on social media. He immediately realised it would be the ideal chance to apply his knowledge in a real-world setting.

Lana Alrfaei, 18, comes from Villingen-Schwenningen, a town in Germany’s beautiful Black Forest region. She recently finished secondary school and wanted to take a gap year before continuing her university studies. While searching for volunteering opportunities on the ESC website, she found Agora Aveiro’s offer. She is interested in studying law, coincidentally, the same professional field as Sebastiano.

The volunteers carry out most of their work at CLAIM, the Local Support Centre for the Integration of Migrants in Aveiro, managed by Casa Vera Cruz. CLAIM centres are spaces for welcoming, informing and supporting migrants in areas such as housing, employment, health and education, among others. They also provide social assistance to disadvantaged families, promoting their integration into the community.

Aveiro’s CLAIM works directly with around 100 people but supports approximately 1,000 users per year. Although language barriers do exist, they are quickly overcome with goodwill, gestures and empathy.

Alongside supporting the daily work of CLAIM, Lana and Sebastiano also develop their own activities, creating games and dynamics that help integrate migrants, particularly children. With International Migrants Day approaching on 18 December, they are preparing a set of new activities to mark the occasion.

As the support organisation, Agora Aveiro closely supports the volunteers’ well-being and learning process, organising regular meetings, mentoring sessions and moments of reflection based on the Youthpass methodology. Casa Vera Cruz, as the host organisation, welcomed them warmly and has benefited not only from their time and dedication, but also from their ideas, cultural diversity and the positive energy they bring to the team.

Volunteering has this unique power: to build bridges between people, cultures and realities; to help us grow, both individually and collectively; to remind us that solidarity is not just a word, but a daily choice we make together.

The “Solidarity Superheroes” project is organised by Agora Aveiro as part of the “Volunteering Activities” from the European Solidarity Corps Programme, supported by the European Commission. It is carried out in partnership with Casa Vera Cruz and with the support of the Municipality of Aveiro.