Hyvärilä youth centre has been awarded a quality Label certificate as a supporting, coordinating and hosting organization within the European Solidarity Corps programme.
Every year international volunteers come to Hyvärilä for long-term and short-term programs which allow them to explore Finland and discover their inner potential. Volunteer work includes helping youth workers run activities and programs for young people within camps and Youth house daily work, arranging workshops and cultural meet-ups for local young people in Nurmes area, helping to organize events and camps in Hyvärilä, helping kitchen and maintenance in their daily work.
Hyvärilä helps young people from Finland to find opportunities to volunteer abroad – contact us for more information. International volunteering projects are implemented within European Solidarity Corps programme.
Long-term volunteering for a young person from Finland abroad for 9 months:
Hyvärilä has an opportunity to support you in planning your own project - contact us with your idea and go to a volunteering project of your dream.
Hyvärilä hosts long-term volunteers helping with youth work and running social media volunteering accounts.
Hyvärilä youth centre will host two ESC-volunteers from July to September helping with running camp schools and doing creative projects in the field of traditional culture.
Hyvärilä will host three international team volunteering programs.
Green Week is an opportunity for young people who are concerned about sustainability and want to act on it. Volunteers will organize a series of workshops for the local community in Nurmes, Eastern Finland to celebrate the EU Green Week. They will also learn how Hyvärilä youth centre as Green Key certified destination reduces the negative impact of tourism. This is for young people who are eager to raise awareness via social media channels and workshops, who are ready to share their tips on being sustainable, and who are not afraid to get their hands dirty by participating in Nurmes town Spring clean event with the local community.
This team volunteering activity is based on the Finnish tradition called talkoot. Talkoot brings the whole village to help and do something together. Talkoot in Hyvärilä is a good opportunity to bring together generations and exchange skills, stories, and share quality time in a meaningful way. International volunteers are going to learn about local natural and cultural heritage and plan and implement different activities for the local community. Are you ready to learn to scythe, make insect hotels and do social media campaigns about biodiversity? This team volunteering is a modern interpretation of a traditional activity that brings the whole village together.
Kekri team volunteering was organized for the first time in October 2021. Kekri is an autumn festival of harvest, the transition from summer and light to winter and darkness in Eastern Finland. This activity brings together the local community around the topic of traditional harvest celebration. Volunteers are going to explore the Finnish culture and nature, sustainability, creativity and work with the local communities of different age groups from children to elderly people. Are you ready to learn how to cook delicious dishes with local ingredients? Are you ready to help the local community and learn about sustainability? Are you ready to celebrate the Kekri? Let’s raise awareness of the local cultural heritage, community building and solidarity!
Stay informed about international opportunities in Facebook
Contact us and let´s make it happen together!
Cześć! I am Paulina and I have just started the European Solidarity Corps program – I will spend 6 months learning and helping in the Hyvärilä Youth Center in Nurmes! I was born in a beautiful town, Krasnystaw, in the east of Poland. This year I graduated acting from the National Academy of Theatre Arts in Cracow, Dance Theatre Department in Bytom. I worked as an actress, theatre director, dance instructor and youth worker. I am a volunteer of the Polish Red Cross. Looking for inspiration is part of my art job, it’s why I’d like to meet people, listen to their stories, experience nature, travel and learn new things. I am interested in art, psychology, traditional singing, first aid and Nordic countries. I am so impressed how Finnish people manage with nature, which is so magnificent and powerful here! I strongly believe I can develop myself by ESC. I am happy to help with all my enthusiasm and/or experience :)
Hi, I’m Lies and I live in Belgium (Bruges). I am a volunteer in Hyvärilä for two months. This volunteer work really spoke to me because it’s about young people coming together exploring local culture, sports, arts and discovering more about themselves in the process. The nature around Hyvärilä is definitely a bonus. It looks so beautiful!
I already have some work experience in working with people with a disabilities, tutoring children and organizing activities for young people. However I was still looking for an international experience in which I can meet new people and discover other cultures. Then I came across the volunteering project of Hyvärilä and I had a feeling that this was something for me. So I’m very happy that I got the opportunity to discover Hyvärilä youth centre, Nurmes and a bit of myself as well.
In my free time I like to hang out with friends, watch a movie, dance and occasionally I play a game of paddle tennis. If I have a lot of free time on my hands I also start a new knitting project.
So, now you know a little bit more about me and why I applied for the Hyvärilä volunteering project.
Hello! I’m Sophie - a polish volunteer in Hyvärilä Youth Center. I come from Warsaw where I’m pursuing a psychology degree and studying fashion history as a hobby. I’m 20 years old and I’m proud to say that I’ve just survived my first year at uni!
In my free time I design and sew history inspired garments, paint with watercolors and watch “so bad it’s good” movies. I also play the ukulele and practice white singing which is a traditional slavic vocal method which sounds a bit like controlled screaming.
I hope I’ll be able to get to know Finland a little bit and maybe share a piece of Poland with my new buddies here in Hyvärilä. This experience is also a huge educational opportunity for me, since it can maximize my chances of getting into a foreign university. Needless to say I am extremely grateful for welcoming me to the team!
Hello, I am Yasir and I come from Turkey. I was in the science high school. We were really into math, physic, chemistry, biology, and I am still good at those topics in my daily life. I was granted a dentistry school in Turkey and started immediately after my high school graduation, but I had no time for thinking about my actual career and life in my mind. I focused only on my classes, not on my life, and then I decided to leave dentistry because I want to contribute to humankind more than being a regular dentist. I moved to Finland in 2019 and started reflecting about my future, what I should do, which field is more interesting for me. I applied and got accepted to Karelia UAS (Industrial Management) to be a different kind of engineer. During that process I gained new perspectives on life and started to search for new ways to contribute to humankind and societies. Then I found Hyvärilä youth centre in Nurmes. They were looking for volunteers to contribute to upbringing of beautiful new generations of people (who have many perspectives and opinions on their own life). I am writing that as a memory for you and myself and I feel great for what we did already and what we will do during my volunteering days in the Pehtoori house of Hyvärilä.
Hello everyone. I’m Laura Glez and I just moved to Nurmes to do volunteer experience in Hyvärilä Youth Center. I’m from a sunny city in the south of Spain called Marbella. I studied for a law degree and in the future I would like to do a master in environmental law. I love international atmosphere, discovering new cultures and languages. Also I'm a really creative person who loves drawing, painting, doing macrame and artistic jewelry. Apart from that I love spending time outdoors in nature, riding my bike and trekking.
I’m so happy to have this opportunity to discover the Finnish culture and this amazing land.
I’m Elisa. I am from a small country called Belgium. Ever since I was a little girl, I’ve wanted to move, discover, learn, travel. So when I heard about the European Solidarity Corps, it was a revelation to me. I could go, in a northern country, those countries that make me dream so much, meet people from other cultures, learn and discover their cultures. A dream that was about to come true. So when I saw the announcement to volunteer in Hyvärilä, I jumped at the opportunity. All of whom I dreamed were gathered. Graduated in Graphic Industry and Web design, my studies will be useful during this stay. And I will be able to learn so much. I never really traveled and I felt this need to go away, for a long time to discover myself by learning more about the world but also about myself. Passionate about history, art and music I look forward to learning more about the rest of the world.
I am Olga and I am coming from Germany. Being interested in politics, nature, cultures, languages and youth work I decided to come to Hyvärilä for new adventures. As I am very motivated to make changes especially on a small scale, I am looking forward to being part of the community of Nurmes to bring in more sunshine and cultural exchange. I experienced intercultural exchange to be most efficient when it comes to globalisation and human interaction as well as understanding each other. I have been in touch with youth work for many years, giving workshops at schools and
training young people to do the same, doing mentoring and working on youth participation when it comes to political decision making. I am looking forward to applying my knowledge and experiences as well as learning new things.
My name is Margarida, I´m from Portugal and I graduated in chemical engineering. I enjoy being around Nature and to go hiking, photography and sports.
I came to Finland because I wanted to do something different regarding my background, to have international experience, meet a new culture, to network and
discover more of myself. I like to keep broaden the mind, try new things and learn new ways. As part of the DIGI-Woods project, I help with digital youth work
and media, promoting both Hyvärilä and Metsäkartano youth centres, supporting their activities. I also get to explore the Finnish rural areas, and share my
experience on social media. What inspires me the most is to see young people being curious and risk-takers, trusting life and breaking stereotypes.
I am Angela and I come from Romania. I am scout, a passionate learner, an enthusiastic person and I like challenges. Driven to make a change in the world,
I chose to study journalism and the same driver conduct me to be a teacher. In the past years education was my main interest, so I am doing my volunteering in
European Solidarity Corps, in Hyvärilä, a beautiful youth center in the east of Finland. As a nature lover, I am willing to discover how nature is part of the learning
experiences and how I can integrate environmental awareness in my future work. Also, I want to discover the Finnish culture and the education system.
