Still alive !

My EVS ended in August 2013.
A lot of thing happened after that and I have not updated this blog for ages. Really sorry.
But ! I still have a lot of things to show you. I would like to share with you all the magnificient places that I visited and also some news about the EVS program.
So this blog will continue to live for a while ;) 
A lot of greets to the Tree Nursery Gang.

My on-arrival training

Two months after my arrival in Northern Ireland, I have participated to an on-arrival training organized by Bryson Charitable Group in Bushmills for 4 days.

We were 8 European volunteers and we talked about our projects, our rights and duties, health and safety rules, the EVS program, our fears ....

The organizers also taught us about Northern Irish culture through the cooking of an Irish stew together and workshops about sports, music, art ....

My EVS project : volunteer in a tree nursery

The tree nursery is based in a four acre walled garden at Clandeboye Estate in Bangor. It grows native trees such as Birch, Ash and Rowan, which are sold by my host organisation in order to maintain and preserve the biodiversity of agricultural areas for example.
As a volunteer, I participate in all horticultural activities (preparing soil and seed beds, sowing, caring for plants) and I also prepare customers' orders.

Arrival in Bangor

My EVS project takes place in Bangor, a city of 70 000 inhabitants (the third largest town after Belfast and Londonberry in Northern Ireland).
I arrived on 1st February and I stay for 6 months. I live in a house, managed by my host organisation, near downtown, with three other European volunteers. 

The Conservation Volunteers : host organisation

The Conservation Volunteers (TCV) is the Northern Ireland region of a UK-wide environmental charity.

TCV’s primary objective is to “Inspire People to Improve Places” through voluntary activity and it promotes the support, development, training and practical involvement of people in action to improve the environment. It provides advice, support, training and information as well as practical action through its own practical groups, including Conservation Action Teams and Green Gyms. All  projects result in practical environmental improvement including tree planting, drystone walling, path creation, woodland management, pond construction, hedgelaying, building school nature areas and creating informal urban open spaces.

Source : TCV website

Jeunes à Travers le Monde : sending organisation

  
Jeunes à Travers le Monde is a French association which aims to encourage international mobility of young adults who live in Britain. The association helps them in their projects to work abroad, to study or to do an internship, to be a volunteer ...

To resume the duties of a sending organisation :
- JTM helped me to prepare my CV and my cover letter,
- It promptly contacted my host organisation to obtain all necessary information,
- I have participated in a seminar for four days, organised by the association. This seminar helps people who leave or return from abroad to share their experience. It also helps to ask yourself the right questions and to get the answers. For example, what do I do if I break my glasses abroad? The volunteer is covered by insurance which allows to be reimbursed.
- At the end of my EVS, another seminar will be held.

Source : JTM website

At the beginning.....

First, I did some research on the Internet and I found the website "En route pour le monde", dedicated to the youth of Britain wishing to go abroad.

The news section of this website allows me to be informed of the upcoming events in my region.
So, I had attended a session about the international mobility by "Pôle emploi international" and I obtained general information and web links of structures that help people to realize their project in my region.

To learn more on the Youth in Action program, I had attended an information workshop on EVS, organised by "Jeunes à Travers le Monde (JTM)", structure that I then contacted and which is now my sending organisation.