In the period from 10^th until 14^th of October, “European Volunteering Forum” was held in Maribor, Slovenia.
The aim of the Forum was to promote volunteering as positive social phenomenon and also promoting of European Volunteering Service as program for volunteering and volunteers around the world.

On the Forum there were 28 representatives of government institutions, representatives from National agencies, former volunteers of European volunteering service and representatives of non-governmental organisations whose aim is to further promote volunteering.

The forum enabled participants to exchange experiences as well as to obtain new contacts between organisations which were dealing with volunteering or have EVS accreditation. Also, during the Forum participants were defined the most common challenges that organizations faced in carrying out volunteer projects and activities. The participants also defined obstacles related to the sending/hosting and coordinating of volunteers during their volunteering service in foreign countries and there, the challenges considering the future of volunteering were also defined.

This year marks 20 years of European volunteering service, part of which have been more than 100,000 volunteers so far. Through EVS volunteers had opportunity to participate in various volunteer projects in foreign countries.  Some of the main conclusions of the Forum are that it is a big disadvantage not to have a legislative framework that would primarily protect volunteers, especially those who are volunteering in foreign countries; the lack of cooperation between local authorities and non-governmental organisations who are involved in volunteering; then the lack of cooperation at national and European level in order to promote volunteering etc.

LDA Zavidovici also participated in the forum with their representative Dino Sinanovic.

Hosts of the Forum were SALTO SEE, together with German, Italian, Slovenian, Spanish and Turkish National Agencies for Erasmus+. Facilitators of the forum were Gisel Evrard, Anna Yeghoyan and Amr Arafa.