Echo100 Plus
Echo100Plus is a privately funded Austrian-Greek NGO that has been operating in Greece since 2015. Currently, they are running two community centers, the ECHO HUBs, one on Leros island in the East Aegean Sea and one in Athens. With their HUBS they strive to provide spaces in which adult asylum seekers (18yrs+) can benefit from a friendly and dignified environment and from access to education and meaningful activities (languages, IT, vocational training, sports, etc). The goal is to help beneficiaries develop perspectives to an independent and self-sustained life. They strongly believe that this goal can be reached with some help and solidarity and will facilitate any further steps of integration.
Where is it?
ECHO HUB Athens (Athens), ECHO HUB Leros (Lakki town, Leros island)
What will I be doing?
Volunteers run the day-to-day operations in the two HUBS and they expect everybody to do a bit of everything, unless hired for a specific task or teaching role. Volunteers are planning and running educational and recreational activities in the HUBs to help prepare asylum-seekers for a self-sustained life beyond the camps; in addition, they do necessary back-office work (reception and registration, accounting, social media, fundraising) to keep operations working. On Leros, where we are also the main provider of clothes, they will also do storage work and run clothing and hygienic items distributions in our HUB Boutique and in the camp.
What impact would I have?
Volunteers are the backbone of the operations and are therefore crucial in achieving the organisation's main objective: support beneficiaries to master the arduous task of integration and help them into a self-sustained life. In return, volunteers will gain insights into the current humanitarian crisis in Greece and a good overview of the various stakeholders providing services. These valuable insights will make them qualified ambassadors for the causes of refugees stuck in Greece and for civil society engagement.
Who will I be working with?
Most of the people visiting the Hubs are 18yrs+, but on Leros, we are also the main provider of clothes and hygiene items to refugee families waiting on the island for their asylum applications to be processed.
Volunteers will be working in teams: Athens: 6-8 volunteers + 2 teachers; Leros: 14 volunteers (international + camp residents) and 2 -3 local teachers. Daily operations are headed by project coordinators and founders of the NGO.
Minimum age
20 years
Accommodation
Volunteer teams share the accommodation; in Leros: 2 people per studio (consisting of bedroom, bathroom, kitchen, and balcony), in Athens: apartment with 3 double-bed rooms, shared bathroom, kitchen and living room.
Extra Costs
Travelling costs (flight, ferry), daily expenses (food/drinks/medication), insurance, and Covid test before travelling to or upon arrival in Greece.
Skills required
- Accountancy and Finance
- Activity Lead
- Arts, Music & Textiles
- Manual Car Driver
- Community Services
- Construction and Renovation
- Dance Teacher
- Drama Teacher
Interested in volunteering?