What is the European Solidarity Corps Programme?
The European Solidarity Corps aims to promote solidarity as a value, mainly through it’s volunteering programme. It hopes to enhance the engagement of young people and organisations in accessible and high quality solidarity activities as a means to contribute to strengthening cohesion, solidarity, democracy and citizenship in Europe.
European Union’s programme for youth volunteering
Whilst participating in ESC they also will be responding to social challenges and strengthening communities, with particular effort to promote social inclusion. It shall also contribute to European cooperation that is relevant to young people. The European Solidarity Corps is the European Union’s programme for youth volunteering.
Prior to the European solidarity corps programme the European Union’s programme for youth was The Erasmus.
History of the Erasmus+ Volunteering Programmes or EVS
After the Second World War, the European Commission began looking for methods to promote mobility, solidarity, tolerance, active European citizenship and mutual understanding amongst the young people of Europe. The European Voluntary Service (EVS) was officially launched in 1996. Since then, over 100,000 individuals have volunteered with the European Voluntary service.
For the past 20 years, EVS has had a major impact on the lives of many thousands of young people in Europe, improving their language skills and intercultural competences, enabling them to realise their own ideas and enriching local communities with their positive impact. The programme also portrayed how Europe is becoming accessible to all Europeans and it encouraged mobility among the youth.
From October 2018, all new volunteering projects funded by Erasmus+ will be called Erasmus+ Volunteering. In addition to this, European Solidarity Corps (ESC) projects were introduced. ESC is the new European Union initiative which creates opportunities for young people to volunteer or work in projects in their own country or abroad that benefit communities and people around Europe. These projects will usually be located within the European Union Member States. You can register to join the European Solidarity Corps now on their website.
Erasmus plus programme
After 2020, all EVS and Erasmus+ Volunteering projects will be incorporated in the ESC, which will give young people many more volunteer and employment opportunities. It will be open to people between 18 and 30 and looking for an opportunity to help the wider community, in Europe and beyond.
You would do this with funding and support from the European Solidarity Corps, which helps young people take part in projects that benefit communities, either abroad or in their own country. These projects aim to offer an inspiring and empowering experience, as well as the chance to bring change while developing your own skills and competences.
The new ESC programme not only offers volunteering opportunities but also traineeships, jobs and local Solidarity Projects. These can be in a wide range of fields – education and training, citizenship and democratic participation, environment and natural protection, migration, culture, and much more.
European Solidarity Corps Portal
How does it work? The European Solidarity Corps funding is provided in the form of grants to organisations through call for proposals. Young people wishing to engage in such activities need to register in the European Solidarity Corps portal. The European Solidarity Corps portal offers a place for those young people and organisations, holding a grant, to implement activities and to find each other.
The European Solidarity Corps is managed by the European Commission. It is implemented on the ground by a variety of bodies including the Education, Audio-visual and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA), National Agencies in each participating country SALTOs European Solidarity Corps resource centre.
La Giraudière association “Les Amis De La Giraudière” applied for accreditation for the EVS programme and received it’s accreditation on the 6th January 2017. As a registered accredited agency with the European Union we oversaw projects financed by the EU. You can read more about our project here: Erasmus Volunteer Service Project.
The dates for 2025 Summer program are presently
26th June 2025 until 30th September 2025
The recommended volunteering period is 3 weeks but you can apply for any length of stay during the 2025 program dates.