Engaging Returned Volunteers in Active Citizenship Research, learning and best practice from four countries

This report presents the findings from research into active citizenship in volunteering undertaken as part of the Volunteering for the Future project. Involving partners from the Czech Republic, Germany, Ireland and the UK, all of whom who are experienced in working with international volunteers, the project is focused on developing high quality learning opportunities tailored to young volunteers returning from the global south, to upskill them as active citizens on international development issues. A literature review and results from a survey of EU organisations engaged in international volunteering were used to identify good practice across Europe that was summarised into ‘Twelve Steps to Active Citizenship for International Volunteers’. The guidelines will be used to inform the development of other project resources and guide practice within each partner organisation. It is hoped that the guidelines will be of use to other organisations working with returned volunteers, as they represent the findings of one of the first significant pan-EU surveys on this topic.