Initiative et Développement Citoyen

Initiative et Developpement Citoyen
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Volunteer Testimony || Miriam Herrera Jiménez

So I’m Miriam and here I am in Carcassonne!

I’ve already spent a few months as an ESC volunteer in this city from the South of France. I had already heard about this program, however, even though I am a determined person with several international experiences « up my sleeve », I had never thought I’d embark on such an adventure again.

I had already finished my studies, spent a few years moving around, and I was telling myself I should find a job and settle down. But when I saw a social media ad coming from a cultural association in search of a volunteer to help them with the organization of concerts and musical composition events, I didn’t hesitate in sending them my CV and application form. I found it was a great opportunity to work in my field (culture), especially with it being in an international environment. 

A week later I was called for a Slack interview and had to get my bearings when, at the end of the conversation, they told me I had to pack my bags. They wanted me to arrive in 2 weeks!

I arrived in Carcassonne 3 days before the local confinement – what a lucky girl! Even though I was « trapped » in a city I didn’t know with people I had never seen in my life, I lived every moment as if it were the last. I learned to love the tiny cobbled streets of the citadel, I enjoyed a drink out (when possible!), I met many people and I managed to find my spot in this city, and more importantly, in the association.

My volunteering year has surely been quite uncommon: a year under the weight of a global health crisis that stopped the world from running its course and that has deeply damaged the field of culture; a year that has taught me how to be more patient, that has emphasized my ability to adapt and my team player attitude, and a year in which I made peace with technology! When you’re not allowed to get closer than a meter distance to someone, Zoom can turn out to be quite a useful tool!


I am almost at the end of my volunteering program now and I can only be thankful to life for having given me this opportunity! 🙂

Miriam

Initiative et Développement Citoyen 11600 Lastours, South of France

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Our Organisation

The Initative Developpement Citoyen (IDC) is a cooperative founded in April 2010 in Lastours, France with the aim to promote sustainable development, international mobility, active citizenship, mutual cooperation, ecological engagement, and awareness of different cultures.

The cooperative also organizes and hosts Erasmus-funded projects that aim to provide learning and capacity-building opportunities for the youth. The projects hosts volunteers from Europe, South America and Southeast Asia and focuses on topics related to knowledge exchange, communications, and sustainable development.

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Initiative et Développement Citoyen 11600 Lastours, France

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+33 618 944 127 or +33 608716785 [email protected]
For volunteering: [email protected]



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