The Greek philosopher Aristotle once said that the essence of life is “to serve others and do good.” Volunteering is significant as it offers essential help to worthwhile causes, people in need, and the wider community. It seems that an increasing number of people nowadays are starting to wake up and understand the meaning of this, and why volunteering is so important. In MAAA, however, we have long ago recognized the importance and the significance of volunteering; one of the organization's most fundamental modes of functioning is that alone we can do so little, but together, as a community we can do so much. On that account, since its foundation, MAAA along with its many partner-friends, has been actively participating in numerous volunteering events, sending out a clear message that only by giving, the world would be able to receive more than it already has.
In the past couple of months, within the project "Alumni encouraging community service and extra-curricular activities" supported by the American Embassy in Skopje and in collaboration with the four state universities, “Ss. Cyril and Methodius” University, Skopje, “St. Kliment Ohridski” University – Bitola, “Goce Delčev” University, Štip and the University of Tetovo, MAAA encouraged and supported students to take part in many volunteering activities and projects.
The second week of June was marked with an activity involving two groups of students, one from the Faculty of Law at Ss. Cyril and Methodius University, and the other from the Faculty of Security at "St. Kliment Ohridski" University - Bitola. The students volunteered for a few days at the State Transport Inspectorate in Skopje, getting to know the inspectors' work and assisting them with their field work.
On June 9, 2023, at the Faculty of Information and Communication Technologies - Bitola, a branch of “St. Kliment Ohridski” University in Bitola, a group of students and employees of the Rectorate volunteered at a workshop organized by the Association for Civil Tolerance and Cooperation from Prilep, entitled "Awakening the Sleeping Giant", as part of the project " Open municipalities with open data", financed by NED (National Endowment for Democracy). The project would contribute to the reaffirmation of citizen participation in decision-making processes at the local and regional level, which will strengthen the demand and public pressure for accountability and transparency of the municipalities.
On May 28, 2023, a group of volunteers from “Girl Up” Štip, a non-profit organization focused on the fields of informal education, gender equality, social inclusion, were part of an event which took place in the American Corner in Štip. The workshop was organized on the occasion of the World Day of Cultural Diversity for Dialogue and Development in cooperation with the American Corner - Štip and MAAA, as part of the currently active series of projects to encourage volunteerism among young people. The main goal of this workshop was to protect the diversity of cultural expression and spread awareness of different cultural experiences and traditions through encouraging more young people to discuss their differences and preserve their traditions.
On May 20, 2023, a group of students-volunteers from the Faculty of Economics at Ss. Cyril and Methodius University attended the first WITCON Tech Conference in Skopje. The event was organized by Women in Tech Macedonia, which is in fact an initiative that aims to empower and highlight women in STEM (Science, Tech, Engineering and Math). Its vision and goal are directed towards enriching the opportunities for women in STEM, assembling experts from the IT industry to share their insights and experience, organizing sponsorships, bringing people with great innovation in IT, gathering volunteers, and creating new opportunities for women. WITCON officially started with the welcoming words of Monika Rizovska Tanevska, who is also a MAAA alumna and the Ambassador to Women in Tech Macedonia. Members of the MAAA Board, Verica Jordanova, Zorica Trajkova Strezovska and Irena Popovska expressed their support to the organization, attending the Conference along with our volunteers. Women in Tech is an international organization with a double mission: to close the gender gap and to help women embrace technology.
On May 11, 2023 about 50 students from various faculties of Ss. Cyril and Methodius University volunteered at the "Career Development Day" event, organized by the University's Career Center, and in cooperation with the MAAA. The event was held on the plateau near the campus of FEEIT- Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Information Technologies. Volunteers helped in the implementation of workshops and activities in which more than 30 renowned companies from the country presented various employment opportunities and internships. The main goal was to bring companies closer to students, expanding their career opportunities. The companies which took part in the event had the opportunity for networking and making direct contacts with students by promoting and presenting their employment and internship opportunities to them, both during and after the completion of their studies. This motivated and encouraged the students in their further career development. At the same time, two workshops were organized on the topic: "Do you need Chat GPT for career planning?" and "Networking - why is it important in the job search process?"
On April 8, 2023, two groups of students from the Faculty of Philology and the Faculty of Law at Ss. Cyril and Methodius University participated as volunteers in one of the regular activities of a citizens' association "Kindness”, whose main goal is to help the homeless and socially disadvantaged families and individuals. The students assisted the members of "Kindness", the non-profit and non-governmental organization operating in the field of social protection, thus contributing to the efforts of the of this civic association to provide meals for most vulnerable categories.
In MAAA, we strive for excellence and creativity in all that we do, recognizing that each person's contribution is valuable. In this respect, we salute to all the young people, the volunteers from across the country. Thank you for you dedication!
