DESCRIPTION AND METHODOLOGIES
The U.Porto Volunteer Day 2019 took place from 2 to 7 December, and included awareness-raising activities and the promotion of citizenship and active intervention by the academic community, including meetings between different U.Porto groups/voluntary associations and external entities.
During the week, each day was directed to activities in different areas of the city, with the objective of covering the three centers that constitute the campus of the University of Porto. The activities held included a conference on the theme “Changing the world through innovation and collaboration – a challenge within our power” ("Colaborar e inovar para mudar o mundo, um desafio ao nosso alcance") with the participation of Jorge Sampaio (President of the Republic 1996 – 2006 & Chairman of the Global Platform for Syrian Students), Gustavo Carona (Humanitarian doctor) and testimonies from Syrian students studying at the University of Porto. This talk was followed by a presentation of the Global Platform for Syrian Students project of setting up a Rapid Response Mechanism for Higher Education in Emergencies (RRM) aimed at boosting higher education opportunities in crisis situations.
After the conference, awards were given to the volunteer who stood out the most, in each volunteer group/association, in the 2018/2019 academic period.
Other activities included solidarity markets and workshops on volunteering, social inclusion, forced migration and ethnical minorities.The Volunteer Week ended with a Solidarity Walk with the support of CDUP (Sports Center of the University of Porto). The registration fee for this walk was five euros and reverted to the Rapid Response Mechanism (RRM).