After spending half a year with an Irish host family and at an Irish high school in 2016 and immediately falling in love with the country and the adventure of being abroad, it quickly became clear to me that I wanted to go abroad again after school. Due to a lack of motivation to throw myself straight back into the chaos of studying at university or vocational school after graduating from high school and, above all, due to a lack of ideas for a career choice, I decided to use my time after school wisely and do some voluntary work. There was no doubt that this would take place abroad. 'Typical' countries for a development policy voluntary service - South Africa, Costa Rica or the Philippines - quickly emerged as my future host country, with Armenia not really coming into consideration. After weeks of researching possible projects, I finally came across a very promising placement on the website of the volunteer service organization 'weltwaerts' - the Armenia Tree Project (ATP), a reforestation project in the heart of Armenia. Without great hopes of being accepted - after all, I have never planted a single tree in my entire life - I applied to the International Youth Community Services (ijgd), the German sending organization, 'on a whim'. After a few interviews with German and Armenian contacts, I actually got the acceptance. And so the adventure of 'a year of volunteering in Armenia' began for me.

Photos (on this page): Inken Wilms

Inzwischen bin ich bereits seit 4 Wochen hier in Yerevan und kann sagen, ich fühle mich pudelwohl. Trotz einiger kleiner Kulturschocks, wie den völlig chaotischen Verkehr und den immensen Verbrauch an Plastiktüten, habe ich mich schon gut in dem doch ganz schön fremden Land eingelebt. Dies hat man vor allem der unfassbar großen Herzlichkeit und Gastfreundschaft der Armenier zu verdanken. Es kommt nicht selten vor, dass man mit wildfremden Menschen, die man gerade im Bus getroffen hat, den Abend verbringt oder zum Kaffee eingeladen wird. Auch wenn die Leute hier selber nicht viel haben, wird einem alles angeboten, was nur da ist, von frischem, selbstangebautem Obst und Gemüse bis hin zu jeglichem Kuchen oder Süßigkeiten oder natürlich dem berühmt-berüchtigten Kulturbrot Lavash. 

Auf meiner Arbeit ist das nicht anders. Noch so oft kann ich meinen Kollegen erklären, dass ich mein eigenes Mittagessen mitgebracht habe, ohne nicht mindestens eine neue typisch armenische Köstlichkeit probiert zu haben, kehre ich nicht aus der Mittagspause zurück. Meine Arbeit ist aber generell super und definitiv die richtige Entscheidung gewesen. ATP ist eine gemeinnützige Organisation, die im Jahr 1994 gegründet wurde und somit dieses Jahr ihr 25-jähriges Bestehen feiert. Der Grund für den Aufbau der Organisation war der radikale Verlust an Wäldern aufgrund fehlender Alternativen zu Holz, Häuser im Winter zu heizen. Zu Anfangszeiten lag der Fokus des Projektes vor allem auf der Wiederaufforstung armenischer Wälder sowie dem Schutz der Umwelt und einzigartigen Natur. Zudem wurde und wird viel Wert auf die Verbesserung der Lebensstandards der armenischen Bevölkerung durch Hilfe zur Selbsthilfe gelegt. 

A few years ago, a department for ecological education was also set up. Another of ATP's missions is to raise awareness among the population about environmental protection and resource conservation. In order to convey this idea from a young age, the so-called EE (Environmental Education) department organizes workshops and activities such as planting or tours of tree nurseries for schools and kindergartens. In this way, children learn about the importance of nature conservation from a young age and grow up with an awareness of their environment.

I am currently working in this department, as the real tree planting season does not begin until next spring. To get used to the project and get introduced to it, I was initially given small tasks such as organizing get-to-know-you games for workshops or proofreading various publications (in English). In the near future, however, I will be going to a few workshops myself and supporting the trainers on site as far as my language skills allow. I am also regularly taken along to take photos for the ATP website in tree nurseries or at public events. This is a very good way to get around Armenia and discover the country's incredibly diverse nature.

I already knew the German volunteers before I left, as we all traveled to Armenia through the ijgd and met at a preparatory seminar a few weeks before departure. The ijgd organizes our trip and takes care of the insurance and all bureaucratic procedures, but the volunteer service is largely financed by the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BmZ). To cover the remaining costs, each volunteer is required to set up a so-called support group, which consists of private individuals or companies who are willing to financially support the volunteers' development commitment.