Sámtökin 78 (ICE-30)


Type: Human Rights: LGBTIQ Rights - Country: Iceland

Brief description and main aims

Samtökin '78 - The National Queer Organisation of Iceland, founded in 1978 is an organisation for lesbians, gays, bisexuals, transgender people, their families, friends and supporters. The organisation aims at ensuring lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transgender people visibility and recognition and that they enjoy equal rights to other members of society.

Samtökin's team is a dynamic group of young professionals who are committed to working towards the organization's goal of supporting and promoting the visibility and equal rights of members of the LGBTQ community. The beneficiaries are not only Icelanders, but people from all over the world, so there is also a strong international feeling in the everyday activities, which is one of the reasons why having a full time young volunteer in the office has the potential to be highly beneficial for both parties.

Samtökin´s team is a dynamic group of young professionals who are committed to working towards the organization´s goal of supporting and promoting the visibility and equal rights of members of the LGBTQ community. The beneficiaries are not only Icelanders, but people from all over the world, so there is also a strong international feeling in the everyday activities, which is one of the reasons why having a full time young volunteer in the office has the potential to be highly beneficial for both parties.

Main Activities

Among the many projects that they facilitate are: a “Buddy Program”, Individual Consultation events, weekly informal events of various themes for various target groups, etc. They are also actively involved in welcoming and supporting immigrants and asylum seekers of LGBTQ+ background, in collaboration with other established non-profits, such as the Icelandic Red Cross.

Volunteer tasks

The volunteer working with this organization will assist Project Managers and implement their own ideas in action. That includes assisting in the office, social media engagement and setting up events. The volunteer will participate in the daily activities of AUS-ICYE Iceland in collaboration with Sámtökin ´78. They will assist the organisation s staff in everyday tasks of the office, and will get the chance to help coordinate one of Samtökin78´s many activities/events (that have English as their main working language), for example: the “Buddy Program” - pairing up Icelanders with Immigrants to increase the latter’s integration into the local community; Individual Consultation visits – the organization’s clients are able to benefit from one-on-one visits with an English-speaking therapist, and the volunteer would be able to help organize and schedule these; Reykjavik Pride – an increasingly popular, awareness increasing, celebratory movement with hundreds of participants and followers each year, that the volunteer would be welcome to contribute to; etc.

They will be working in collaboration with staff and will be given the opportunity to learn how an LGBTQ+ right-focused organization works in Iceland, along with some skills and competencies that they will surely benefit from in the future, such as project management, event planning, teamwork, and many other organizational competencies. Volunteers will be part of the AUS/Samtökin team, they will be encouraged to come up with their own ideas/projects and will receive all support available in order to implement these, upon discussion with the staff.

Volunteer requirements / Skills

No specific educational or professional background is required from the volunteer, only an honest motivation to be a part of an organization such as Samtökin ´78. Some desired traits are open-mindedness, flexibility, enthusiasm, but also patience and empathy. The volunteer should be willing to work in a dynamic environment, to come up with and implement their own ideas, but most importantly to be open for learning and growing within the project.

Location

The project is located in Reykjavík, Iceland's capital. The cultural scene in Iceland is blossoming in many areas such as music, literature and theatre. The beautiful and unspoiled nature is always within short reach, both in Reykjavík and around the entire country. The city bus system, Strætó, is the cheapest means of public transport. Bicycle paths are spread all over the city, making it easy and quick to reach all destinations by bicycle for those who are prepared to cycle up and down the hills in all sorts of weather; wind, rain, snow and sometimes even in the midnight hot sun. It is one of the greenest, cleanest and safest cities in the world.

Hosting Situation (Board and Lodging)

The volunteer will be living in AUS housing which is located in Barmahlíð, 105 RVK. The location of the apartment is fairly central, within walking distance of the project. It is also easy to reach by bus, takes about 15 minutes.

This volunteering position has no fixed hours, so the position comes with some freedom in terms of when to do the required work.

More Information

Volunteers needed: 1

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