Yulia Ezhova: "You can become volunteer if you want to make the world a better place"

The Youth Student Forum “Youth of Eurasia: Building the Future Together,” organized by the Russian “North-South” political center, began in Moscow several days ago. Intergovernmental project's goal is to create stable dialogue between student communities of Eurasian countries, help youth of those countries to successfully implement socially significant initiatives, including those promoting humanitarian cooperation and intercultural dialogue. This forum is attended by representatives of student communities of the CIS countries, Russian universities and non-profit organizations with experience in implementing socially important projects.

On the sidelines of the forum, "International Volunteer Team of the 75th Anniversary of Victory Day" project manager Yulia Ezhova discussed volunteer projects in an interview with Vestnik Kavkaza.

- In your opinion, what can youth change to make life in our countries better?

- Younger generation is always trying to learn something new, to exchange views. Platforms, such as this forum, offer a lot of experience. Young people have their own opinion, and when representatives of different countries meet, they can engage in constructive dialogue, which can lead to implementation of important international projects. For example, our project works on preservation of historical memory. This topic is improtant not only for representatives of the CIS countries. Younger generation has an opportunity to make their countries better, to make other countries better, because right now preservation of historical memory is one of the top priorities. If we know history, we won't make mistakes of the past in the future.

- What joint projects are you implementing with the CIS countries?

- The "International Volunteer Team of the 75th Anniversary of Victory Day" project is our first experience. Right now we're selecting coordinators in different countries of the world. The best of them will come together for training on May 5-11 in Moscow and in Tula. When they will become volunteers, they will be able to introduce tradition of volunteer support in their own countries.

- What events are you talking about in particular?

- First of all, escort of the Victory parades and the "Immortal Regiment" national procession. But there are other formats: some people organize rallies or concerts. Any big event is impossible without the help of volunteers. This is an opportunity to experience a sense of belonging to historical events for the younger generation. Young people can make history today.

- Are there a lot of applications?

- 130 representatives from 58 countries of the world reached the next stage. They were selected by analyzing questionnaires and interviews. There are representatives of Australia, Africa. We were also very pleased with representative from the Republic of Congo, who found woman who lived in the territory of Kazakhstan during the war, and then moved to Africa. Our potential coordinator met with this woman, and spoke to her about what she remembers about that time.

- What's necessary to become a good volunteer?

- Desire to make the world a better place, and not necessarily on a global scale, at least through the international projects. If you get up in the morning with a good mood and want to do something good for those around you, this desire alone can lead to great victories of our countries.