Volunteering conference “VÕTA VABALT!” 2026

THE “VÕTA VABALT!” VOLUNTEER FAIR IS BACK!

Where will you invest your time?

The Erasmus+ and European Solidarity Corps Agency is organising “Võta Vabalt!” for the second year in a row!

Time is your most valuable asset. But where should you invest it? “Võta Vabalt!” will show you how many amazing possibilities exist that help you devote time to yourself, your community and your future. We will bring the opportunities; all you have to do is show up.

❓Where do you invest your free time?

❓Want to gain new experiences and practical skills alongside school or university?

❓Want to meet people, try something completely new and discover what volunteering gives back to you?

❓Thinking about your next step, a gap year, or a chance to experience life abroad?

❓Want to change something for the better in your community or the world, but don’t know where to start?

Our aim is to help you answer these questions and show what volunteering is all about. Whether you want to do something for your community, add work experience you your CV, or have unforgettable experiences abroad and make new friends – we got you covered!

On stage you’ll find young volunteers as well as specialists and leaders in the field, who got to where they are today through volunteering.

FAIR AREA

At the fair area, well-known organisations that co-operate with volunteers shall present their work and opportunities for people looking to volunteer. Among them:

Estonian National Youth Council (ENL); MTÜ (Non-Profit Organisation) Shokkin Group; MTÜ Noortekonverentsid; MTÜ Vanem Vend, Vanem Õde; Tallinn Food Bank; Mondo; Estonian Scout Association; Integration Foundation; MTÜ EstYES; MTÜ UUSKASUTUSKESKUS; MTÜ YFU Eesti; Kodutütred ja Noored Kotkad; MTÜ Animal Shelters; Estonian Rescue Services Agency; TYPA MTÜ; Tallinn City Centre’s Youth Centre; ETHOS MTÜ; MTÜ CATS HELP; Order of Malta Foundation in Estonia; NGO Warmth of Hearts; Tallinn Libraries; IZUM Volunteer Club; Tallinn City Museum; NGO Dark Nights Film Festival; Estonian Lions Region; NGO sTARTUp Day; Sports Events Organization Club; Erasmus+ and European Solidarity Corps Agency; Civil Society Foundation; Estonian Guides Association, and others.

SEMINAR PROGRAMME

11:00 | FAIR OPENING

12.00–12:45 | “Time is an investment – ​​what do you get back from volunteering?” (In Estonian)

Four people share their honest thoughts on what volunteering has brought to their lives – what people, skills, opportunities and new perspectives they have found and how volunteering has influenced their lives so far. In the conversation, we will look for an answer to the most important question: why is it worth investing your time in volunteering.

Speakers:

🗣️Hannele Känd

🗣️Angela Ader

🗣️Marta Männiste

🗣️Tõnis Milling

13:15–14:00 | “Volunteer abroad? Why not!” (In Estonian)

Three young people, one binding experience… European Solidarity Corps voluntary service abroad. In the discussion, they will share their first-hand experiences of what it is like to

a) go to Iceland as a long-term volunteer

b) or to do short-term group service

c) or to be a volunteer abroad in Estonia yourself

14:30–15:15 | “From idea to reality – youth initiatives and project opportunities”

Speakers:

🗣️Roula Abdelhay

🗣️Mari Hairk

🗣️Boris Kofman

14:30–15:15 | “From idea to reality – youth initiatives and project opportunities” (In Estonian)

Volunteering does not only mean helping some organization. Another option is to do something yourself in the form of a project! Three brilliant people have been invited to the panel, who have done just that, or have made their ideas come true through a local solidarity project of the European Solidarity Corps or the Idea Blower program.

Speakers:

🗣️Sandra Saarniit - European Solidarity Corps solidarity project “Legend of the White Lady Run”

🗣️Margus Lehemets - Young Farmers Club - “Youth at the Roots of Food”

🗣️Gregor Männi - Idea blower project example

Read more about our speakers down below👇

PS❗️PLEASE BE NOTED THAT ALL THE PANELS ARE IN ESTONIAN.

🗣️ The discussion panels are moderated by Killu Kolsar

🎤 The day is hosted by the always cheerful Aaron Thor Härm

🎶 Music and pleasant energy will be brought to the hall by säm

🍴 Bites for every taste on our food court

🎧 Margus Kaukes is responsible for the music selection of Silent Disco

🎨 Vision Board workshop

Participation in the event is FREE! In order for us to take you into account, let us know that you are coming by purchasing a free ticket from Fienta.

PS! We will draw cool prizes from the first hundred registrants. 🤭

SPEAKERS:

HANNELE KÄND

Hannele Känd is an Estonian cultural organizer and long-term volunteer who has contributed to social and cultural life since 2006. As a volunteer, she has worked in many cultural and social movements, such as the Viljandi Folk Music Festival, Jazzkaar, Peaasi.ee mental health cafes, Teeme ära!, TILT! Improv Festival, Lennart Meri conference, PÖFF, Rööpad viivad pärandini, IronMan Tallinn, Baltica, WHO conference, Open House Tallinn.

She participated in a year-long volunteer work in Scotland as part of the European Voluntary Service, working as a drama teacher for youth and children.

She has coordinated volunteers at the Viljandi Folk Music Festival, Tallinn City Museum, World Cleanup Day, Tallinn Treff Festival, the Community Helps! movement during the pandemic, and the Niine 2 refugee center. The largest volunteer team he has led dates back to the time of the refugee center, when there were about 500 active volunteers.

For the work done at the center, he and the core group were awarded the title of Deed of the Year, and in the same year he was also recognized with the title of Volunteer of the Year for his long-term and diverse volunteer activities.

TÕNIS MILLING

“I became an assistant police officer in 2007 during the “bronze night”. I was worried that some crooks were going to destroy my hometown. That time, I did a one-day crash course and … then the unrest calmed down. But I stayed.

Over the course of almost twenty years, I have spent thousands of hours on patrol. I have helped remove drunk drivers from traffic, separated domestic violence cases, calmed down brawlers, etc. There have been incidents from extreme to extreme.

But why do I do this job? There are several reasons. To create a safer place around me where I, my loved ones and friends would feel good about living, and of course adrenaline. There is a lot of that in this job.”

ANGELA ADER

Angela is the Chief Youth Work Specialist of the Tartu City Government. For the past five years, she has worked as an Education Coordinator in the European Capital of Culture Tartu 2024 team, where she created the Extended, a voluntary cultural management training program for young people. Angela has previously worked as an English teacher at the Juhan Liiv Alatskivi School and the Anna Haava Pala School.

She considers volunteering and civil society development to be key areas in maintaining a democratic system and has contributed to them for years. Angela has led and developed the TEDxTartu team and contributed to organizations and events such as DD Academy, Civil Society Week, IndieFest, Rahvakogu and Mõtlemisfestival.

MARTA MÄNNISTE

Marta Männiste has been volunteering in the field of children's rights for over four years. She started her activities at the age of 14 as a young advisor to the Children's Ombudsman at the Office of the Chancellor of Justice. To date, she has been involved in several different organizations and has taken part in countless projects and events.

All this for one specific goal - the voices of children and young people must be as important in society as those of adults (if not more important). For her great contribution, Marta was also awarded the title of Volunteer of the Year earlier this year. She is not motivated by money, but by the desire to create a better society for all of us.

ROULA ABDELHAY

Roula came to Estonia in 2022 as a European Solidarity Corps volunteer and stayed here. She currently works as a youth worker and online youth worker and supports foreign volunteers in Estonia. Thanks to her personal experience, she knows both the perspective of a volunteer and the hosting organization well.

MARI HAIRK

A year ago, Mari began her long-term volunteer service in Iceland with SEEDs Iceland. As a result of the project, she has a phone memory full of photos, friends in every major European (and Asian) country, and the skills she learned during the project still serve her well in the job market.

BORIS KOFMAN

Boris participated in a short-term voluntary service with the European Solidarity Corps (ESC) in Latvia in early 2026. The experience had a great impact on him and inspired him to delve deeper into international youth projects and the possibilities of the European Solidarity Corps. After the service, he started working as an ESC coordinator at the NGO Ethos.

To date, he has already supported ten young people to participate in voluntary service abroad. In addition to his work in the youth field, Boris works as a Spanish teacher and a Chinese translator.

MARGUS LEHEMETS - Young Farmers Club - “Youth at the Roots of Food”

A young active farmer and leader of the Young Farmers Club, who cares about the future of Estonian agriculture, involving young people, and introducing rural life and food production.

About the project: "Young People at the Roots of Food" is an initiative of the Young Farmers Club, through which we want to bring young people closer to food production, arouse their curiosity, and share practical knowledge about agriculture, giving them the opportunity to think for themselves and form their own opinions.

SANDRA SAARNIIT - European Solidarity Corps solidarity project “Legend of the White Lady Run”

I work as a hobby guide and digital education teacher at Haapsalu City Primary School, and I am also a master's student at Tallinn University.

About the event: The White Lady Run in Haapsalu brought people together to move together, spend time and do something fun as a community. In addition to the 2km and 4km runs, there was a children's run and additional activities were offered by Liikumismängud and Haapsalu Herilased.

GREGOR MÄNNI - Idea blower project example

A 12th grade student at Jõhvi Gymnasium and former chairman of the Toila Youth Council. Actively involved in youth work and the Estonian Defence League, and interested in national defense, management, and health sciences. The Toila Youth Council has repeatedly used grants from the Idea Blower to bring new events, training, and developmental activities to local youth.

Ближайшие события

• Montessori Mini in English (1-3) Англоязычные занятия Montessori для детей 1–3 лет с одним родителем или опекуном 8 октября 2026 г. – 10 июля 2027 г. · Monte Lapsed, Narva maantee 13, 10151 Tallinn, Harju maakond Конференции
• Terapeutilise fotograafia 8-nädalane töötuba "KAAMERA KUI TEEJUHT" 8-недельный курс терапевтической фотографии для тех, кто ищет творческое самовыражение 15 октября 2026 г. – 3 декабря 2026 г. · TeFo Stuudio OÜ, Ankru tänav 8, 11713 Tallinn, Harju maakond Конференции
• IDEE+SUPERPOWER (november-jaanuar) Трёхмесячная программа для предпринимателей, чтобы развивать идеи, навыки и контакты 7 ноября 2026 г. – 30 января 2027 г. · Tallinn, Telliskivi tänav 60a, 10412 Tallinn, Harju maakond Конференции
• Kultuuride loovlabor – ideest oma tooteni! Творческая лаборатория для таллиннских подростков 11–15 лет, где в командах создают продукты из идей 7 ноября 2026 г. – 19 декабря 2026 г. · VIVITA Telliskivi 60a/5, Tallinn, Telliskivi tänav 60a, 10412 Tallinn, Harju maakond Конференции
• Ülemiste City Business Breakfast: Turning Sustainability into Competitive Advantage Утренний семинар о том, как цели устойчивого развития помогают бизнесу работать эффективнее 11 ноября 2026 г. · Öpiku Konverentsikeskus, Valukoja 8, 11415 Tallinn, Harju maakond Конференции
• Бизнес-завтрак: Почему команда не делает, как вы сказали Maarika Honkonen о делегировании, ответственности и работе с командой для собственников и CEO 11 ноября 2026 г. · Mimosa Brooklyn Pizza Tallinn, Suur-Karja tänav 12, 10140 Tallinn, Harju maakond Конференции