Volunteering from Altruism to Otherness

Volunteering is no longer a marginal phenomenon. It has become a crucial issue since the beginning of the 1990s, with studies implemented at both the European and global levels to measure volunteer population and also to give a theoretical background to volunteering. The concept of volunteering includes altruism, charity, and solidarity. It is the touchstone of civil society. Being a volunteer implies creating and developing both social capital and human capital. Volunteers acquire personal, social, and professional skills. Being a volunteer also means being an active citizen; it has a specific meaning with regard to migration. The concept of “otherness” may be more significant from this perspective. *** Prostovoljstvo ni več marginalen pojav. Že v devetdesetih letih prejšnjega stoletja je postalo osrednja tema, s katero se ukvarjajo tudi raziskave, s katerimi tako na evropski kot na svetovni ravni ugotavljajo, koliko ljudi se ukvarja s tovrstnimi dejavnostmi, sočasno pa skušajo določiti še teoretski okvir prostovoljstva. Koncept prostovoljstva sicer vključuje altruizem, dobrodelnost in solidarnost, mnogi pa ga opisujejo kot temelj civilne družbe. Biti prostovoljec namreč pomeni ustvarjati in razvijati tako socialni kot človeški kapital, poleg tega pa prostovoljci pridobivajo osebne, družbene in poklicne izkušnje. Prostovoljstvo se tesno prepleta še z aktivnim državljanstvom in ima poseben pomen v povezavi z migranti. S tega vidika je lahko zelo pomembno razumevanje koncept »drugosti«.