Meet The Team

All coordinators play a vital part in the running of Voluntario Global. Our core of coordinators is small and each has a specific role in order to keep the organization moving forward.

Valeria Gracia

Valeria is founder Voluntario Global. She started the organization together with Armin in 2006 and has been has been working with social organizations ever since. Valeria holds a BA in Arts. She began her social work in a slum in Villa Soldati, Buenos Aires, where she would teach art classes and help in the after-school support sessions. Today, Valeria is responsible for helping in the creation of new cooperatives that involve young people from the communities of Buenos Aires, like the Su Lavanderia (2008) and Pacheco Community Center (2014).

Armin Díaz

Armin was the cofounder of Voluntario Global. He was a young Bolivian studying Economics, with the belief that the economy should reflect on its own forms and concepts, since the economy is part of the fight for equality of opportunities and justice for all.  Armin was killed on March 4th, 2013 while two men tried to steal his motorbike. He was 29 years old. Armin dedicated his life to helping young people from his area escape a life of poverty and drugs.

Jesica Franco

Jesica became part of the Voluntario Global team in 2008. She holds a degree in Spanish Literature and Translation Studies, and has specialized in Education. Jesica had previously worked for an international Spanish School where she managed groups of volunteers visiting Argentina. She is now Voluntario Global's Director and she supervises all areas, actively participates in the communications area and ensures the correct assignment of volunteers into our different projects.

Maia Borysiuk

Maia holds a degree in Business Administration from the University of Buenos Aires. She joined our group in 2011 and manages the legal aspects of Voluntario Global. She helps as well with the general administration for Voluntario Global and for our two other cooperatives, Su Lavanderia and Pacheco Community Center. Maia is also an incredible drummer!

Milena Sapey

Milena is 24 years old and she's our Volunteer's Coordinator. She joined the team in 2016 and she is responsible for the volunteers during their whole experience and accompanies them in their process of understanding a new culture and adapting to Buenos Aires. Milena studies Psychology at the University of Buenos Aires, which she is about to finish. 

Volunteering is an integral part of Milena’s life, as she has volunteered for various projects and organisations since she was 15 years old  Not only that, the projects that Voluntario Global support allows Milena to bond with the surrounding communities and the neighbors of these projects, meaning that she is able to “ get to know them, know their daily problems and their concerns about their communities”. Going that extra mile is how you can tell Milena is so engaged in her work.

David Torres

David became part of Voluntario Global as a student, first, in the after-school program in Villa Soldati. His best friend, Armin, suggested he attended the program. Two years later, Armin and David helped to set up the SU Lavanderia Cooperative, based on the principles of solidarity and commitment. Today, after 9 years working in this project, David is the General Coordinator of the cooperative and helps youth with their first job experience in the laundromat so they can continue to study in University.

Kristin Nordhaus

Kristin was born in Germany and she graduated in Languages and International Relations from the University of Jena. Her passion for social work has taken her to work and enjoy the Latin American Culture. Kristin became part of our team in 2010 and has lived in both Argentina and Germany. Today she is in charge of coordinating program for German-speaking applicants as she knows all of the projects in Buenos Aires and can also help new volunteers learn about the culture of Argentina.

Luz Méndez

Luz joined our Pacheco project in 2016, as a student, and became a coordinator one year later. She studies Social Work and, as well as Lore, she helps new students and develop activities where youth from the community can participate, think critically and have a better understanding of their rights. Luz loves to learn from others and share her work with the community, as "working together, in a team, potencializes who we are and makes us visible, makes us understand we are not figthing alone".

Lorena Fernández

Lore is one of the coordinators for the Pacheco Community Center. She started in this project as a student in 2016. Among her tasks, she helps with general administration of the center, establishing networks with the different organizations in the Pacheco area and teaches an agroecology course for adults. She studies to become an Occupational Therapist and she loves to be in contact with different people, from whom she can learn and share thoughts. She says that in Pacheco she has learned to make friends, to work in cooperation with others and the meaning of solidarity. She has also learned to think about herself as part of a community and work towards equal opportunities for all.
Who we are

Who we are

We are a network of organizations created to foster collective action based on the principles of social and cognitive justice. Through thought-provoking spaces for reflection, we challenge the conventional narrative of "giving back" and replace it with a more dynamic approach: that of "answering back". This premise forces us to deepen our questions, confront our assumptions, and recognize the complexities that arise when attempting to help others.

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What we do

What we do

Our mission is to empower and connect local organizations to promote improvement for the whole community and take a unified approach to community development. We also aim to create a network between volunteers and local organizations in order to foster an exchange of culture and ideas which can help both to grow in different ways.

 

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Our Projects

Our Projects

The organizations and communities where we work are the main pillars of Voluntario Global. Together with local organizations, we determine our objectives and the type of volunteer we need. Put simply, Voluntario Global could not exist without the organizations, as we work together for their development and growth.

 

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Meet the Team

Meet the Team

All coordinators play a vital part in the running of Voluntario Global. Our core of coordinators is small and each has a specific role in order to keep the organization moving forward.

Read more

How to Apply

How to Apply

As we want to know our volunteers a little before arriving in the city, we ask them to fill in our Application Form. This only takes 2 minutes and dates can also be approximate, as we may suggest a change. If you have questions, you can always write an email to jfranco@voluntarioglobal.org before completing the form.

 

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Volunteer Ambassadors

Volunteer Ambassadors

See what our volunteers have to say about their experiences in Buenos Aires with Voluntario Global!

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VOLUNTARIO GLOBAL

Voluntario Global helps local communities by being available to discuss anything that local organizations need, and offering ideas for further change and development.
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CONTACT

Location: General Pacheco. Buenos Aires. Argentina
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