Interview with Volunteer Ambassador Theodore Conru

Interview with Volunteer Ambassador Theodore Conru

Tell me about yourself, and your position within the organization?

My name is Theo, I’m 20 years old and I study development economics in England but i grew up in Brussels, Belgium. I am currently working in the communications department with a focus on creating videos, taking pictures and writing articles.

Why did you decide to begin volunteering? And Why Buenos Aires?

After my first volunteering experience in Sri Lanka I knew that helping others help themselves was something I wanted to do. Especially coming from a privileged background I feel as though I am in a position to lend a hand. I chose the organisation, not the destination as it was recommended to me from a colleague at University. 

What have you enjoyed most about your time in Buenos Aires?

This is an extremely difficult question to answer as I have fallen in love with Buenos Aires and everything about it. I would say it is the people here and the stories that have been shared that has made this experience so special. What have you enjoyed most about working within the organization?

I have enjoyed working with other volunteers and project coordinators towards a common goal. Being able to visit projects, interact with the people who work there as well as the beneficiaries, and having the opportunity to document what goes on in different projects has definitely been the most enjoyable part of working with Voluntario Global. 

Has anything surprised you during your time in BA, personally or professionally?

I was surprised at how welcoming and just generally kind Porteños are to foreigners even if their spanish is not great. Even when I told people I am from England they did not seem to care which was surprising considering the ongoing Falkland Islands sovereignty dispute.

What experiences will you take away with you?

The people I have met and the memories and stories that I have shared with those people. Volunteering here was definitely an experience which I will remember forever as I have learnt so much.

Do you have any advice for volunteers planning on working with the organization? And travelling to BA?

Keep an open mind and don’t come with a set idea of what you will be doing in the Organisation as daily tasks often vary significantly. Don’t be afraid to criticise as this is how organisations improve. And most importantly, learn a bit of spanish before volunteering, although it is not necessary it will make the experience considerably more enjoyable.

The crèche is not just a place where your children are welcomed and cared for, it is an institution with a deep history and wonderful human values. Indeed, founded by women many years ago, it was a way for them to combine the useful with the pleasant, but above all it was a matter of necessity. Unable to look after children and earn money, they had to find a solution to both problems. So, by building their own crèche, they were able to keep an eye on the children but also develop a business. The beginnings were not easy, sometimes having to bring food from home to feed the children they were looking after because of the little money they had. But with ambition and courage they succeeded and now allow other women like them to do the same thing by getting a job as a teacher, cook or cleaner in the crèche and also to be able to drop off their children. Most of the women working in this institution are, in fact, accompanied by their respective children, sometimes even in the same class.

Volunteering Project: I worked at an English school. Outside of the city center in Buenos Aires (Pablo Nogues)

On our way to El Alfarero, a small preschool on the southern border between Buenos Aires Ciudad and Buenos Aires Province, the two sides of industrial development exist in close proximity and stark contrast.

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