Sedef DİZLEK

My Green World-2 Volunteering Experience

Between 04.05.2026 and 29.06.2026 I volunteered in Madan, Bulgaria on Green World-2, a European Solidarity Corps (ESC) project. Those two months contributed a great deal both to my personal growth and to getting to know other cultures.

Where We Stayed and What Was Provided

Madan is a clean, safe and quiet town whose nature, climate and peaceful atmosphere won me over. Its calm was restful enough that you could hear your own inner voice.

We were fortunate with accommodation too. We stayed in twin rooms provided by the organisation, in a hotel with a shared kitchen. Shops, restaurants, the hospital and the pharmacy were all within walking distance, so we lived comfortably and in good order throughout.

Costs Covered

Visa, travel, accommodation and food costs were all covered by the project. Only personal trips on leave days were at my own expense.

Both our sending organisation and our hosting organisation looked after us closely from before the project until the end. Because support was there whenever we needed it, everything ran to plan, safely and without problems.

The Project and Its Activities

The project I joined was called Green World-2. Its core aims were to protect nature, carry out landscaping and do work for the good of the community.

Within that we:

• Painted and cleaned children’s playgrounds, making them safer for children.
• Chopped and neatly stacked wood for the village mosque’s winter preparations.
• Mowed the grass in the dental hospital’s garden.
• Cleared weeds from pavements.
• Took an active part in landscaping work.

Through all of it we both had a great time and felt proud of doing something useful for the community. The villagers showed us great hospitality throughout, often offering us food and cold drinks.

What Volunteering Gave Me

Through this project I made real gains in:

• fitting into a team,
• taking responsibility,
• respecting other people’s ideas,
• communicating in English,
• developing my social skills.

I also had the chance to travel alone, which increased my confidence and gave me experiences I will not forget. Working with volunteers from other countries also helped me get to know other cultures closely.

Free Time

In our free time we played volleyball, had picnics, held karaoke and film nights, talked, played games and went on trips together.

Using the leave days the ESC programme provides, I had the chance to visit Italy, Spain and Portugal. Those journeys are among the unforgettable experiences that made my volunteering even richer.

Thank You

My heartfelt thanks to the KOZ-DER family for making this valuable experience possible and to our hosting organisation for looking after us so well.

Those two months of volunteering in Bulgaria gave me not only a new country and new people but greater confidence, a wider outlook and memories I will never forget.