Nadia's experience in Croatia

The first week of September marked the beginning of the “Building an Inclusive Society” project with Amazonas in Zagreb. The volunteers arrived: Marija from North Macedonia, Angel from Spain, and Bran from Slovakia. We are staying in a beautiful apartment in the western part of Zagreb— a bit far from the city center, but with everything we need, and close to Jarun, the city’s main lake.

Everyone feels comfortable in the house: our personalities are certainly different, but we make a good team and balance each other out. Moreover, each of us has something to teach. At Amazonas, Blaž, our coordinator, welcomes us. With experience and great preparation, he knows exactly how to guide us. With attention and a kind spirit, he led us through our first steps at Amazonas. In the following days, we met almost the entire team, encouraged by a “challenge” Blaž created for us to get to know the people we would be working with. For example, we now know that Dario, a Capoeira teacher, is also an excellent brewmaster.

What matters most to me are ethnic minorities and their integration into society, which is often not easy. That’s why, when the “Modern Tribe” program was announced—based on Capoeira for social inclusion—I immediately wanted to take part. We’ll be starting soon, and I can’t wait to collaborate with Vijeko and meet new people! In addition, we have started developing ideas for language lessons and non-formal workshops; I hope both projects will benefit the local community, especially young people.

Besides volunteering, I also have an entrepreneurial job at a start-up, which I follow part-time. The start-up also works with NGOs, and although it’s challenging to balance the commitments of both projects, I’m lucky to have people around me who understand my situation and support me. This too is a huge learning opportunity that I don’t want to give up. Sometimes I feel like I’m compromising my availability for one side or the other, but I hope to improve my efficiency, especially in the start-up work, where many things are new and unfamiliar to me.

On a personal level, I’m focusing on improving my communication skills, which can sometimes be challenging for me, and for this I have excellent allies in my housemates. I’m planning some trips across the Balkans and to Venice during my days off and I’m trying to meet new people who could become lifelong friends. I think I’ve already met one here during the onboarding in Orahovica: her name is Selma, and she volunteers with Oaza, another association in Zagreb. She has an analytical mind and is open to dialogue. I’m curious to get to know her better during this week, just as I hope to do with others here with me.