Volunteerism (noun): the principle of donating time and energy for the benefit of other people in the community as a social responsibility rather than for any financial reward.

On the 28th of September 2012, a Greek national entrepreneurship contest, called «Athens Startup Weekend University», would be the meeting point for the co-founders of GloVo and the beginning of a beautiful journey for us and you.
Kostapanos Miliaresis’ goal was clear from the start. He wanted to create an online platform, which would connect young and energetic Greeks to the events they would be interested in taking part as volunteers. However, the following 54 hours would be enough to turn this goal into a powerful, global vision and give GloVo the 2nd prize of the competition.
A year later and after having supported 45 events both in Greece and abroad and after having reached the number of 1400 registered volunteers, we finally put all the pieces together and presented GloVo’s mission and vision for the world.

What is GloVo?

GloVo stands for Global Volunteers. It is a Global online Platform, that connects volunteers to events and supports companies’ and organizations’ CSR actions.
Young and passionate people from all around the world can sign up on GloVo’s website and apply for volunteer positions in various types of events (conferences, workshops, festivals, concerts, sports events, etc), according to their location, skills and interests. Also, event organizers can register their upcoming event and assign the volunteers’ recruitment, selection, training, allocation, coordination and management, as well as the promotion of their event to GloVo. Last but not least, companies or organizations , which organize volunteer service actions as a part of their Corporate Social Responsibility, can assign the organizing and implementation of these actions, or the volunteers’ management to GloVo.

Social Responsibility

GloVo is neither a typical startup that aims only at making profit, nor a typical event services platform. GloVo is something more. It is a social enterprise with a certain and global vision:
The creation of a global community of volunteers, who will be characterized by Passion, Responsibility, Integrity, Motivation and Enjoyment, not only when it comes to events, but also when it comes to volunteer service actions. This is why GloVo’s second valuable goal is to organize such actions and give back to the community. Social cooking for homeless people, tree planting, forest revitalizing and public space cleaning are only some examples of already implemented actions. And there is more to come!
From our point of view, volunteerism has a very wide meaning, from a small action, such as helping an old woman carry the shopping, to the contribution in a large-scale event or action. Having a good time, networking, gaining individual benefits and throwing big parties afterwards are, in our opinion, part of the game. Because for us, «Volunteerism is FUN»!

How does GloVo earn money?

Our goal was very clear from the very beginning. We didn’t want to create an organization or NGO, that would depend on European or Government programs, donators and sponsors for its funding and sustainability. Our goal was certainly not to end up receiving salaries from a dependent and paracite-like organization. We wanted to create an impactful social enterprise, which would be sustainable, profitable and able to financially support its growth, global expansion, fulfill its mission and give back to volunteers and the community.
That’s why all our revenues come from our services towards the event organizers and more specifically, for the selection, training, allocation, coordination and management of the event’s volunteers. GloVo doesn’t get paid for the connection of its volunteers to the events of their choice, but for doing what the event organizers most of the times are unable to do successfully, which is to create a great experience for both the volunteers and the participants of the event. And of course for themselves.

Our definition of Success

In the end, success is what we all want. Some companies define success as the achievement of huge profits and top sales, the defeat of their competitors or their dominance in the market. Well, this is not us.
In our opinion, success means one more successful event, one more happy volunteer and event organizer, one more clean road, one more tree planted, one more active, passionate and energetic young person. And this is because we live in an interdependent society with many opportunities and advantages, but also problems and disadvantages. And in order to stand up against them, we need cooperation, help and honest relationships with each other.

Can someone change the world by himself?

Well the answer is no. But never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.

The GloVo Team

©2024 Ethelon

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