A participatory society often feels utopian but encountering different people helps

Inês from Portugal and Betty from Spain came to Finland to do a period of voluntary work with the Finnish Blue Ribbon Foundation. While they do not see that equal opportunities are realised between or within European countries, efforts to encounter, understand and respect all people have brought them meaning.

Beyond stereotypes and towards understanding different societies and groups of people

As she completed her Bachelor's degree in a precarious employment situation and in the advent of the second wave of Covid-19, Inês decided to take on voluntary work abroad. Short periods of volunteering had already familiarised her with this concept.

She selected Finland because of the better Covid-19 situation in this country and the Finnish Blue Ribbon, which helps people with homelessness, substance abuse and mental health problems, because such themes are not often available.

“I always only try choose things that I have not done before. Many projects involve working with young people or people with disabilities, which is of course important, but I went for this one as the most different choice. Some would say that this is the 'worst spot' of all societies. Many people do not like homeless people because they do not follow our rules. I think it is important to get to know this part of society that is often forgotten about and understand what these people think and how they can be helped. Leaving them outside will certainly not improve things", says Inês.

Betty also completed a Bachelor’s degree, found her possibilities of getting a job doubtful, and wanted to focus on improving her English language skills with a view to later studying for a Master's degree in a country where the standard of English is good.

“I chose the Blue Ribbon Foundation because I have studied social work and thought that I could get to know the Finnish system and compare it to the one in my country”, Betty explains.

Inês and Betty both say they thought, or people in their home countries stereotypically think, that everyone in the Nordic countries is doing well, everyone is rich, and homelessness is not part of the picture. While working with the Blue Ribbon Foundation, they have found that this is not true.

Inês and Betty’s tasks have included making meals for homeless people and sorting out donated clothes. Sometimes they write posts for the website.

“When the pandemic situation allowed, I played chess with a client a couple of times a week. The employees do not always have time for such things, but I really liked doing it. Clients also like the idea that a stranger, and a foreigner at that, takes an interest in them and would like them to feel good, "Inês explains.

“Yeah, sometimes we are for the clients...if not exactly friends, then also not authorities like the employees, and our relationship with them is different”, Betty adds. 

When you cannot change the big picture, you have to change the world one encounter at a time

The third European Youth Goal is Inclusive societies where everyone has the same rights, and problems including poverty or discrimination are intervened in, making it possible to stop the marginalisation of people and groups.

The journey towards this goal appears long to Inês and Betty, as there is inequality in Europe both within and between countries. Both point out that young people in southern Europe, for example, do not actually have the same starting points as their peers in the north: when they apply to Master's degree programmes abroad, for instance, the English proficiency level offered by their education systems is not considered adequate, unlike the systems in Germany and Finland.

“However, it is important to be grateful for what you have in order to help others. Otherwise we might start thinking that we are the ones with the most problems in life", Inês says.

Completing each other’s sentences, they describe the idea that the most important thing is caring. When you start caring about others, you share something with them, and you can also change the way they think. Rather than learning about different life situations, the key is having concrete dealings with different people. Both believe that things can also be changed at the grassroots level by meeting the right people, one small act at a time.

“I can only say that handing out a bun to a homeless person is the best thing you can do. I don't know why, but it makes them really happy,” Inês laughs, half seriously.

“In the end, I am very hopeful about the future. I always try to think that things are getting better, at least if we compare what we have today to life a hundred years ago”, says Betty, for whom being active in communities is part of normal life. 

“I think we often tend to see the future as negative because, as we get older, we start understanding the problems better. I don’t believe that we can achieve a fully equal society, but we can always fight for it, and this is the best we can do. I’m not quite sure what young people think about today in addition to TikTok and Instagram, but I hope they will understand this and not take everything for granted", Inês concludes.

Updated on Tuesday, 17/02/2026