When we were still wearing masks, I\u00f1aki Elorza went to Gizalde, a volunteer organization in Gipuzkoa, in search of a solidarity project. At the door, he ran into volunteers from Munduko begiak who were leaving a meeting: \u201cYou\u2019ve already found your project. Don\u2019t even ask,\u201d they told him, inviting him to the next information session.<\/p>\n
He went with his friends Arantza and Lourdes; all three were convinced by the proposal. Arantza could not join \u2014although she continues to participate in awareness activities\u2014 and Lourdes and I\u00f1aki did join. Since then, they have been part of a team where everyone contributes, leveraging their potential: I\u00f1aki, journalist; Lourdes, music teacher. Both put, without hesitation, their network of contacts at the service of Munduko begiak.<\/p>\n
In November, they traveled to the Sahara to learn about the project that the Foundation promotes in the Sahrawi camps in Tindouf (Algeria). They returned, despite the wear and tear of the trip, deeply proud of the impact on the Sahrawi community. Their commitment remains firm and their determination to defend the right to sight is now even greater.<\/p>\n
I\u00f1aki: I never had any serious experience in the field of volunteering, although I have always collaborated with whoever may have needed help.<\/p>\n
Lourdes: In my case, I have always had the idea of doing volunteer work at the end of my working life; doing it during my active working life was unfeasible. It was in the Classroom of Experience, when I met I\u00f1aki and Arantza with the same desire to volunteer, that our experience in Munduko begiak began. In my case, without previous experience in this field, except for some sporadic collaboration in my youth, in hospitals.<\/p>\n
I\u00f1aki: After 37 years of professional experience in Basque public radio, and once retired, I joined the Classroom of Experience at the University of the Basque Country. There I met people who, like me, had concerns about the world of cooperation; so one day, with classmates Arantza and Lourdes, we went to the Gizalde volunteer platform in Gipuzkoa. Right at the entrance we met I\u00f1aki Ganuza, an old acquaintance and volunteer of Munduko begiak, who invited us to the meeting that was about to begin. We went in and I don\u2019t know if it was because of the project, because we knew some other colleague or because of the need to be a volunteer, we joined Eyes of the world and we are already in our fifth year. It was a totally unknown project, I had never heard of it, but it encouraged me to feel useful to those people in need.<\/p>\n
Lourdes: I was attracted by the exclusive dedication to sight, something different, very important and hardly addressed, if at all, in the field of cooperation. I was particularly amazed by the aim of avoiding blindness as much as possible, with all that it entails.<\/p>\n
I\u00f1aki: Not only was the project interesting, but also, from professional experience, I saw the need to extend the project and make it more visible in different media. We had to report on our activities, concerts\u2026 talks\u2026 solidarity meals\u2026 exhibitions\u2026 it needed more visibility and we are doing that little by little.<\/p>\n
Lourdes: As a music professional, I have been able to contact musicians and institutions and organize concerts that have helped publicize the work of the Munduko begiak Foundation. On the other hand, we have had to learn how to organize activities with the aim of raising funds for specific on-the-ground actions in the different projects.<\/p>\n