Volontariato: agente di convivenza nella società multiculturale. La persona di origine straniera tra formazione e partecipazione al volontariato

The work, result of research undertaken between 2010 and 2012 at the Doctoral School in Human Capital Formation and Labour Market Relation, is made possible thanks to the contribution of the Fund "A. Archetti" that directed studies on social integration in a multicultural society. In agreement with the fund it has decided to decline the issue of research on volunteering. This work sets itself the goal of weaving two phenomena, organized volunteering and social integration in a multicultural society, giving a reading pedagogical. In particular the work is an attempt to answer the question if the volunteer can be an actor in today's process of building a life together, in a world where people with different cultural backgrounds and different horizons of values they live within the same territory. Volunteering is configured as an agent of coexistence in a multicultural society? The people of foreign origin participate in voluntary organizations? What are the effects of participation? In what ways is it possible to grow the culture of volunteerism among people of foreign origin? The paper is divided into two parts: the first reconstruct the theoretical assumptions that serve as the basis and frame of the work - the universality and uniqueness of the human person, the rule of coexistence in relation to citizenship, intercultural and relational value intrinsic to the volunteering -, while the second shows the results of empirical research conducted to substantiate the claims made in theory, confirming that volunteering can configure itself as an agent of coexistence in a multicultural society, although not yet fully recognized and developed in Italy for this its potential. Assumes key role in this regard, training, addressed to persons of foreign origin to spread the culture of volunteering, both to people who already work as volunteers as an aid to understanding the dynamics of a society - and an organization - multicultural.