Food banks, waste reduction, and community involvement; not your typical Mediterranean summer.

Ah, Barcelona. The ocean breeze, gothic architecture, and–with no exception–Gaudi. No matter the hour of the day, there is an activity for those of any lifestyle. Out of the way New York, because this is the city that never sleeps. In a similar fashion to New York, Barcelona still contains struggles common with a city. Poverty, discrimination, and ongoing battles accessing legal residency to name a few. Nestled in the heart of Barcelona’s poorest neighborhood Nou Barris, lies Enriquezarte, a non-profit organization aimed at helping those most vulnerable in Barcelona. 

This summer, I was lucky enough to have the opportunity to be a part of Enriquezarte as a Community Involvement intern. I first found this internship through Worldpackers Internship Opportunities; a relatively new and well thought-out project created with the intention of giving college-age students global professional experience. After a short interview and info meeting to help me choose which internship fits me best, Worldpackers and I ultimately decided on Enriquezarte. Their emphasis on group collaboration and community outreach caught my attention, particularly since the community impact of this NGO was very apparent from their website alone. 

My first couple of weeks at this NGO have been nothing short of fantastic. Seeing the real-life impacts that Enriquezarte has on this community is indescribable. I found the work to often be physical, long, hot, and absolutely amazing. Having a couple of weeks under my belt, I began to make a few observations that I planned to write here. 

Throughout my time in Barcelona, I was wondering what the future of this NGO may look like. The organization and delegation of tasks was comparable to nothing. Luckily enough, I was able to sit down with Jean (the founder of Enriquezarte) to talk about how they managed to maintain such a position of excellence and how they plan on managing the NGO in the next coming years. 

Hi Jean! How are you feeling today?

Today I am very happy, very calm... I like the new energy with seven new voluntrainees just joining this morning!

What is the current mission statement of Enriquezarte? Has it evolved at all in the past eight years?

From the very beginning, the main mission of Enriquezarte is community building; to develop a sense of belonging between people feeling far away from their own country and excluded by the rest of society. Most of them are migrants coming from Latin America, the large majority kicked out by the Narcos.

Explain how your system of donations operates. Do you rely on local donors? Other organizations?  

One third is subsidies – public or private subsidies – this third is up and down. It is not regular (and) is pretty unstable, quite demanding in terms of bureaucracy, and in terms of reporting. When we get this money, especially public money, we spend 80 percent of our energy reporting and only 20 percent doing the project (itself)… we also have partner activities selling services, training services, and sometimes organizing events also… The third part is the most interesting and the one we really want to grow is the voluntraining itself, it’s about sharing our experience in a pretty detailed way. 

Do you have a 5-year plan for the NGO? Alternatively, if you had to make one, what would it look like? 

Yes we have and we had, and it is taking much more than 5 years… there were several political changes two years ago that the winds turned not in our (favor) so the main goal is to definitely convert ourselves into the school of humanitarian action… but also to develop skills… 

Would you ever entertain the idea of branching out past Nou Barris, maybe sponsoring/organizing events in other parts of the city?

We are very… rooted with our territory and we are in one of the most vulnerable (neighborhoods) where NGOs are struggling to fight poverty… there is a lot of work in our own district, there are not that many NGOs and the government is not that involved. 

The voluntrainee program is designed as a quick come-and-go system. Do you ever find it difficult to train volunteers who may only stay for a couple of weeks?

Yes this is difficult, definitely, but we like the difficulty… this is how the world is made, people coming for a couple months to one solid year… it’s very understandable that people want a taste. 

You have had extensive international experience across multiple continents. What ultimately drew you to Barcelona nine years ago? 

I’ve spent several years, mostly in Africa, but also in India, in the Balkan area, in Brazil also, working (on) social and environmental projects… I fell in love with Barcelona, I wanted to root myself somewhere where I can be at max (productivity)… I was fed up with changing projects, changing places, every year or two… I realized life is short, and I realized if I wanted to do something in my life and dig deep, I needed a place where I feel very well.  

Having now completed my internship with Enriquezarte, I can safely say that Jean illustrates the NGO in a perfect light. There were often times where I found the work very demanding and wondered “why on earth am I doing this?” and each time, something truly rewarding happens shortly after. 

In full transparency, this was not a paid internship. In fact, I needed to pay for my accommodation months beforehand. What I received in return had no monetary value. Instead, it was a very real feeling of fulfillment and accomplishment. 

I cannot wait to see what the future holds for Jean and Enriquezarte, and firmly believe that this is not the last time I will work with this NGO.