Long-term, individual ESC Volunteering
Bergolo (CN), Italy
2026
What is Vitality?
Vitality is a European Solidarity Corps volunteering project in rural Italy for young people who want real experience and looking forward to change their life. Active since 2020, the project has hosted more than 30 long-term volunteers. The project keeps growing every year, welcoming more young people for meaningful long-term experiences.
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By joining Vitality, you become part of a small international team living and working in Alta Langa (Piedmont). You will actively contribute to local life while developing practical skills, confidence, and a clearer idea of what you want to do next.
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The volunteering experience lasts 9 months, during which you will support youth projects, cultural and community events, and international activities. Depending on your interests, you may work on communication and social media, help organise festivals and exchanges, take part in environmental and sustainability actions, and contribute to everyday NGO life. You’ll also have space to develop your own ideas and personal project.​​
Why this matters?
For the local community, Vitality brings new energy, international exchange and support for cultural heritage, nature protection and sustainable tourism.
For you, it’s a chance to step out of your routine, try new roles, learn by doing and gain experience in youth work and community projects.
For us, as hosting organisations, volunteers bring fresh perspectives, creativity and hands-on support in their daily activities.
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Vitality is for young people who are curious, open-minded and ready to grow through real-life experience.
Volunteers' Main Tasks
International & Local Youth Work
You will provide support to Associazione Vagamondo in the development of youth exchanges, training courses and volunteering projects in Bergolo and abroad. You will also help promoting the international opportunities available within the ESC and Erasmus + Programme to local young people.
We will organise meetings in high schools, universities and other public and private spaces, for volunteers to help young people who live in rural areas to learn more about available international opportunities.
Digitalization & Preserving Heritage
Volunteers will work on the enriching Bergolo Digitale initiative, which digitizes the artistic heritage of the town, makes it usable online and allows visitors to access information on the art works exhibited an plain air through QR codes affixed to the side of the works. It is planned to expand the digitization paths to other villages in the Bormida Valley and, gradually, also to other municipalities of the provinces mentioned, also including the digitization of human heritage, through interviews with relevant personalities.
Local Festivals &
Cultural Activities
The municipality of Bergolo organizes festivals and cultural events of music and art. Your role will be to collaborate and support the organizers of these events. You will also have the chance to propose and take care of the organization of activities managed by you or new cultural events.
Fighting depopulation
Volunteers will contribute to developing initiatives and identifying strategies to counter the depopulation of Bergolo and the Bormida Valley, considered one of the isolated areas of Italy.
One of those strategies is the promotion of sustainable tourism through various channels and offer tourist information to visitors to the village of Bergolo
Personal Project
In the framework of your learning goals and of the goals of the project, you will be encouraged to carry out your own personal project.
Volunteering Conditions
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Accommodation
Volunteers will live in apartments in the same building where is our office. Each apartment has 2 bedrooms equipped for 2 people, plus common kitchen, dining room, and a bathroom per apartment. New volunteers will be settled in the rooms replacing the previous volunteer who finished the service.
All the accommodation expenses (rent/bills/regular maintenance) are being taken care of by the organization.
Local Area
Langhe
The Langhe is a hilly area in the north-west of Italy famous for its wines, cheeses, hazelnuts and truffles - particularly the white truffles of Alba. The countryside as it was in the first half of the 20th century features prominently in the writings of Beppe Fenoglio and Cesare Pavese.
In 2014 Langhe area was inscribed on UNESCO’s World Heritage list for its cultural landscapes, an outstanding living testimony to wine growing and winemaking traditions that stem from a long history. Watch a short documentary about Langhe.
Valle Bormida
The Bormida valley develops along the course of the Bormida river and connects the Alps to the Apennine mountain range. The Bormida valley connects the regions of Piedmont and Liguria, embracing the provinces of Cuneo, Savona, Asti and Alessandria.
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Alba
Alba is the closer city, with a population of about 30.000 people. Our volunteers like to spend time there when they miss the urban dimension. Vagamondo cooperates with the info youth office of Alba to inform young people about European opportunities.​
The city hosts the headquarter of Ferrero company and an important international truffle festival.
It is located 45 minutes by car from Bergolo. Watch a short video about Alba
Cortemilia
Cortemilia is the main center of the local area of Alta Langa with a population of 2300 people. It is located 8 km far from Bergolo.
It is noted for the production of one of the most famous types of hazelnut, the Tonda Gentile di Langa, awarded IGP status. Every August the town celebrates the Fiera Nazionale della Nocciola di Cortemilia (hazelnut fair). In Cortemilia there are bars, pubs, supermarkets, shops, banks, gas stations and public buses to the cities Alba, Asti and Savona.
Bergolo
Bergolo, a village of 54 inhabitants, is located on the hills of south Piedmont in the province of Cuneo, northern Italy.
It is a peaceful destination for Nature and outdoor activities lovers. The village doesn’t have any shop, only 1 restaurant and it is the ideal place for diving in nature and disconnecting from busy city life. Bergolo has a long tradition of music, art and, in general, cultural festivals and since 2018 hosts regularly youth exchanges and trainings organized by different youth organizations.
Monesiglio
Monesiglio is a comune (municipality) in the Province of Cuneo in the Italian region Piedmont, located about 70 kilometres southeast of Turin and about 45 kilometres east of Cuneo.
Monesiglio borders the following municipalities: Camerana, Gottasecca, Mombarcaro and Prunetto. It is home to a castle, built in the 13th century, later (17th century) rebuilt into a late-Gothic palace. It houses several 16th-century frescoes.
This experience may be for you if:
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You are 18 - 30 years old
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You are resident in Europe or in a neighbouring country
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You are available to volunteer for 9 months
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You want to interact with locals and young people from other countries, directly and online
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You want to practice and improve teamwork skills in a multicultural context
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You want a pause from your daily life, focus on yourself, experiment with new things, and valorize old or new passions to start a new path after volunteering with clearer priorities and newly defined goals
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You want to live for one year in a village, in the countryside and enjoy being surrounded by nature
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​You see yourself in one of the following profiles:
Junior Youth Worker:
- You have already some experience in working with young people in educational contexts and non-formal education, or you took part in some international youth exchange or training course and you're further interested in learning how to organize such projects.
- You want to increase your competencies in youth work.
- You can freely communicate in English and are interested in learning Italian
- You are available to experiment with different tasks you've never done, following the instructions and having support from the coordinator.
Media passionate:
- You like shooting and editing photos or videos.
- You enjoy content creation and want to share your experience while volunteering with people worldwide through social media. We can offer a space to experiment with podcasts, blogs, reels, and many more.
- You want to try yourself in developing new strategies to reach young people and communicate with them.
- You can freely communicate in English and are interested in learning Italian
- You are available to experiment with different tasks you've never done, following the instructions and having support from the coordinator.
Golden Hands:
- You enjoy manual work and you feel comfortable painting, repairing the furniture, and working with wood, you know how to use simple tools. We can offer the designed space for your creativity and tools that will help you with this.
- You enjoy growing your own fruits and vagatables, or you would like to learn more about this.
- You have a basic level of English and you are interested in improving it through this experience
- You are available to experiment with different tasks you've never done, following the instructions and having support from the coordinator.
Read more Vitality experiences here...
Elīza, Latvia
"Bergolo for me was the adventure of a lifetime. Many memories and stories make this experience unforgettable. In Bergolo I felt like home and now it still lives in my heart as a home to return to. Who would have thought that in such a small village there is so much room for many deep connections and meaningful friendships?! Bergolo gave me the courage and joy to accompany me in my life after volunteering."
Associazione Vagamondo
Vagamondo, based in Bergolo, in the south of Piedmont region, in Italy, is an NGO focused on European mobility and non- formal education. It provides learning and growing opportunities for young people and youth workers.
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​The name Vagamondo comes from the concept of travel as a powerful tool of self-discovery and personal development: it is through direct contact with cultural and personal differences that identity becomes more visible to every individual; it is coming out of the comfort zone, getting involved in new activities, different than the usual ones, that people can identify room to grow and work on themselves.
This project is funded by European Union as a part of European Solidarity Corps programme. Project code: 2025-2-IT03-ESC51-VTJ-000375184
This open call for volunteers is also published on the official European Youth Portal of European Union. We consider the incoming applications from both sources - application form on this website, and applications submitted through the Portal.