18.10.2022

New Officer for our South-North Volunteers

Julia Thissen © Johannes Schermuly, UEM

Julia Thissen takes over the maternity replacement for Lisa Bergmann as head of the South-North Volunteer Program of the UEM.

Her participation in the german "Weltwärts" volunteer program in Ghana laid the foundation for her interest in development policy. Since then, she has been committed to social change and solidarity in various contexts.

The 29-year-old from the district of Heinsberg studied International Social Work in Erfurt and Empowerment Studies in Düsseldorf (both Germany), where she spent the last years working in research. She also studied in a program for women's empowerment in Rwanda and at the Institute for Youth Education in Kyrgyzstan. Her work has focused on researching voluntary engagement and various forms of precarious living situations, such as homelessness. Workshop facilitation is one of her greatest strengths, both methodologically and didactically. During her studies, she also became acquainted with various perspectives from countries of the Global South, such as Ubuntu from South Africa.

She very much liked the start in Wuppertal and is looking forward to work with the volunteers and their places of work in our German member churches. We wish Julia Thissen all the best and God's blessing for her work.