{"id":33668,"date":"2025-09-01T23:10:12","date_gmt":"2025-09-01T21:10:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sunce-st.org\/?p=33668"},"modified":"2026-02-25T07:29:18","modified_gmt":"2026-02-25T06:29:18","slug":"meet-sanja-a-young-ess-volunteer-from-north-macedonia-who-has-begun-a-life-adventure-in-split","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sunce-st.org\/en\/volunteers\/meet-sanja-a-young-ess-volunteer-from-north-macedonia-who-has-begun-a-life-adventure-in-split\/","title":{"rendered":"Meet Sanja: a young ESS volunteer from North Macedonia who has begun a life adventure in Split"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Meet Sanja<\/strong>, a young volunteer from North Macedonia<\/strong> who, after completing her degree in biology, decided to step beyond her country\u2019s borders and embark on a new life adventure. Today, she is volunteering in Split with the organization Sunce as part of the European Solidarity Corps (ESC)<\/strong><\/a> programme, where she has chosen to combine her interest in ecology with her love of travel and discovering new cultures.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A leap into the unknown<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The programme she is participating in enables young people from across Europe to develop skills through volunteering, support local communities, and build bridges between cultures<\/strong>. Sanja felt this opportunity was a natural continuation of her education, as well as an answer to her personal desire to broaden her horizons.<\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

\u2013 I studied biology, majoring in molecular biology, and I have always wanted to experience something beyond my own country<\/strong> \u2013 to travel, to learn, to meet new people. When I saw the call for this project, I didn\u2019t hesitate. It was immediately clear to me that this was exactly what I wanted, \u2013 Sanja explains.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Her decision to apply for a project in Croatia was no coincidence. During her first visit to the country, when she travelled to Dubrovnik, she felt a strong connection <\/strong>with the nature, the people, and the Mediterranean atmosphere.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2013 I had always wanted to get to know Croatia better. When I saw that this project was also connected to my field of study, everything made perfect sense. Croatia seemed like a wonderful place to live and learn, and it turns out I was absolutely right, \u2013 says Sanja, who at Sunce met two other ESC volunteers: Martina Cekova<\/strong><\/a> and Jeanne Dournel<\/strong><\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Her favourite places: Marjan and Lidl!<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Sanja now speaks with a smile about her everyday life in Split. The city beneath Marjan Hill has won her over with its blend of natural beauty, cultural richness, and relaxed lifestyle<\/strong>. Yet in her eyes, there is also a special charm in the small, everyday joys that we often take for granted.<\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

\u2013 I love going for walks on Marjan, but I have to admit that my favourite thing is going to Kaufland and Lidl! We don\u2019t have Lidl in Macedonia, and I\u2019m fascinated by how much choice there is. Besides that, Split is truly beautiful: the nature, the sea, the people\u2026 everything suits me perfectly, \u2013 Sanja emphasises.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2018Give yourself the chance to experience something different\u2019<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

As part of her volunteering role at the Association, Sanja takes part in various projects (such as the Swap Fair<\/a> and the Split Biking Tour<\/a>) related to environmental protection, citizen education, and the promotion of sustainable development.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

\u2013 At Sunce we do so many different things, and I really like that. You can get involved in a bit of everything or focus on what interests you the most. The Sunce team is truly open, communicative, and kind, \u2013 she says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For all young people who may be hesitating, Sanja has a simple message:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2013 Be open and don\u2019t be afraid of change. Give yourself the chance to experience something different: a new culture, a new city, a new way of life. This experience has enriched me, and I\u2019m glad I dared to take this step. If you feel like you want to try something, do it. Just say yes, \u2013 Sanja concludes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"logo-eu-sunce-esc-\"<\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Meet Sanja from North Macedonia, who is volunteering in Split through the European Solidarity Corps (ESC), bringing together her passion for ecology, travel, and discovering new cultures.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":14,"featured_media":33658,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[975],"tags":[663,464,741],"class_list":["post-33668","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-volunteers","tag-esc-2","tag-european-solidarity-corps","tag-volunteering"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sunce-st.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33668","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sunce-st.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sunce-st.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sunce-st.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/14"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sunce-st.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=33668"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/sunce-st.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33668\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":37449,"href":"https:\/\/sunce-st.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33668\/revisions\/37449"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sunce-st.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/33658"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sunce-st.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=33668"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sunce-st.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=33668"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sunce-st.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=33668"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}