The English pages on this website are under construction. We´re sorry for any inconvinience Introduction ISU – the Institute for Solidarity and University Cooperation – was founded in 1989 as a National Level Youth Association. At present, it is constituted as a Non-Governmental Development Organization (NGDO) and, since 1991, it belongs to the Platform of Portuguese NGDOs, where it has been playing leading roles since 1997. Given its diversity in the areas of activity, and the fact that it is only officially recognized as a Youth Association and an NGDO, the joining of ISU to the movement of Local Development Associations (ADLs) and Private Social Solidarity Institutions (IPSS) should be highlighted. The whole scope of ISU’s activity develops around three key areas: Volunteering, Cooperation and Education for Development and Social Exclusion. The activity of this NGDO goes further than developing diverse projects for intervention to sensitize people to issues related to the spirit of solidarity and mutual cooperation. In this way, ISU invests in volunteering as a way of active participation in society, mutual cooperation, multiculturalism, tolerance and the creation of challenges. This is the underlying hallmark of the activity areas of ISU, which constitute different projects with their own objectives. With headquarters in Lisbon, in Travessa do Possolo street, and with centers in the Alta de Lisboa zone, Viana do Castelo, Faro, Vila Nova de Gaia and Viseu, ISU relies on a group of hired experts, trainees, conscientious objectors and volunteers for the development of its activities. The Vision To promote the dignity of the human person and its recognition on all levels. The Mission - To integrate and raise the value of the socio-cultural and individual diversity of the various participants of development processes, through the sharing of resources and competencies; - To promote the process of transformation and development of personal competencies, through a participatory methodology (empowerment); - To contribute to the processes of local development, through the complementing of local and external resources.