On the evening of December 14, the “Wenzhou Youthtalk” international volunteer exchange salon was held at the Wenzhou Overseas Media Centre. Associate professor from Wenzhou University, freelance photographer, doctor from Wenzhou Panhealth Medical Center, young artist, and lecturer from Wenzhou Kean University ...... About 20 international volunteers from all walks of life shared their stories of volunteering and had in-depth discussions on topics as teenagers’ social responsibility and future volunteer service. At the event, the launching ceremony of the first "Wenzhou International Volunteer Service Site" was also held.

This salon was hosted by the Foreign Affairs Office of Wenzhou Municipal People's Government and Wenzhou People's Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries, organized by Wenzhou Overseas Media Centre and Danan Sub-district. Lou Liaofan, Deputy Director of Foreign Affairs Office of Wenzhou Municipal People's Government, delivered his speech. He said that volunteer service is an important symbol of human civilization, a powerful manifestation of social progress. It represents the cultural and ethical standards of a city. In recent years, Wenzhou has attached great importance to volunteer service, and Wenzhou's volunteer service index ranks second in the whole country. More and more foreigners are involved in volunteering activities, and a number of outstanding representatives have emerged among them. For facilitating foreigners to blend into Wenzhou’s social development, Wenzhou People's Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries actively builds an International Volunteer Service Base to improve the quality of volunteer service. In the future, according to the characteristics and needs of foreigners, Wenzhou People's Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries will promote the institutionalisation, normalisation and standardisation of international volunteer services, further enhancing mutual appreciation between China and foreign countries, and strengthening international friendship. At the same time, we will provide assistance to international volunteers in government services, immigration management and foreign-related policy.

Kimberly, an associate professor from Wenzhou University, brought a flag to the salon. Kimberly said she has lived in Wenzhou for more than 10 years and received a lot of helps. Wenzhou people have provided her and other international friends in Wenzhou with a home, so they are happy to volunteer to give back to this gracious city and its people. This is one of the reasons she made the decision of being a founder of Wenzhou International Volunteer Team.

At the discussion session, Kimberly introduced the previous activities that Wenzhou International Volunteer Team has organized, such as book donations, San Le Ting charity project, public signage correction, first aid training and so on.

Hamad, a doctor from Wenzhou Panhealth Medical Center, expressed his views that people’s active participation is the foundation of international volunteering. Volunteers could contribute their expertise in various field to help others. Traffic dispersion, bus station guidance, foreign language public welfare training, and community services...... all of them can be international volunteer service projects.

"Does anyone care about the environment when littering the streets with paper and cigarette butts? Does anyone have the awareness that they are harming the nature when dropping litters into rivers, lakes, oceans or mountains? Are human beings protectors of the environment, or destroyers?" Sandra from Russia, opened her presentation on environmental protection with asking questions. She said that environmental protection is a major problem for all countries nowadays. We might as well start the protection with a simple litter clean-up. "If everyone does it, better future will lie ahead of us."

At the event, Danan Sub-district in Lucheng was awarded a plaque inscribed "Wenzhou International Volunteer Service Site".