
Moje ime je María Ortiz, imam 24 godine i dolazim iz Španjolske. Dolazim iz malog sela na sjeveru zemlje, ali sam se preselila u veći grad kako bih studirala psihologiju i kasnije završila magisterij iz kriminalističke psihologije. Planiram nastaviti svoj akademski put u ovom području i nadam se da ću raditi u nečem srodnom što mi također donosi radost i osobno ispunjenje. Odrastanje okruženo prirodom pomoglo mi je da razvijem duboku ljubav i poštovanje prema njoj. Smatram se aktivnom i znatiželjnom osobom — uživam smišljati različite planove s prijateljima, obitelji ili samostalno. Također imam jaku strast prema glazbi, filmovima, knjigama i istraživanju svoje kreativnosti na različite načine. Neke od stvari u kojima sam dobra su slušanje, kuhanje i planiranje putovanja. Život u inozemstvu oduvijek je bio moj san, a moja želja da pomažem drugima i radim nešto značajno navela me da odaberem ovo jedinstveno iskustvo u Hrvatskoj.
Moja povezanost s Društvenim ateljeom proizlazi iz dugotrajnog volontiranja u DKolektivu, gdje pomažem u razvoju raznih aktivnosti i radionica koje su dio programa DAteljea. Sudjelujem u programu ESC (European Solidarity Corps) koji je usko vezan uz ovu organizaciju. Još se sjećam svog prvog susreta s Društvenim ateljeom — bilo je to kad sam u siječnju stigla u Osijek. Bruno mi je pokazao prostor i objasnio kako sve funkcionira. Od tada sam aktivno sudjelovala u nekoliko aktivnosti koje su se tamo održavale i postala dio njegove dinamične zajednice.
Društveni atelje je na mnogo načina utjecao na mene i moj život. Biti dio nečeg većeg i raditi s različitim ljudima učinilo me da se osjećam prizemljenijom osobom. Samostalno vođenje radionica naučilo me biti odgovornijom, praktičnijom i kreativnijom. Osjećam se kao da sam sada samopouzdanija osoba i stekla sam puno novih vještina — komunikacija, upravljanje vremenom, Canva, prilagodljivost… Naučila sam da nisam tako sramežljiva kao što sam mislila, pogotovo kad ostavim takve prosudbe iza sebe i samo pokušam. Također sam shvatila koliko volim biti povezana s ljudima. I naučila sam vidjeti dobro u drugima - da svi dolaze iz različitih sredina i pozadina i to je ono što sve čini ljepšim iskustvom.
Doživjela sam nekoliko nezaboravnih iskustava i trenutaka u Društvenom ateljeu, ali ću izabrati dan kada sam održala drugu sesiju vlastite radionice o samopouzdanju. Bilo je to s međunarodnim volonterima iz programa RISE koji je trajao već tri tjedna. Budući da smo se već poznavali, postojao je jači osjećaj povjerenja, pa su se ljudi otvorili i podijelili osobna iskustva i stvari o sebi na dubljoj razini — to je stvarno pomoglo da radionica teče i bolje funkcionira. Osjećala sam se vrlo ispunjeno tog dana i shvatila sam koliko zaista volim ono što sam studirala i koliko je dobar osjećaj koristiti to za pomoć ljudima. Dobila sam odlične povratne informacije od sudionika, a budući da ponekad znam biti nesigurna u ono što radim, to mi je puno značilo. Također, mnoge stvari koje su podijelili pomogle su i meni — tako da je to bilo dvosmjerno iskustvo učenja. Kroz ovo sam upoznala nekoliko zanimljivih osoba i stekla puno novih prijatelja, što me iskreno veseli.
Budući da sam dio brojnih aktivnosti i mogu govoriti iz iskustva, stvarno uživam u English Speaking Clubu, gdje se sastajemo kako bismo vježbali engleski na dinamičan i zabavan način, uz priliku upoznavanja novih ljudi i druženja. Također sam jako ponosna na radionicu koju sam osmislila — Strengthen your self-esteem — i na onu koju je napravio moj kolega César, Streetphilosophy club. Mislim da su obje aktivnosti značajna i vrijedna iskustva u kojima treba sudjelovati.
Gotovo sve iz Društvenog ateljea nosim sa sobom kući. Ovo iskustvo mijenja život. Dakle, prije svega, nosim kući sa sobom novu verziju sebe koja mi se jako sviđa. Nova perspektiva života, beskrajna sjećanja i ljudi kojih ću se uvijek sjećati. Sada stvarno uviđam važnost ljudske povezanosti i da pomaganje drugima čak i malim djelima čini razliku u većoj mjeri. Svatko zaslužuje ne biti osuđivan i imati iste mogućnosti i biti dio zajednice. Usavršila sam mnoge vještine koje ću koristiti u budućnosti, kako u svom poslu tako i u privatnom životu.
ENGLISH VERSION
My name is María Ortiz, I’m 24-year-old and coming from Spain. I come from a small village in the north of the country, but I moved to a bigger city to study a degree in Psychology and later completed a Master's in Criminal Behavior. I’m planning to continue my academic path in this field, and I hope to work in something related that also brings me joy and personal fulfilment. Growing up surrounded by nature helped me develop a deep love and respect for it. I consider myself an active and curious person — I enjoy making different plans with friends, family, or even just by myself. I also have a strong passion for music, films, books, and exploring my creativity in different ways. Some of the things I’m good at are listening, cooking, and planning trips. Living abroad had always been a dream of mine, and my desire to help others and do something meaningful led me to choose this unique experience in Croatia.
My connection with the Social Atelier comes from being a long-term volunteer at DKolektiv, where I help develop various activities and workshops that are part of the Social Atelier's program. I'm participating in the ESC (European Solidarity Corps) program, which is closely linked to this organization. I still remember my first encounter with the Social Atelier — it was when I arrived in Osijek in January. Bruno showed me the space and explained how everything works. Since then, I’ve been actively involved in several activities held there and have become part of its dynamic community.
The Social Atelier has affected me and my life in many ways. Being part of something bigger and working with different people has made me feel more grounded. Leading workshops on my own has taught me to be more responsible, practical, and creative. I feel like I’m a more confident person now, and I’ve gained a lot of new skills — communication, time management, Canva, adaptability…I’ve learned that I’m not as shy as I thought, especially when I leave judgment behind and just try. I’ve also realised how much I love being connected to people. And I’ve learned to see the good in others — that everyone comes from different backgrounds, and that’s what makes it all more beautiful.
I’ve had a few unforgettable experiences and moments at the Social Atelier, but I’m going to choose the day I held the second session of my own workshop, which is about self-esteem. It was with the international volunteers from the RISE program, which had already been running for three weeks. Since we already knew each other, there was a stronger sense of trust, so people opened up and shared personal experiences and things about themselves on a deeper level — that really helped the workshop flow and work better. I felt very fulfilled that day, and I realized how much I truly love what I studied, and how good it feels to use it to help people. I got great feedback from the participants, and since I can be insecure sometimes about what I do, it meant a lot to me. Also, many of the things they shared helped me too — so it was a two-way learning experience. I’ve met more than one interesting person through this, and I’ve made a lot of new friends, which honestly makes me really happy.
Since I’m part of many activities and I can speak from experience, I really enjoy the English Speaking Club, where we meet to practice our English in a dynamic and fun way, with the chance to meet new people and socialize. I also feel very proud of the workshop I created — Strengthen Your Self-Esteem — and the one my colleague César created, Street Philosophy. I think both of them are really meaningful and valuable experiences to be part of.
Literally everything from Social Atelier I'm taking home with myself. This experience is being life-changing. So, first of all, I take home with me a new version of myself which I deeply like. A new perspective of life, endless memories and people who I will always remember. Now I really know the importance of human connection and that helping others even in small actions make a difference in a bigger scale. Everyone deserves to not be judge and have the same opportunities and being part of the community. I emproved a lot of skills which I will use in the future, in both my work and personal life.