Brisbane Australia, 1 November 2024 – CVTL has a dedicated team of active volunteers, community volunteers, and professional volunteers. These individuals work tirelessly to ensure the success of CVTL’s activities. To know more about some of the activities carried out by CVTL’s professional volunteers, let’s take a read at this article.As we all know that, CVTL (Cruz Vermelha de Timor-Leste) is a national society established on 22nd of June, 2000. It received official recognition from the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) on November 10, 2005, and from the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) on November 11, 2005. CVTL was also formally recognized by the government of Timor-Leste on September 14, 2005, under Decree Law No. 6/2005.
As a part of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement, CVTL follows the Seven Fundamental Principles, which include voluntary service. Consequently, CVTL’s activities are based on volunteerism. CVTL has active volunteers throughout Timor-Leste at all of our 13 branches and professional volunteers with specialized skills and expertise contributing to its initiatives at the national level. Some of these professional volunteers are from Timor-Leste, while others are international.
Currently, CVTL has three Professional Volunteers in Australia: Mana Karen Stewart, an Australian who supports strategic planning and proposal development; Mana Nicky Hungerford, also Australian, who assists the Communications team as a mentor among other things; and Maun Januario (Ryo), a long-time Timorese volunteer dedicated to media, communications, and promoting CVTL’s visibility on online platforms.
This photo shows Maun Ryo and Mana Nicky in an informal meeting with staff from the Australian Red Cross Brisbane office. Attendees included Mana Patrea Ryan (Trea), Senior Specialist in Finance Development, who supports national societies’ financial management and sustainability across the Asia-Pacific region; Mana Tania Allen Tran, Lead of Community Programs, who manages the Night Café a safe space providing food and support for homeless youth aged 12–25; Maun Mark Warnock, Senior Adviser for Government Engagement in Queensland and the Northern Territory; and Maun Viet Duc Cao, Case Worker in the Migration Support Programs, mainly supporting the “Support for Trafficked People” program.
In this meeting, they shared their experiences working within the Red Cross Movement in Timor-Leste and Australia. Afterward, Ryo presented each staff member with a Tais Timor (traditional Timorese textile) as a meaningful souvenir.
