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How YVC Actually Started
YVC started with a simple problem: finding a volunteering opportunity was harder than it should have been. What began as an idea between two people eventually grew into a community of more than 4,000 young people across Uzbekistan.
Today, YVC is a growing volunteering community with more than 4,000 participants and coordinators across all 14 regions of Uzbekistan. However, its beginnings were much more modest.
The story goes back to 2025, when Arslon was preparing to apply to universities in the United States. Like many students looking to strengthen their experience and become more involved in their communities, he began searching for volunteering opportunities.
He discovered several Telegram channels that shared volunteering opportunities and started applying. However, finding his first opportunity was not easy. He was rejected approximately seven times before finally receiving an opportunity to volunteer.
That first experience became an important turning point.
After participating in one event, Arslon continued looking for other opportunities and eventually volunteered at several different projects within just a few months. As he became more involved, other young people began contacting him with questions:
“Where did you find this opportunity?”
“How can I apply?”
“Where can I find volunteering opportunities?”
These questions made Arslon realise that there were many young people who genuinely wanted to volunteer but did not know where to find reliable opportunities.
He understood this problem personally. After experiencing several rejections himself, he knew how difficult it could be for someone who was only beginning their volunteering journey.
This led to a simple idea:
Create one place where young people could easily find volunteering opportunities instead of having to search through numerous Telegram channels and other sources.
Soon after, another important person became part of the story: Parizoda.
Arslon and Parizoda first met at the Coffee & Tea Festival, held on May 16–18, 2025. They quickly discovered that they had similar interests, goals and values. After the festival, they continued communicating and regularly shared volunteering opportunities with each other.
Their conversations eventually led to a much bigger idea.
A little over two weeks after they met, Arslon sent Parizoda a message:
“I have an idea.”
The idea was to create their own volunteering initiative.
Parizoda supported the idea, and in June 2025, YVC was established.
At the beginning, there was no office, large team or significant financial support. There was simply a Telegram channel, two people with a shared vision, and the determination to turn that vision into reality.
The first post shared an opportunity to volunteer at a concert. Gradually, people began sharing the channel with their friends and acquaintances. The community continued to grow, and some of the early members eventually became coordinators themselves.
Within only a few months, YVC had already brought together more than 1,000 active volunteers.
The early team also had to find creative solutions for meetings. One of the first meetings took place near the Palace of Youth Arts. The team had expected to be able to meet inside, but when that was not possible, they simply gathered outside on the grass. Some participants sat on plastic bags, while others stood.
Despite the circumstances, the meeting continued.
Another early meeting took place at Shakespeare Cafe.
Interestingly, the cafe was later renamed Founders Cafe, which became a memorable coincidence for the YVC team.
However, beyond these small and sometimes humorous moments, the most meaningful part of YVC's story is how simple its original motivation was.
YVC was not created by a large organisation with extensive resources. It began because one student struggled to find his first volunteering opportunity, experienced several rejections, and eventually realised that many other young people were facing the same problem.
Instead of keeping the opportunities he found to himself, Arslon decided to make them easier for others to access.
As the initiative grew, the people involved became more than just members of a team.
They developed friendships, supported one another and built a strong sense of community. Today, YVC even has a private group known as Circle, reflecting the close relationships that developed within the organisation.
From a small Telegram channel created in 2025, YVC has grown into a community of more than 4,000 people, with coordinators across all 14 regions of Uzbekistan.
And perhaps that is what makes its story particularly meaningful: YVC began with a simple problem, a simple idea, and two people who decided to do something about it.
What started as an attempt to make volunteering opportunities easier to find eventually became a community that continues to connect thousands of young people with opportunities to learn, contribute and grow.