I remember sitting at home in Mwanza, Tanzania, in July 2017, and reading about the work United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme was doing on my phone. As I read further, my excitement grew, and I stumbled upon the United Nations Online Volunteering platform. I quickly followed the link, read on, and in 10 minutes, I was able to understand how it works. I was delighted by the prospects of using the platform. I loved the impact I could make anywhere in the world from the comfort of my home. --Kido Mwamyenyelwa

This joint campaign is aimed at empowering young volunteers between the ages of 18-31, to raise awareness about, and have a voice in decisions around management, and use of mineral resources. The 70 selected ‘Young Environmental Journalists’ will work with the joint Swedish EPA-UNDP Environmental Governance Programme (EGP) to produce inspiring stories of change and build a strong network of young journalists and environmental and human rights defenders.

Online volunteers have been crucial to upscale the impact of Youth Co:Lab’s regional programmes. Coming from different countries and ethnicities, these online volunteers bring a variety of skills to the table. They have applied their skills and knowledge through a range of activities, including proofreading and translating communications materials, conducting research supporting COVID-19 related efforts. 

They come from Côte d’Ivoire, Italy, Bangladesh, Argentina and Kyrgyzstan… Online Volunteers worldwide allocate their time, competencies and energy to support civil society organizations, public institutions and UN agencies in the fight against COVID-19. In West and Central Africa, Online Volunteers have supported organizations in Senegal, Nigeria and Cameroon as social media administrators, graphic designers, researchers, financial proposal writers, project developers, and even as microbiologists.

Over the past several years, there has been a tremendous amount of energy building around social responsibility, prosocial I-O, and supporting humanitarian causes around the world within the field of I-O psychology.

Born and raised in India, Reenal has lived in Germany, China and Denmark, where she resides today. This experience has added a multicultural facet to both her professional and social understanding, offering an insightful approach to different cultural perspectives within her practice. As an urban planner and designer by education and profession, Reenal was able to work on projects closely related to the UN Sustainable Development Goals and the New Urban Agenda.

The Nagoya Protocol on Access to Genetic Resources and Fair and Equitable Sharing of Benefits arising from their Utilization (ABS) to the Convention on Biological Diversity entered into force in 2014. 

When Esther Munene and Lilian Kamigwi founded Destiny Shapers, a community-based-organization working to provide literacy training to young children in the Korogocho slum in eastern Nairobi, Kenya, they had to work hard to convince the families of the 23 children to allow them to attend the daily classes.

Simuka Africa Youth Association was established in 2006 in response to the growing number of challenges that were affecting young people in Zimbabwe. It was during the time when the country was in the midst of political and socioeconomic turmoil, characterised by high youth unemployment, a high HIV and AIDS prevalence rate of 20.1 per cent among those aged 15-49, a historic hyperinflation, declining health educational services among other social and economic ills.

Simuka Africa Youth Association was established in 2006 in response to the growing number of challenges that were affecting young people in Zimbabwe. It was during the time when the country was in the midst of political and socioeconomic turmoil, characterised by high youth unemployment, a high HIV and AIDS prevalence rate of 20.1 per cent among those aged 15-49, a historic hyperinflation, declining health educational services among other social and economic ills.