Volunteers help rescue survivors from Harvey floodwaters

International Volunteer Day 2017
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Healthcare worker Jeremy Sparkman cut short his vacation in the Ozark Mountains. Horse wrangler Chris Pustejovksy collected money and supplies and led a convoy down from Fort Worth. Surgeon Rick Ngo paddled over from a nearby subdivision.

On Wednesday, they joined dozens of other volunteers who piloted bass boats, jet skis and aluminum dinghies through the caramel-colored floodwaters of west Houston to ferry hundreds of residents to safety, part of an impromptu flotilla that has played a prominent role in the recovery from the worst storm to hit Texas in more than 50 years.

“I usually just use this boat for drinking beer,” said Sparkman as he steered his flat-bottomed boat around submerged pickup trucks. “But we come together when we need to - that’s what Texans do.”

Bringing innovation to development

Manon Bernier
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A shared vision and collaborative action through volunteerism and private-public partnership

People around the world are facing an interconnected array of social, environmental and economic barriers to sustainable development. In this landscape, solutions for economic and human development require collaborative efforts by multiple sectors of society such as the private sector — a key player in the realisation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). When knowledge, technical expertise and innovative practices are applied to community investment, aligning economic development with human development, everybody wins.

Volunteers deliver humanitarian aid in cities affected by earthquakes in Mexico

International Volunteer Day 2017
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Over 260 Red Cross volunteers and supporters participated in the distribution of humanitarian aid in Mexican cities affected by the earthquakes.

The volunteer response mechanisms were intensified to support regions affected by several earthquakes that shook Mexico in September 2017. Collection centers were set up and supported to coordinate the restoration of family links nationally.

During the month of September, 236 tons of humanitarian aid were received in collection centers located in 16 states of the country – aid that benefited more than 20,000 people.

Volunteers help people affected by wildfires in southern Europe

International Volunteer Day 2017
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Croatian Red Cross teams deployed 50 volunteers to assist those threatened by forest fires on the Adriatic coast. Volunteers supported the firefighting response by distributing food and water.

The forest fires started on the coastal area on Sunday 16 July 2017, and spread quickly due to strong winds and dry weather. In Croatia, several villages around Split in Dalmatia were threatened by the fire, and many houses were left without gas and electricity. One person was killed in the fire and more than 3,500 square meters of forest area were destroyed.

Flash floods affect Vietnamese villages: volunteers deliver humanitarian aid

International Volunteer Day 2017
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Relief supplies are distributed to families displaced by floods in northwestern provinces Yen Bai, Son La, Dien Bien and Lai Chau.

Authorities estimate that at least 228 houses collapsed or were swept away in this region, nearly 600 were damaged or unroofed and 657 billion Vietnam Dong or 28.9 million US dollars’ worth of crops, livestock and infrastructure were lost.

Within a day of the flash floods, Viet Nam Red Cross Society volunteers arrived in the affected provinces to assist families with supplies, financial and emotional support, and other help from the Viet Nam Red Cross Society headquarters.

In Sri Lanka volunteers mobilized to control spiraling dengue outbreak

International Volunteer Day 2017
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Volunteers mobilized to support government efforts to stem the country’s worst-ever outbreak of dengue virus disease and to provide medical assistance at overstretched hospitals.

Sri Lanka’s Ministry of Health reported more than 87,600 suspected cases of the mosquito-borne infection in 2017, causing over 230 deaths. Dengue is endemic in Sri Lanka, but the number of infections this year was already about 38 per cent higher than 2016, when 55,150 people were diagnosed with dengue and 97 died. Experts say the virus is a particularly virulent strain that is new to Sri Lanka, and therefore immunity is low.

Beijing Volunteer Service Federation deploys UN Youth Volunteers for the first time

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Beijing Volunteer Service Federation deploys UN Youth Volunteers for the first time

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Building spirals of peace in Haiti

José Ignacio Martín Galán
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Listening to how the people of Haiti understand the Sustainable Development Goals and how determined they are to improve this world for future generations has been for me an opportunity to learn, and a motivation to continue sharing, debating and learning with the Haitian population.

As a UN Volunteer with the Office of the Deputy Special Representative of the UN Secretary General, Resident Coordinator and Humanitarian Coordinator (DSRSG/RC/HC) at the United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH), I have had the chance to combine work on coordination, joint communication and planning in the office with capacity development in the field.

Peacebuilding and human rights for internally displaced persons in Darfur, Sudan

Stuart Moran
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The African Union/United Nations Hybrid Mission in Darfur (UNAMID) focuses on the protection of civilians—especially vulnerable groups such as internally displaced persons who remain unable to return to their traditional homes due to conflict. The Mission and its UN Volunteers respond to the changing peacekeeping environment by placing increased focus on peacebuilding activities that preserve gains achieved. This is a complex mandate that adapts to evolving circumstances in hope of making a sustainable transition towards peace in Darfur.

UN Volunteers serve throughout UNAMID’s operations covering the vast Darfur region (approximately equivalent to the size of France). The environment is characterized by harsh conditions with extremely high temperatures, driving sand storms, and limited or non-existent local support mechanisms. Despite these challenges, UNAIMD successfully established a network of facilities and infrastructure in Darfur, including in remote deep-field locations, to support and achieve the mission’s Peacekeeping and Peacebuilding mandate.

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