There are one billion people who are estimated to actively volunteer worldwide. The 2015 Human Development Report (HDR) highlights that, volunteering creates social value and fosters innovation where markets and organizations were unable to make a direct contributions to peace and development in areas such as education, health, water and sanitation.
Expert Seminar on volunteering and inequality
Expert Seminar on volunteering and inequality
There are one billion people who are estimated to actively volunteer worldwide. The 2015 Human Development Report (HDR) highlights that, volunteering creates social value and fosters innovation where markets and organizations were unable to make a direct contributions to peace and development in areas such as education, health, water and sanitation.
The Internet of Things: Technology innovation for climate resilience in Rwanda
The Nagoya Protocol on Access to Genetic Resources and the Fair and Equitable Sharing of Benefits Arising from their Utilization (the Protocol) was ratified by Rwanda in 2012 and seeks to create greater legal certainty and transparency for providers and users of genetic resources. UN Volunteer Reina Otsuka served with UNDP in Rwanda, supporting the implementation of the Nagoya Protocol.
The Protocol does this by establishing more predictable conditions for access as well as ensuring benefit sharing when genetic resources leave the country. Furthermore, the Protocol creates incentives to conserve and sustainably use genetic resources, enhancing the contribution of biodiversity to development and human wellbeing.
Despite being one of the first countries to have ratified the Protocol, Rwandaâs progress towards domesticating the Nagoya Protocol has been slow to pick up momentum.
Enhancing humanitarian effectiveness through better knowledge management in Sudan
Sudan’s armed conflicts, natural disasters, epidemics and persistent economic underdevelopment pose a unique and challenging context for its children. Today, more than 2.3 million children need humanitarian assistance, 3.1 million children are out of school and 550,000 children are severely acutely malnourished and at risk of death.
Tasuku Matsumura, a HRD UN Volunteer from Japan arrived to commence his assignment with the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) in Khartoum as the protracted humanitarian crisis in Sudan became compounded by new emergencies.
An influx of South Sudanese refugees, suspected cases of Acute Watery Diarrhoea and high malnutrition rates in newly accessible areas placed new demands on already stretched humanitarian agencies and further imperilled the survival, growth and development of the country’s children.
UNV at TICAD7: Youth volunteers innovate for transformation in Africa
Speakers featuring at the event include Ms Aya Yoshida, Director of the Global Issues Cooperation Division, International Cooperation Bureau, at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan, Mr Toily Kurbanov, Deputy Executive Coordinator of UNV, and Mr Lamine Manneh, Director of the Regional Service Center for Africa, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).
A panel discussion will follow, showcasing the power of volunteering in engaging people at the grassroots and seeking to unlock barriers to enhanced volunteer engagement for sustainable development.
Facilitating the delivery of humanitarian assistance to conflict-affected Syria
As part of the international community’s response to humanitarian needs in Syria, the UN Security Council established the United Nations Monitoring Mechanism (UNMM) in 2014. The role of the UNMM is to confirm the humanitarian nature of the relief consignments that United Nations humanitarian agencies and their implementing partners have been sending to Syria from Turkey, Jordan and Iraq.
Over the course of the past five years, the UNMM has mobilized a cumulative total of 18 UN Volunteers to support the delivery of its mandate at the border between Turkey and Syria. UN Volunteer Thevanathan Nadesapillai (Sri Lanka) joined the UNMM in Turkey in June 2018 as a UN Volunteer Monitoring Officer. His assignment is to inspect the relief consignments that are loaded at the border and monitor their passage across the border.
Lending an ear to refugees and asylum seekers in status determination interviews in Turkey
This story is part of the #Volunteers4Refugees campaign, launched by UNV in partnership with UNHCR on World Refugee Day 2019. The campaign features stories of six UN Volunteers working with UNHCR in the Arab States, Europe and CIS for one mission: to help save lives and build better futures for those forced from home.
Growing up, Ann Kamunya witnessed first-hand egregious violations of human rights — in particular, against women. This completely changed her perspective of and outlook on life, and what she wanted to do with hers.
"I went to school with so many girls who were forced into arranged marriages at a very young age or had to go through genital mutilation," she says. "Witnessing these injustices and being surrounded by people who couldn’t speak up for themselves, I always knew I wanted to be a lawyer and represent the marginalized and the least privileged people."
Fostering youth ownership of the 2030 Agenda in Moldova
Polina Listopad (Russian Federation) serves as a UN Volunteer with the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) in Moldova. She works closely with UNICEF’s Deputy Representative to advance the UN Delivering as One agenda, with a focus on women and children's rights, youth initiatives and volunteering. Her assignment, which is fully-funded by the Russian Federation, entails facilitating the implementation of relevant Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by encouraging and promoting volunteerism and multi-stakeholder partnerships, while increasing the involvement of Moldovan youth in the national implementation of the SDGs.
Having volunteered for various causes over the past 10 years, from working in animal shelters to supporting playgrounds for disabled children, Polina quotes Mahatma Gandhi to explain her motivation:
The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others. These words of Gandhi describe my attitude towards volunteering. --Polina Listopad, UN Volunteer with UNICEF, Moldova
Celebrating UN Volunteer humanitarians in the Arab States
On World Humanitarian Day 2019, UNV celebrates the contribution of UN Volunteers and others to humanitarian work worldwide, in partnership with the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). We pay a special tribute to the millions of #WomenHumanitarians – both the women caught up in crises who are often the first to respond, and women humanitarians around the world who rally to help people in need.
Across the Arab States, humanitarians have been making real change in peoples’ lives, whether on the frontlines in conflict-ridden contexts or within their own communities.
Online Volunteering: how creative solutions contribute to achieving the 2030 Agenda
During her experience as an Online Volunteer collaborating with UN-Habitat, Reenal Agarwal contributed as an art and media designer. She produced graphics and visual communication materials for publications on various projects within respective UN-Habitat offices. Reenal's passion for design, combined with the latest technology, contributed to UN-Habitat’s mandate and raised awareness on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
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.